Peculiarities of Ferro-Antiferroelectric Phase Transitions 9. Can the Substances with Coexisting Ferroelectric and Antiferroelectric Phases Mimic the Dipole-Glass Behavior?

Abstract

We demonstrate that the substances with coexisting ferroelectric and antiferroelectric phases possess properties characteristic for the “dipole glasses”. Possible phase diagrams of such substances are discussed. Main attention is paid to the long-time relaxation of physical characteristics of these compounds after their thermodynamic equilibrium was disturbed by external influences. The long-time relaxation and the pronounced frequency dependence of parameters (for example, dependence of characteristics on the frequency of measuring field) are the main features due to which these systems are classified as dipole glasses. Our main purpose is to call attention to the fact that one has to be cautious during the interpretation of experimental results in substances with inhomogeneous states of coexisting domains of ferroelectric and antiferroelectric phases.

Keywords:

• Ferroelectric
• antiferroelectric
• phase transitions
• coexistence of phases
• dipole glass

PACS numbers:

• 77.84.-s
• 77.80.Dj
• 77.80.B-
• 77.80.bn