Direct observation of two 90° steps of 180° domain switching in BaTiO3 single crystal under an antiparallel electric field

Domain-switching in BaTiO3 single crystal under an antiparallel electric field was investigated in this paper by polarized light microscope. It was found that 180 degrees domain-switching consisted of two 90 degrees switching steps. The polarization reversal of domains took place when an antiparallel electric field was applied to the BaTiO3 single crystal. The domain-switching process was different under different field intensities. Under a low field, all domains switched 180 degrees through two 90 degrees domain-switching steps. However, under a high field, only some 90 degrees domains were nucleated in the initial period and subsequently all domains switched to the direction of the external field quickly. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.3000634]