Dependence of domain stability on the thickness of the tetragonal 0.88Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-0.12PbTiO3 single crystal

The thickness dependence of the domain stability in tetragonal 0.88Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3-12PbTiO3 single crystals poled along the <001> direction was studied with unipolar strain measurements and a polarizing microscope. After the high-temperature poling process, thick samples (> ∼0.9 mm) had stable single-c-domain states and show small hysteresis. However, as the samples became thinner, they showed large hysteresis and electrostrictive strains due to domain switching from a- and b-domain to c-domain configuration. A polarizing optical microscope confirmed the existence of a- and b-domain structures in the thin samples.