Polarization Switching in Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3–5%PbTiO3 Crystals

The polarization switching mechanism as a function of crystallographic orientation in Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3–5%PbTiO3 (PZN–5%PT) single crystals was investigated using the switching current measurement technique. Both the activation E-field and the critical pulse width were greater if E-field for polarization switching was applied along the polar axis <111> than applied along <001>. The sideward growth was dominant in domain switching of <111> oriented crystals. The dominance of the nucleation and forward growth behavior was observed in <001> oriented crystals. The nucleation probability of reverse polarized domains is expected to be much greater in <001> crystals than in <111> crystals, being ascribed to the lower projected polarization value along the E-field direction, higher domain wall energy associated with the pseudo-monoclinic structure of domains, and large domain wall density as a consequence of averaged domain configuration. This domain switching anisotropy may be one of the origins of the fatigue anisotropy.