Effect of uniaxial stress fields on the domain selection of epitaxial ferroelectric films

The effect of uniaxial external stress fields applied during the cooling down from the deposition temperature on the domain structure of epitaxial ferroelectric or ferroelastic films is investigated using the domain stability map. This map predicts stable domain structures and is constructed in the coordinates of the misfit strain between the cubic substrate and the film, and the tetragonality of the film. It is shown that with the application of a stress field perpendicular to the film-substrate interface, perfectly c-axis oriented films may be obtained.