Imaging Nanoscale Polar Textures in Quantum Paraelectric SrTiO3
Quantum paraelectric strontium titanate (SrTiO3) maintains a delicate quantum ground state just fractions of a degree above absolute zero, preventing the material from sliding into permanent ferroelectricity unless researchers apply specific external triggers. Orenstein and colleagues in Nature Physics, this quantum mechanical balancing act involves complex polarization density waves that govern the material’s structural phases. … Read more