Domain walls in Lithium Niobate and Lithium Tantalate: Local structure and properties

This talk will discuss three recent theoretical and experimental developments. (1) First principles theoretical insights into the nature of point defects and defect complexes, their local structure, and how these defects interact with domain walls. (2) The local static structure of a domain wall that shows extended wall structure, and (3) Nanoscale dynamics of domain walls using scanning probe microscopy that shows that the properties of a single domain wall are themselves dramatically different from the bulk. The consequences of these observations for device fabrication will be discussed.