Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering

Atomic-scale polar topologies such as skyrmions offer important potential as technological paradigms for future electronic devices. Despite recent advances in the exploration of topological domains in complicated perovskite oxide superlattices, these exotic ferroic orders are unavoidably disrupted a...

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Main Authors: Tao Xu, Tao Qian, Jiafei Pang, Jingtong Zhang, Sheng Li, Ri He, Jie Wang, Takahiro Shimada
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2025-01-01
Series:Research
Online Access:https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/research.0621
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author Tao Xu
Tao Qian
Jiafei Pang
Jingtong Zhang
Sheng Li
Ri He
Jie Wang
Takahiro Shimada
author_facet Tao Xu
Tao Qian
Jiafei Pang
Jingtong Zhang
Sheng Li
Ri He
Jie Wang
Takahiro Shimada
author_sort Tao Xu
collection DOAJ
description Atomic-scale polar topologies such as skyrmions offer important potential as technological paradigms for future electronic devices. Despite recent advances in the exploration of topological domains in complicated perovskite oxide superlattices, these exotic ferroic orders are unavoidably disrupted at the atomic scale due to intrinsic size effects. Here, based on first-principles calculations, we propose a new strategy to design robust ferroelectricity in atomically thin films by properly twisting 2 monolayers of centrosymmetric SrTiO3. Surprisingly, the emerged polarization vectors curl in the plane, forming a polar skyrmion lattice with each skyrmion as small as 1 nm, representing the highest polar skyrmion density to date. The emergent ferroelectricity originates from strong interlayer coupling effects and the resulting unique strain fields with obvious ion displacements, contributing to electric polarization comparable to that of PbTiO3. Moreover, we observe ultraflat bands (band width of less than 5 meV) at the valence band edge across a wide range of twist angles, which show widths that are smaller than those of common twisted bilayers of 2-dimensional materials. The present study not only overcomes the critical size limitation for ferroelectricity but also reveals a novel approach for achieving atomic-scale polar topologies, with important potential for applications in skyrmion-based ultrahigh-density memory technologies.
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 2639-5274
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
record_format Article
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spelling doaj-art-e4829d12250c4e8cb0479bae0447c3622025-08-20T03:48:26ZengAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)Research2639-52742025-01-01810.34133/research.0621Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré EngineeringTao Xu0Tao Qian1Jiafei Pang2Jingtong Zhang3Sheng Li4Ri He5Jie Wang6Takahiro Shimada7Department of Mechanical Engineering and Science, Kyoto University, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China.Department of Mechanical Engineering and Science, Kyoto University, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.Department of Engineering Mechanics, School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.Department of Civil and Earth Resources Engineering, Kyoto University, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China.Department of Engineering Mechanics, School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.Department of Mechanical Engineering and Science, Kyoto University, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.Atomic-scale polar topologies such as skyrmions offer important potential as technological paradigms for future electronic devices. Despite recent advances in the exploration of topological domains in complicated perovskite oxide superlattices, these exotic ferroic orders are unavoidably disrupted at the atomic scale due to intrinsic size effects. Here, based on first-principles calculations, we propose a new strategy to design robust ferroelectricity in atomically thin films by properly twisting 2 monolayers of centrosymmetric SrTiO3. Surprisingly, the emerged polarization vectors curl in the plane, forming a polar skyrmion lattice with each skyrmion as small as 1 nm, representing the highest polar skyrmion density to date. The emergent ferroelectricity originates from strong interlayer coupling effects and the resulting unique strain fields with obvious ion displacements, contributing to electric polarization comparable to that of PbTiO3. Moreover, we observe ultraflat bands (band width of less than 5 meV) at the valence band edge across a wide range of twist angles, which show widths that are smaller than those of common twisted bilayers of 2-dimensional materials. The present study not only overcomes the critical size limitation for ferroelectricity but also reveals a novel approach for achieving atomic-scale polar topologies, with important potential for applications in skyrmion-based ultrahigh-density memory technologies.https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/research.0621
spellingShingle Tao Xu
Tao Qian
Jiafei Pang
Jingtong Zhang
Sheng Li
Ri He
Jie Wang
Takahiro Shimada
Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
Research
title Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
title_full Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
title_fullStr Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
title_full_unstemmed Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
title_short Creating Ferroelectricity and Ultrahigh-Density Polar Skyrmion in Paraelectric Perovskite Oxide Monolayers by Moiré Engineering
title_sort creating ferroelectricity and ultrahigh density polar skyrmion in paraelectric perovskite oxide monolayers by moire engineering
url https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/research.0621
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