As usual there will be practical information and a scientific talk. We will have snacks, just bring yourself and your coffee cup!
Abstract
Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM) is a versatile and powerful high resolution scanning probe microscopic technique to characterize the electromechanical properties of the materials at nanoscale. Properties of the materials like piezoelectricity, ferroelectricity, multiferroicity can be characterized by using the PFM. PFM can provide insights to the spatial ferroelectric domain distribution, switching characteristics and domain wall dynamics etc. at the nanoscale resolutions. As an example from my previous works, the distribution of ferroelectric domains and their switching behavior in epitaxial BiFeO3 thin films with respect to different strain condition is characterized using the PFM. These results are correlated to their respective crystal structure. In another example, the distribution of d33 and its statistics corelated with respect to the morphology and crystal structure of PVDF-TrFE thin films on different substrates are explored using the different modes of PFM techniques.