Effect of substrate-induced strains on the spontaneous polarization of epitaxial BiFeO3 thin films

A single-domain thermodynamic theory is employed to predict the spontaneous polarizations of (001) c, (101) c, and (111) c oriented epitaxial BiFeO3 thin films grown on dissimilar substrates. The effects of various substrate-induced strains on the spontaneous polarization were studied. The dependences of the spontaneous polarization on film orientations and the types of substrate-induced strains were analyzed. © 2007 American Institute of Physics.