Mechanical force-induced interlayer sliding in interfacial ferroelectrics

Z Guan and LQ Wei and WC Fan and YC Sun and W Cao and M Tian and N Wan and WY Tong and BB Chen and PH Xiang and CG Duan and N Zhong, NATURE COMMUNICATIONS, 16, 986 (2025).

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-56073-9

Moir & eacute; superlattices in two-dimensional stacks have attracted worldwide interest due to their unique electronic properties. A typical example is the moir & eacute; ferroelectricity, where adjacent moir & eacute;s exhibit opposite spontaneous polarization that can be switched through interlayer sliding. However, in contrast to ideal regular ferroelectric moir & eacute; domains (equilateral triangles) built in most theoretical models, the unavoidable irregular moir & eacute; supercells (non-equilateral triangles) induced by external strain fields during the transfer process have been given less attention. Manipulation of controllable polarization evolutions is also a big challenge due to an interlinked network of polarized domains. In this study, we employ a sliding-disturb measurement to examine and modulate these irregular moir & eacute;s via mechanical force. By introducing a curved substrate, the irregular moir & eacute;s are fabricated, and three distinct types of moir & eacute; domains with different patterns are identified and modulated by external mechanical force disturbing. They exhibit reduced pinning forces when the shear direction is not aligned with the strain direction. The shift of the moir & eacute;s is observed to be orthogonal to the shear direction. This work offers an effective pathway for the controlled switch of the polarization in interfacial ferroelectricity.

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