This project aims to synthesize and structurally characterize a series of new oxide compounds to include hexagonal tungsten bronzes and Aurivillius phases. These two families of oxides will be non-centrosymmetric (NCS) and polar, allowing for piezoelectric and ferroelectric behavior. In addition to structural characterization, powder and single crystal X-ray diffraction and neutron diffraction, the materials will be characterized by converse piezoelectric and ferroelectric hysteresis (polarization vs. electric field) measurements. All of the measurements will allow us to determine the structural origin of the physical response. The knowledge gained from this research will aid in developing structure property relationships, and ultimately enable the 'rational' design of new classes of materials.
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Fundamental to advances in technology is the creation, i.e. synthesis, of new classes of materials. Ideally, these new materials should be tailored with specific technological properties. A synthetic strategy has been developed that aims to create new materials with specific properties piezoelectricity and ferroelectricity. Both piezoelectrics and ferroelectrics are used in a host of applications, such as non-volatile random access memories, capacitors, sensors, and actuators. Research, however, into fundamentally new piezoelectric and ferroelectric materials is challenging. This is attributable to the strict symmetry requirements of the materials in question a non-centrosymmetric (NCS) crystal structure must be achieved. Current synthetic strategies can now increase the incidence of NCS, in any new material, to nearly 40% - far greater than the 15% observed in nature. These synthetic strategies are leading to new materials with predictable properties, and are therefore enabling the development of a 'rational' materials design paradigm.
