Research Lines
FerroEnergy is a multidisciplinary project that addresses fundamental questions on Condensed Matter Physics, focused on the study of Ferroic materials, as well as exploiting the properties of these materials for useful devices.
Oxide Perovskites
This family of materials share a common structure and display a plethora of functional properties such as magnetism, ferroelectricity, high catalytic activity or superconductivity. The technical advances developed in the last decades have enabled the fabrication of these materials into nanometric thin films with an atomic-scale control on the crystal structure and heterostructures with nearly perfect interfaces. In this way, structure-properties relationships can be studied and manipulated on these complex systems under ideal conditions.
The FerroEnergy Project focuses on the study of polar phases (ferroelectric, antiferroelectric) on oxide films, their dependence on microstructure and their interplay with external stimuli
(temperature, electric field, strain, light)
Integrated Membranes
Unfortunately, precise structural control of oxide perovskite films requires a synthesis by growth on structurally similar single crystal substrates - typically expensive and not compatible with current technological platforms.
Hetero-integration of oxide perovskites is one of the main targets in the scientific community, aiming to combine the physical properties of oxides with the ubiquitous semiconductor platforms and the appealing polymer-based technologies for flexible electronics.
The FerroEnergy Project exploits a recently developed process that allows releasing the films from their growth substrates, to be manipulated as freestanding membranes, or transferred onto any platform avoiding the typical chemical and structural restrictions of film growth
Electrocaloric Effect
Ferroic phases in oxide perovksites can be induced with external parameters (pressure, stress, magnetic or electric field), resulting in changes in entropy that can be exploited to produce temperature changes in the system. These Ferrocaloric effects provide an opportunity for sustainable and ecological cooling technologies. Of special relevance are electrocaloric effects in thin films in which indirect measurements have revealed large induced temperature changes with high efficiency.
The FerroEnergy Project aims at producing thermally isolated freestanding ferroelectric and antiferroelectric membranes in which direct measurements of electrocaloric effect will provide new insights into the mechanisms and efficiency of this effect in thin crystalline films
Photovoltaic Effects
Coming soon...
Electromechanical Coupling
Some particular oxide perovskites are piezoelectric and can thus be deformed by applying an electric field, finding applications in ultrasound transducers and actuators. A more general phenomena, flexoelectricity, occurs when a strain gradient is present in a material, creating an spontaneous electrical polarization (or, conversely, a mechanical stress is induced by a polarization gradient). This effect is ubiquitous but small in dielectrics. However, at the nanoscale, it could even overcome the performance of piezoelectrics, holding promise for hyperactive nano-electromechanical systems
The FerroEnergy Project investigates the piezo and flexoelectric effects of suspended nanometric membranes, targeting systems with enhanced electromechanical coupling