A research team has discovered that by using a new method of “atomic spray painting,” they can tweak the atomic structure of lead-free potassium niobate in order to enhance its ferroelectric properties.
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Using a technique called strain tuning, the researchers adjusted how successive layers are aligned to modify a material’s properties by stretching or compressing the atoms that make up its crystal structure.
They found that they could control the thin-film properties of potassium niobate, a key material in advanced electronics. This opens up new possibilities for greener technologies, medical devices, and space exploration, as the report detailed.
“This was the first time potassium niobate has been grown using MBE,” said Venkatraman Gopalan, a professor of materials science and engineering at Penn State and a corresponding author of the study, according to SciTechDaily.
“The technique is like spray-painting atoms onto a surface.”
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Co-author Sankalpa Hazra offered a few more details about the process in the article, saying: “This method allows the atoms in the thin films to adjust to the underlying substrate’s atomic structure, causing strain.
“Even a tiny stretch of about 1% can create pressure that would be impossible to achieve by simply pulling or pressing on such a brittle material from the outside. This pressure can significantly improve how the material works from a ferroelectric perspective.”
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“A ferroelectric is sort of like a minibattery that is already charged up permanently by nature,” Gopalan said.
“Despite not being a household name, ferroelectrics are everywhere in key technologies we take for granted in our daily lives. The internet, for example, relies on converting electrical to optical signals, which is performed by a ferroelectric crystal. These materials can reverse their electric polarity when an external electric field is applied, a quality that also makes them vital for devices like ultrasound equipment, infrared cameras, and precision actuators for advanced microdevices.”
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, a key material in the electronics industry.
“With further development, this novel version of the material could become a key player in the next generation of green, high-performance technologies that impact everything from our personal devices to space exploration,” Gopalan said.
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