Bistable dielectric switching attainable by interfacial polarization modulation for high safety and low power consumption

Abstract

Dielectric switching composites independent of electronic or ionic relaxation polarization are extremely rare but urgently in demand, typically for the stimulus-responsive electronics with high safety requirements. Herein, we demonstrate that it is feasible to create a bistable, abrupt, reversible, and self-supporting dielectric switching composite in the absence of a conducting constituent relying only on interfacial polarization and micro-interface modulation. This polarization modulation relies on the micro-interface evolution induced by the reversible migration of barium titanate nanoparticles. We observe a well-defined bistable dielectric switching behavior with excellent flexibility and strength and small dielectric loss, which occurs over a narrow temperature region of 5 ℃. There is a thermal hysteresis as wide as about 28 ℃ observed upon heating/cooling cycles. This work enables a comprehensive understanding of the dielectric switching mechanism and demonstrates that bistable dielectric switching can be achieved in mechanically tough composites with higher safety and lower power consumption.