Flexoelectricity in Nanostructures: Theory, Nanofabrication and Characterization
Abstract
The objective of this project is to investigate, theoretically and experimentally, the flexoelectricity at nanometer scale, and explore the feasibility of using flexoelectric micro/nanostructures for novel sensing including seismic, acoustic and IR detections. FE induced effective piezoelectric properties in FE nanostructures could be a few order of magnitudes higher over their conventional bulk materials properties, which will lead to ultrasensitive electromechanical sensors using FE nanostructures. Moreover, flexoelectricity exists in static inhomogeneous deformation. This may mean that electromechanical devices made of FE structures hold the potential of operation over an unprecedented broad bandwidth. The other objective of this research is to understand flexoelectricity of advance flexoelectric (FE) materials in a thermal field where temperature gradient exists. The hypothesis is that when a FE structure is exposed to a thermal field, both direct and converse flexoelectricity can be observed, leading to new electromechanical transduction mechanism. Our recent study on flexoelectrics suggests that FE can be promising for novel electromechanical transduction because of the favorable scaling effect. However, the presence of concurrent electric field gradient and strain/stress gradient in a FE structure has been a challenge, though it is desired to the implementation of flexoelectric structures in many applications. Therefore, the FEnanostructures can enable ultra-sensitive sensing of environmental parameters at a much broader frequency range as long as these parameters change can induce inhomogeneous strain/stress field. Motivated by recent progress on FE structure and micro/nanofabrication technology, the proposed research efforts will, for the first time, study the flexoelectricity at nanometer scale using a combined theoretical and experimental approach.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jun 25, 2021
- Source ID
- W911NF1110516
Entities
People
- Xiaoning Jiang
Organizations
- Army Contracting Command
- North Carolina State University
- United States Army