The conditions for domain structure activation in a narrow temperature range from the critical temperature Td to the Curie temperature TС are demonstrated. This temperature range allows for irradiation of the crystal surface with charged particles (electrons, ions) and the study of their interaction with the ferroelectric. This temperature activation of the ferroelectric domain structure occurs at the critical temperature Td, which, depending on the chemical composition of the ferroelectric and the type of its crystal lattice, can be lower than the Curie temperature TС by 10–30 K. Based on an analysis of the temperature dependence of the permittivity of BaTiO3 and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 ferroelectrics with a perovskite structure, the activation energies for this process were determined: U = 1–5 eV. The obtained domain structure activation energies can be used to determine the ferroelectric domain width during the transition of the domain structure from an equilibrium to a nonequilibrium state by solving the equation for minimizing the elastic energy of the domain walls and the energy of the depolarizing field. It is proposed to investigate the activation features of the domain structure of ferroelectrics at such energies using the reflectivity of very low-energy electrons (<10 eV) from solid conducting surfaces. This seems feasible given that in the vicinity of the ferroelectric phase transition (near the Curie point), a significant increase (by an order of magnitude) in the electrical conductivity and permittivity of the ferroelectric occurs.
D. V. Kuzenko (Mon,) studied this question.