Abstract
Ferroelectric polymer nanowires grown using a template‐wetting method are shown to achieve an orientated “self‐poled” structure resulting from the confined growth process. Self‐poling is highly desirable as it negates the need for high electric fields, mechanical stretching, and/or high temperatures typically associated with poling treatments in ferroelectric polymers, as required for piezoelectric and/or pyroelectric applications. Here, differential scanning calorimetry, infrared spectroscopy, and dielectric permittivity measurements have been presented on as‐fabricated template‐grown polyvinylidene fluoride‐trifluoroethylene nanowires, and quantitatively compared with spin‐cast films of the same composition that have been electrically poled, both before and after subsequent depoling temperature treatment. The measurements reveal remarkably similar trends between the physical properties of the as‐grown nanowires and the electrically poled film samples, providing insight into the material structure of the “self‐poled” nanowires. In addition, piezoresponse force microscopy data are presented that allow for unambiguous identification of self‐poling in ferroelectric polymer nanostructures. Our results indicate the suitability of the template‐wetting approach in fabricating nanowires that can be used directly for piezoelectric/pyroelectric applications, without the need for post‐deposition poling/processing.image
Highlights
Organic ferroelectric polymers have recently attracted increasing scientific interest due to a combination of highly desirable material properties and technological advances
The similarities observed in the physical properties of the template-grown nanowires and poled films, in conjunction with the piezo-response force microscopy (PFM) results, clearly indicate the self-poled nature of the nanowires, as induced by the confined template-assisted growth process
The nanowires fabricated in polyimide templates are seen to have high enthalpy values, close to the poled film, indicating a high crystallinity, though the slight increase in Curie temperature is indicative of the presence of some gauche defects
Summary
Organic ferroelectric polymers have recently attracted increasing scientific interest due to a combination of highly desirable material properties and technological advances. Despite exhibiting weaker piezoelectric properties than commonly used ferroelectric ceramics[1] (such as barium titanate and lead zirconium titanate) their piezoelectric properties are still technologically viable[2] while simultaneously possessing a range of advantages over ceramics including being flexible, low-temperature and solution-processable, light weight, non-toxic and biocompatible, chemically robust and mechanically stable.[3] The recent surge in interest has arisen from their suitability in a range of developing technologies such as sensing,[4] actuation[5], non-volatile memory[6,7,8] and vibrational energy harvesting applications.[2,3] For piezoelectric/pyroelectric applications in particular, there is a requirement for the material to be poled, i.e. to have orientated dipoles, in order for the piezoelectricity/pyroelectricity to manifest This is typically achieved through externally applied electric fields, high temperatures and/or mechanical stretching. The results were compared to determine the presence and extent of the self-poled nature of the nanowires as induced by the confinement effect of the template wetting growth process
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