Hosted by: Yimei Zhu

As a main component of quantum materials, multiferroic materials, which simultaneously have multiple orderings, hold promise for use in the next generation of memory devices. Taking advantage of the state-of-the-art transmission electron microscopy techniques, we have systematically studied the defects induced emergent phenomena in multiferroic hexagonal systems. Two single phase multiferroic hexagonal systems will be covered in this talk: YMnO3 and LuFe2O4. YMnO3 is a classic single phase multiferroic material with geometric ferroelectricity. The effects oxygen vacancies, partial edge dislocations, and interfacial atomic reconstructions will be presented. LuFe2O4 is a well-known multiferroic system with charge ordering origin. The effects of twins and interstitial oxygen in LuFe2O4 single crystalline sample will be discussed. The structural-property relationship for both systems has been tried to be established in our studies. Our findings demonstrate the structural flexibility of both manganites and ferrites, and open the door to new tunable multifunctional applications.