| Relaxor ferroelectric single-crystal materials PMN-PT and PZN-PT are currently of interest to the scientific community due to their enhanced properties and possible role as next-generation piezoelectric transducers in applications such as sonar and medical ultrasound. One key phenomenon affecting both the properties and the mechanical integrity of these materials is the ferroelectric domain structure within the material. In this work we examine the morphology and behavior of domain structures in PMN-29%PT. In order to do this we first present details of the construction and testing of a working piezo-response force microscope (PFM), and then use the PFM to verify a new domain observation technique called "relief polishing". Relief polishing is shown to reveal surface domains in the same manner as acid etching, preserving domain details as small as 0.5mum.;Using these two techniques, we then determine that cutting and polishing strongly affect the surface and subsurface ferroelectric domain structures in PMN-29%PT. Specifically, we show that saw cutting can create characteristic striated domain structures as deep as 130mum within a sample, while straight polishing creates a characteristic domain structure known as the "fingerprint" pattern to a depth proportional to the size of the polishing grit, on the order of 0--12mum for grits as large as 15mum. We hypothesize that most samples contain these "skin effect" domain structures. In consequence, it is suggested that researchers presenting experimental results on domain structures should report the physical treatment history of the samples along with the experimental data. |
