Anomalies of dielectric properties of the incommensurate phase of Rb₂ZnCl₄ crystals under mechanical and electrical actions

Abstract

A behaviour of the anomalous dielectric susceptibility ϵ _y of Rb₂ZnCl₄ crystal under combined thermal, mechanical and electrical actions has been studied in the vicinity of incommensurate-commensurate phase transition. An anomalous change in ϵ _y critically dependent of the sequence of the external electrical and mechanical actions is found. It is shown that this effect has the same origin as the well known anomalous temperature hysteresis of ϵ _y and is due to the crystal “memory” conditioned by the soliton pinning on lattice inhomogeneities.