Super-Flexible Freestanding BiMnO3 Membranes with Stable Ferroelectricity and Ferromagnetism

Multiferroic materials with flexibility are expected to make great contributions to flexible electronic applications, such as sensors, memories, and wearable devices. In this work, super-flexible freestanding BiMnO3 membranes with simultaneous ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism are synthesized using water-soluble Sr3Al2O6 as the sacrificial buffer layer. The super-flexibility of BiMnO3 membranes is demonstrated by undergoing an approximate to 180 degrees folding during an in situ bending test, which is consistent with the results of first-principles calculations. The piezoelectric signal under a bending radius of approximate to 500 mu m confirms the stable existence of electric polarization in freestanding BiMnO3 membranes. Moreover, the stable ferromagnetism of freestanding BiMnO3 membranes is demonstrated after 100 times bending cycles with a bending radius of approximate to 2 mm. 5.1% uniaxial tensile strain is achieved in freestanding BiMnO3 membranes, and the piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) phase retention behaviors confirm that the ferroelectricity of membranes can survive stably up to the strain of 1.7%. These super-flexible membranes with stable ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism pave ways to the realizations of multifunctional flexible electronics.

Automated summary

This study successfully synthesized super-flexible freestanding BiMnO3 membranes with both ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism, demonstrating their flexibility and stability during bending, paving the way for multifunctional flexible electronic devices.