Abstract
The past decade has witnessed the tremendous scientific and technological potential of nanoscale flexoelectricity in solids. The flexoelectric effect describes the universal generation of electric polarization in response to strain gradients and could be inversely enhanced at reduced nanoscale dimensions. Based on this unique scaling effect, nanoscale flexoelectricity has shown exciting physical phenomena, promising novel electronic, electromechanical, and photovoltaic applications. One of the most powerful ways to harness nanoscale flexoelectricity is to press the surface of a material through an atomic force microscope (AFM) tip to generate large strain gradients. This so-called AFM tip pressing allows us to locally break the inversion symmetry in any materials and study all the fascinating physical phenomena associated with inversion asymmetry. Although this technique has recently facilitated many important studies on nanoscale flexoelectricity, its effective use still requires a more solid foundation. In this review, we provide a comprehensive guideline to exploring nanoscale flexoelectricity via AFM tip pressing. We also discuss recent progress and the future research direction of AFM tip pressing-driven nanoscale flexoelectricity.
Highlights
The development of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) has significantly enlarged our understanding of various physical and chemical phenomena that occur at the nano- and atomic scales
We provide a comprehensive guideline to exploring nanoscale flexoelectricity via atomic force microscope (AFM) tip pressing
The AFM tip pressing onto a dielectric thin film is a complex process that can invoke the interplay of multiple physical and chemical effects coupled with the mechanical stimuli, aside from the flexoelectric effects
Summary
The development of scanning probe microscopy (SPM) has significantly enlarged our understanding of various physical and chemical phenomena that occur at the nano- and atomic scales. The realization of scanning tunneling microscopy[1] and atomic force microscopy (AFM)[2] has enabled the real-space imaging of surface morphology at atomic resolution. These techniques have allowed the detection of local material responses against external stimuli, leading to the development of many SPM modes. AFM tip pressing has recently proven to be a highly effective approach to exploit the two unique features of flexoelectricity. The radius of an AFM tip is typically several tens of nanometers, which is beneficial for fully exploiting the enhanced effects of flexoelectricity at reduced nanoscale dimensions.
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