Novel Study of Strain-Induced Piezoelectricity in VO2

[Image: see text] VO(2) is well known for its dual-phase transitions, electrical and structural, at a single temperature of 340 K. The low-temperature structural phases of VO(2) are different from their high-temperature counterpart in terms of structural symmetry. The strain-induced modification of the structural distortion in VO(2) is studied in detail. A ferroelectric-type distortion is observed, and therefore, the piezoelectric effect in the low-temperature phases of VO(2) is investigated, for the first time, by piezoresponse force microscopy. Strain is one of the factors that can modify the electronic behavior of piezoelectric materials. At the same time, the two low-temperature phases of VO(2) (M1 and M2) can only be separated by the application of strain. The piezoelectric coefficient in the strained phase of VO(2) was found to be 11–12 pm/V, making it eligible for piezotronic applications.