%AShi, Qiwu%AParsonnet, Eric%ACheng, Xiaoxing%AFedorova, Natalya%APeng, Ren-Ci%AFernandez, Abel%AQualls, Alexander%AHuang, Xiaoxi%AChang, Xue%AZhang, Hongrui%APesquera, David%ADas, Sujit%ANikonov, Dmitri%AYoung, Ian%AChen, Long-Qing%AMartin, Lane%AHuang, Yen-Lin%AÍñiguez, Jorge%ARamesh, Ramamoorthy%BJournal Name: Nature Communications; Journal Volume: 13; Journal Issue: 1 %D2022%I %JJournal Name: Nature Communications; Journal Volume: 13; Journal Issue: 1 %K %MOSTI ID: 10331643 %PMedium: X %TThe role of lattice dynamics in ferroelectric switching %XAbstract Reducing the switching energy of ferroelectric thin films remains an important goal in the pursuit of ultralow-power ferroelectric memory and logic devices. Here, we elucidate the fundamental role of lattice dynamics in ferroelectric switching by studying both freestanding bismuth ferrite (BiFeO 3 ) membranes and films clamped to a substrate. We observe a distinct evolution of the ferroelectric domain pattern, from striped, 71° ferroelastic domains (spacing of ~100 nm) in clamped BiFeO 3 films, to large (10’s of micrometers) 180° domains in freestanding films. By removing the constraints imposed by mechanical clamping from the substrate, we can realize a ~40% reduction of the switching voltage and a consequent ~60% improvement in the switching speed. Our findings highlight the importance of a dynamic clamping process occurring during switching, which impacts strain, ferroelectric, and ferrodistortive order parameters and plays a critical role in setting the energetics and dynamics of ferroelectric switching. %0Journal Article