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Room‐Temperature Ferroelectricity in an Organic Cocrystal
Author(s) -
Wiscons Ren A.,
Goud N. Rajesh,
Damron Joshua T.,
Matzger Adam J.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201805071
Subject(s) - ferroelectricity , materials science , cocrystal , raman spectroscopy , ionic bonding , polarization (electrochemistry) , crystallography , molecule , chemistry , hydrogen bond , dielectric , optoelectronics , optics , ion , organic chemistry , physics
Ferroelectric materials exhibit switchable remanent polarization due to reversible symmetry breaking under an applied electric field. Previous research has leveraged temperature‐induced neutral‐ionic transitions in charge‐transfer (CT) cocrystals to access ferroelectrics that operate through displacement of molecules under an applied field. However, displacive ferroelectric behavior is rare in organic CT cocrystals and achieving a Curie temperature ( T C ) above ambient has been elusive. Here a cocrystal between acenaphthene and 2,3,5,6‐tetrafluoro‐7,7,8,8‐tetracyanoquinodimethane is presented that shows switchable remanent polarization at room temperature ( T C =68 °C). Raman spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and solid‐state NMR spectroscopy indicate the ferroelectric behavior is facilitated by acenaphthene (AN) rotation, deviating from conventional design strategies for CT ferroelectrics. These findings highlight the relevance of non‐CT interactions in the design of displacive ferroelectric cocrystals.