Ferroelectric switching and current characteristics dependence on ferroelectric polarization direction of microwave synthesized BiFeO3 nanocubes

Herein, we studied the ferroelectric switching and current characteristics of BiFeO3 (BFO) nanocubes dispersed on the surface of a Nb-doped SrTiO3 (Nb:STO) substrate based on the ferroelectric polarization orientation. The microwave synthesis method afforded BFO nanocubes with an average size of ∼50 nm, which were dispersed on the Nb:STO substrate surface and the substrate was subsequently subjected to heat treatment at 500 °C for 1 h. The piezoelectric d33 hysteresis loop, ferroelectric domain structure, and ferroelectric polarization switching characteristics of the 50-nm-sized BFO nanocubes were examined using piezoresponse force microscopy. Finally, atomic force microscopy confirmed the dependency of current characteristics on the ferroelectric polarization orientation of the BFO nanocubes, verifying the applicability of BFO nanocubes as storage media for ferroelectric polarization information.