Fast ferroelectric domain wall motion in BiAlO3

The ferroelectric domain wall motion was investigated in epitaxial PbTiO3 and BiAlO3 thin films on SrRuO3/SrTiO3 substrates. To determine the switching speeds of two ferroelectric capacitors consisting of PbTiO3 and BiAlO3 thin films, the switching currents of the two capacitors were measured as a function of time. The BiAlO3 thin film showed faster switching behavior than the PbTiO3 thin film. Data from a piezoelectric force microscope study indicated that the high domain wall motion of the BiAlO3 thin film is due to its low activation energy.