Ferroelastic domain wall motion and collective domain switching in RbSCN
- Author(s)
- V. Soprunyuk, A. Tröster, J. Pils, W. Schranz, I. Rychetsky, A. Klic, M. A. Carpenter
- Abstract
Low-frequency (0.05-40 Hz) dynamic elastic measurements and resonant ultrasound spectroscopy measurements (100-600 kHz) of RbSCN were performed in the temperature region of the order-disorder improper ferroelastic phase transition at T-c approximate to 435 K. Quite similar to KSCN, the low-frequency data show, in addition to the intrinsic phase transition anomalies, superelastic softening in the a and b directions, resulting from movements of ferroelastic domain walls under dynamic stress. However, in contrast to KSCN, a sudden discontinuous increase of Young's modulus appears in RbSCN at T-& lowast; < T-c, which is accompanied by a frequency-dependent damping peak. This behavior is reminiscent of a first-order phase transition. Heating RbSCN slightly above T-& lowast;, followed by subsequent cooling, removes all signs of domain wall dynamics. The results demonstrate that the anomalies in RbSCN around T-& lowast; result from collective domain switching events that are induced when the temperature-dependent critical pinning stress sigma(c)(T ) falls below the applied external stress sigma, implying that T-& lowast;(sigma = sigma(c)). This interpretation is supported by calculations of the temperature dependences of twin boundary widths w and energies F-w, as well as the Peierls potential V-0 using a compressible pseudospin model, which leads to a critical pinning stress sigma(c)(T ) that is in excellent agreement with experimental values of T-& lowast;(sigma(c)).
- Organisation(s)
- Computational and Soft Matter Physics, Physics of Functional Materials
- External organisation(s)
- Technische Universität Wien, Czech Academy of Sciences, University of Cambridge
- Journal
- Physical Review B
- Volume
- 114
- No. of pages
- 10
- ISSN
- 2469-9950
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2606.30125
- Publication date
- 07-2026
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 103018 Materials physics, 104011 Materials chemistry
- Portal url
- https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/d9d8a62d-7992-411d-8a52-a52d3b0970f5