Modeling of domain switching in ferroelectric ceramics: An example (Q1282843)

We present an explicit solution to idealized one-dimensional ferroelectric system. The solution indicates that the orientation misalignment of crystallites results in a local strongly inhomogeneous electric field. The local electric field does not necessarily vanish in the absence of an externally applied electric field, and its magnitude at certain locations can be substantially larger than that of the externally applied electric field. With a postulated domain switching criterion, the model produces the hysteretic response of the macroscopic polarization to the applied electric field due to local domain switching.