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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Bench-Scale Development of Promoted High-Capacity Structured Sorbents (Final Technical Report)

The project objective was to develop high-capacity structured sorbent capable of achieving low CO 2 removal from air. The sorbent framework consists of an amine-functionalized onto hydrophobic polymer backbone with an added promoter. The functionalized amine provides high CO 2 capacity and adsorption rates and the polymer backbone to reduce water uptake. For the sorbent development, multiple functionalized amines and promoters were assessed to select a candidate that achieved high CO 2 capacity, high adsorption rate, and high stability. A sorbent-coated filter design was selected as the structured sorbent, which provides high sorbent loading capacity and contains an electrically conductive nonwoven filter substrate that can be Joule-heated to provide efficient utilization of available electricity for sorbent regeneration. A commercial partner operated a pilot filter manufacturing line to produce the filter panels coated with the developed sorbent. A 1 kg CO 2 /day bench unit was designed and fabricated to test the structured filter sorbent. The key achievements from the structured sorbent development activity were demonstrating that existing filter industrial-scale processes can be used for manufacturing Susteon’s structured sorbent and completing a proof-of-concept demonstration of the commercially manufactured structured sorbent filters for CO 2 capture from air with direct, Joule-heated regeneration. A techno-economic assessment with sensitivity analysis was conducted on a 100,000 TPY facility with 85% operating capacity. Through sorbent optimization and process design improvements, it is estimated that the cost of capture was reduced from $\$$349/tCO 2 to $\$$241/tCO 2 . The TEA projects further reductions to $165/tCO 2 through enhancements in CO 2 adsorption rate and sorbent capacity and reducing manufacturing and scale up risks. A life cycle analysis was conducted on the same 100,000 TPY facility and confirmed that the facility’s electricity demand drives its greenhouse gas impact. It was determined that electricity supplied through the current grid mix would result in net-positive CO 2 emissions and that achieving net-negative emissions is only possible by powering the system with renewable electricity or fossil fuel sources equipped with carbon capture and sequestration.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Oxidized structure and Compositional properties of 1144 phase FBS by analytical electron microscopy

The 1144 phase (Ae1A1Fe4As4) shows a strong advantage of engineering fabrication among Fe Iron)-based superconductor (FBS) family due to the robustness of its superconducting properties with respect to chemical inhomogeneities, granted by its uniform crystalline-layered structure. This regularity is furthermore associated to crystalline defects capable of acting as efficient pinning centers, which high critical currents achieved at high fields for these superconductors. Like other FBS phases, its lossless current-carrying capability can be remarkably degraded by distractions at grain boundaries (GBs). GB oxidation is an issue of upmost importance to the realization of the practical FBS application for high field (> 20T) magnet. In this study, we explore oxidized grain boundary and intrinsic grain structural properties of 1144 polycrystalline samples by applying analytical electron microscopy such as atomic resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography. These structural properties of samples produced by a mechanochemically assisted synthesis are evaluated following the degradation of superconducting properties due to oxidation. We observe a strong correlation between the contamination at grain boundaries and the decrease of transport properties of the bulk sample, while the crystallin structure seems to be not affected by the oxidation.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2024

High-gradient performance of a prototype accelerator cavity for a 3 GeV proton radiography booster

This paper reports the design, fabrication, and results of the high-gradient conditioning and testing for a two-cell, π -mode, standing wave normal-conducting prototype booster cavity for the proposed 3 GeV proton linac upgrade at Los Alamos Neutron Science Center. Increasing the energy of proton beam from the existing 800 MeV to 3 GeV will improve resolution of the proton radiography by up to 10 times. The proposed energy boost can be achieved with a compact normal-conducting high-gradient radio-frequency (rf) linac section. The C-band section of the booster linac was designed with optimized-shaped copper accelerator cavities with distributed rf coupling. A short two-cell test prototype structure was designed for the frequency of 5.712 GHz, fabricated, and tested at the C-band Engineering Research Test Facility in New Mexico (CERF-NM) at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The maximum klystron power coupled into the test structure was 8.3 MW with 1 μ s pulse length and 100 Hz repetition rate. The breakdown probabilities were recorded as functions of the accelerating gradient and peak surface fields. Operation of the test cavity at accelerating gradients of up to 100 MV / m was demonstrated. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2026

Dynamic crushing of metal lattice metamaterials: Shock mode diagrams and transition to topology-independent compaction regime

Additively manufactured lattice metamaterials offer design versatility in strength and energy absorption and provide an additional degree of freedom through the selection of the lattice topology. Under quasistatic loading, the unit cell structure can strongly affect the stiffness, yield, and post-yield behavior, but whether and to what degree the effect of lattice topology persists into dynamic loading scenarios, up to the compaction shock regime, has not been established. LLNL’ s ALE3D hydrocode was used to perform a computational investigation of dynamic loading in multiple lattice types, including the gyroid, octet, Schwarz D, and rhombic dodecahedron, under impact velocities from 0.25 to 2.25 km/s. Shock Hugoniots for each lattice topology are generated and compared, suggesting that above a critical velocity, distinctions between architectures may not persevere and compacted lattices behave similarly. Here, to investigate the transition between topology-dependent quasistatic compression and the topology-independent regime above the critical velocity, a one-dimensional elastic-linear hardening plasticity-densified solid (E-LHP-DS) shock model for lattice materials was developed that relies upon confined compression to link the quasistatic and shock mechanics. Unlike similar works, the model does not assume rigid behavior prior to yield or locking behavior at densification, allowing a richer exploration of lattice mechanics. With only six parameters, the analytical model simultaneously fit quasistatic confined compression simulations for relative densities 0.1 $≤ \bar{ρ} ≤$ 0.9 and predicted dynamic compaction behavior to traverse several distinct shock modes, each defined by a critical impact speed (equivalently, critical stresses). Comparing the numerical results to the one-dimensional E-LHP-DS shock model predictions suggests that the topology-independence under strong shocks is linked to the onset of densification, which can be predicted based on quasistatic confined compression results.

Cellular material↗
DOE OSTI2018

In situ edge engineering in two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides

Exerting synthetic control over the edge structure and chemistry of two-dimensional (2D) materials is of critical importance to direct the magnetic, optical, electrical, and catalytic properties for specific applications. Here in this study, we directly image the edge evolution of pores in Mo 1-x W x Se 2 monolayers via atomic-resolution in situ scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and demonstrate that these edges can be structurally transformed to theoretically predicted metastable atomic configurations by thermal and chemical driving forces. Density functional theory calculations and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations explain the observed thermally induced structural evolution and exceptional stability of the four most commonly observed edges based on changing chemical potential during thermal annealing. Finally, the coupling of modeling and in situ STEM imaging in changing chemical environments demonstrated here provides a pathway for the predictive and controlled atomic scale manipulation of matter for the directed synthesis of edge configurations in Mo 1-x W x Se 2 to achieve desired functionality.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Multi-Defect Detection in Additively Manufactured Lattice Structures Using 3D Electrical Resistance Tomography

Cellular lattice structures possess high strength-to-weight ratios suitable for advanced lightweight engineering applications. However, their quality and mechanical performance can degrade because of defects introduced during manufacturing or in-service. Their complexity and small length scale features make defects difficult to detect using conventional nondestructive evaluation methods. Here we propose a current injection-based method, electrical resistance tomography (ERT), that can be used to detect damaged struts in conductive cellular lattice structures with their intrinsic electromechanical properties. The reconstructed conductivity distributions from ERT can reveal the severity and location of damaged struts without having to probe each strut. However, the low central sensitivity of ERT may result in image artifacts and inaccurate localization of damaged struts. To address this issue, this study introduces an absolute, high throughput, conductivity reconstruction algorithm for 3D ERT. The algorithm incorporates a strut-based normalized sensitivity map to compensate for lower interior sensitivity and suppresses reconstruction artifacts. Numerical simulations and experiments on fabricated representative cellular lattice structures were performed to verify the ability of ERT to quantitatively identify single and multiple damaged struts. The improved performance of this method compared with classical ERT was observed, based on greatly decreased imaging and reconstructed value errors.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

Hydrocarbon Speciation in Blended Gasoline-Natural Gas Operation on a Spark-Ignition Engine

The high octane rating and more plentiful domestic supply of natural gas make it an excellent alternative to gasoline. Recent studies have shown that using natural gas in dual fuel engines provides one possible strategy for leveraging the advantages of both natural gas and gasoline. In particular, such engines been able to improve overall engine efficiencies and load capacity when they leverage direct injection of the natural gas fuel. While the benefits of these engine concepts are still being explored, differences in fuel composition, combustion process and in-cylinder mixing could lead to dramatically different emissions which can substantially impact the effectiveness of the engine’s exhaust aftertreatment system. In order to explore this topic, this study examined the variations in speciated hydrocarbon emissions which occur for different fuel blends of E10 and compressed natural gas and for different fuel injection strategies on a spark-ignition engine. Results indicate that hydrocarbon emissions are clearly impacted by the base fuel structure and that differences in the underlying fuel chemistry can produce significant variations (over 300%) in the emissions of various hydrocarbon species. Injection strategy plays a role in the amount of mixing achieved and as such impacts emissions, but fuel structure is a much more significant factor. By using 50-75% percent compressed natural gas (CNG) at the lower load points, total methane and non-methane emissions could be reduced by up to 37% without any significant drop in engine efficiency. At the higher load points, usage of 100% CNG is more advantageous due to the knock constraints.

Hall, Carrie↗
DOE OSTI2021

Growth–defense trade‐offs and yield loss in plants with engineered cell walls

Summary As a major component of plant secondary cell walls, lignin provides structural integrity and rigidity, and contributes to primary defense by providing a physical barrier to pathogen ingress. Genetic modification of lignin biosynthesis has been adopted to reduce the recalcitrance of lignified cell walls to improve biofuel production, tree pulping properties and forage digestibility. However, lignin‐modification is often, but unpredictably, associated with dwarf phenotypes. Hypotheses suggested to explain this include: collapsed vessels leading to defects in water and solute transport; accumulation of molecule(s) that are inhibitory to plant growth or deficiency of metabolites that are critical for plant growth; activation of defense pathways linked to cell wall integrity sensing. However, there is still no commonly accepted underlying mechanism for the growth defects. Here, we discuss recent data on transcriptional reprogramming in plants with modified lignin content and their corresponding suppressor mutants, and evaluate growth‐defense trade‐offs as a factor underlying the growth phenotypes. New approaches will be necessary to estimate how gross changes in transcriptional reprogramming may quantitatively affect growth. Better understanding of the basis for yield drag following cell wall engineering is important for the biotechnological exploitation of plants as factories for fuels and chemicals.

Ha, Chan Man↗
DOE OSTI2021

Unexpected Scaling of Peak Acceleration for a Yielding Mass-Spring System Subjected to a Triangular Base Acceleration Pulse

The use of bounding scenarios is a common practice that greatly simplifies the design and qualification of structures. However, this approach implicitly assumes that the quantities of interest increase monotonically with the input to the structure, which is not necessarily true for nonlinear structures. This paper surveys the literature for observations of nonmonotonic behavior of nonlinear systems and finds such observations in both the earthquake engineering and applied mechanics literature. Numerical simulations of a single degree-of-freedom mass-spring system with an elastic–plastic spring subjected to a triangular base acceleration pulse are then presented, and it is shown that the relative acceleration of this system scales nonmonotonically with the input magnitude in some cases. The equation of motion for this system is solved symbolically and an approximate expression for the relative acceleration is developed, which qualitatively agrees with the nonmonotonic behavior seen in the numerical results. The nonmonotonicity is investigated and found to be a result of dynamics excited by the discontinuous derivative of the base acceleration pulse, the magnitude of which scales nonmonotonically with the input magnitude due to the fact that the first yield of the spring occurs earlier as the input magnitude is increased. The relevance of this finding within the context of defining bounding scenarios is discussed, and it is recommended that modeling be used to perform a survey of the full range of possible inputs prior to defining bounding scenarios.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Hybrid Organic Inorganic Perovskites: Physical Properties and Applications (in 4 Volumes)

This four-volume handbook gives a state-of-the-art overview of hybrid organic inorganic perovskites, both two dimensional (2D) and three dimensional (3D), from synthesis and characterization and simulation to optoelectronic devices (such as solar cells and light emitting diodes), spintronics devices and catalysis application. The editors, coming from academia and national laboratory, are known for their didactic skills as well as their technical expertise. Coordinating the efforts of 30 expert authors in 21 chapters, they construct the story of hybrid perovskite structural and optical properties, electronic and spintronic response, laser action, and catalysis from varied viewpoints: materials science, chemical engineering, and energy engineering. The four volumes are arranged according to the focus material properties. Volume 1 is focused on the material physical properties including structure, deposition characteristic and the structure of the electronic bands and excitons of these compounds. Volume 2 covers the hybrid perovskite optical properties including the ultrafast optical response, photoluminescence and laser action. Volume 3 contains the spin response of these compounds including application such as spin valves, photogalvanic effect, and magnetic response of light emitting diodes and solar cell devices. Finally, and highly relevant to tomorrow's energy challenges, volume 4 is focused on the physics and device properties of the most relevant applications of the hybrid perovskites, namely photovoltaic solar cells. The text contains many high-quality colorful illustrations and examples, as well as thousands of up-to-date references to peer-reviewed articles, reports and websites for further reading. This comprehensive and well-written handbook is a must-have reference for universities, research groups and companies working with the hybrid organic inorganic perovskites.

applications↗
DOE OSTI2015

Historical Building Stability Monitoring by Means of a Cosmic Ray Tracking System

Cosmic ray radiation is mostly composed, at sea level, by high energy muons, which are highly penetrating particles capable of crossing kilometers of rock. The ubiquitous and steady presence at the Earth's surface and the high penetration capability have motivated the use of cosmic ray radiation also in fields beyond particle physics, from geology, archaeology, speleology to industrial applications and homeland security. In particular, in recent years, the novel technique of muon tomography has been proposed, with the aim of performing non invasive inspection of large non accessible volumes, material atomic number Z and density discrimination, and three dimension image reconstruction of the inspected volume. In the present paper, after a short recall of the physical principles and mathematical formalism on which muon tomography is based, a number of examples of application of the novel technique in industry and homeland security issues is given. Moreover, a new application of cosmic rays detection techniques in the field of civil engineering is proposed. The aim is the monitoring of the stability of large structures, in particular the static monitoring of historical buildings, where conservation constraints are more severe and the time evolution of the deformation phenomena under study may be of the order of months or years. The new technique may be seen, in some way, as the reverse problem of muon tomography. As a significant case study, the monitoring of the wooden vaulted roof of the Palazzo della Loggia in the town of Brescia, in Italy, has been considered. The feasibility as well as the performances and limitations of a monitoring system based on cosmic ray tracking have been studied by Monte Carlo simulation and discussed in comparison with more traditional monitoring systems. (authors)

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2015

Understanding Strain‐Induced Phase Transformations in BiFeO 3 Thin Films

Experiments demonstrate that under large epitaxial strain a coexisting striped phase emerges in BiFeO 3 thin films, which comprises a tetragonal‐like ( T ′) and an intermediate S ′ polymorph. It exhibits a relatively large piezoelectric response when switching between the coexisting phase and a uniform T ′ phase. This strain‐induced phase transformation is investigated through a synergistic combination of first‐principles theory and experiments. The results show that the S ′ phase is energetically very close to the T ′ phase, but is structurally similar to the bulk rhombohedral ( R ) phase. By fully characterizing the intermediate S ′ polymorph, it is demonstrated that the flat energy landscape resulting in the absence of an energy barrier between the T ′ and S ′ phases fosters the above‐mentioned reversible phase transformation. This ability to readily transform between the S ′ and T ′ polymorphs, which have very different octahedral rotation patterns and c / a ratios, is crucial to the enhanced piezoelectricity in strained BiFeO 3 films. Additionally, a blueshift in the band gap when moving from R to S ′ to T ′ is observed. These results emphasize the importance of strain engineering for tuning electromechanical responses or, creating unique energy harvesting photonic structures, in oxide thin film architectures.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Targeting 100! Advanced Energy Efficient Building Technologies for High Performance Hospitals: Executive Summary.

This research, Targeting 100!, provides a conceptual framework and decision-making structure at a schematic design level of precision for hospital owners, architects and engineers to radically reduce energy use in hospitals. Following the goals of Architecture 2030 and The 2030 Challenge, it offers access to design strategies and the cost implications of those strategies for new hospitals to utilize 60% less energy. The name, Targeting 100!, comes from the 2030 Challenge energy reduction goal for hospitals; a 60% energy use reduction from typical acute care hospital targets approximately 100 KBtu/SF Year, thus the name “Targeting 100!”. Targeting 100! was developed through funding partnerships with the US Department of Energy and the Northwest Energy Efficiency’s BetterBricks Initiative. The technical team was led by the University of Washington Integrated Design Lab supported by deep collaboration with Solarc Architecture and Engineering, TBD Cost Consultants, and NBBJ Architecture. Through extensive research and design development, Targeting 100! provides a framework for developing high performance healthcare projects today and into the future. An online tool houses a Targeting 100! knowlegebase and roadmap. It can be accessed at: www.idlseattle.com/t100. The webtool is structured from high-level overview materials to detailed library with modeling inputs and outputs, providing a comprehensive report of the background, data, and outcomes from the project.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Equation of State and Damage in Polyethylene

The dynamic response of polymers differs significantly from those of metals, upon which many of the National Laboratories' deformation, damage, and failure models are based. Their moduli, yield strength, and damage characteristics are highly strain rate-, temperature-, and phase-dependent, requiring models that encompass a wide range of phenomena including some not in equilibrium. Recently, Los Alamos developed the Glassy Amorphous Polymer (GAP) 1 model [1] to address limitations in existing models of polymer deformation. GAP captures both volumetric (equation of state) and deviatoric (shear) response, including a non-equilibrium component to the former (a feature determined to be crucial in capturing the low-pressure, viscoelastic response to impact loading). GAP has already been applied to polymers such as PMMA, PTFE, epoxy, and Kel-F 800, but with an emphasis on impact response as opposed to damage or failure. The current effort was launched to address this gap in predictive capability. For reasons that will be made clear, semi-crystalline polyethylene (PE) was chosen to serve as a model system for parameterization and validation. PE (-C 2 H 4- )n is one of the most widely used polymers in industrial and engineering contexts, chiey due to the versatility of its mechanical response. This response can be tuned through network and chain structure, degree of crystallinity, and molecular weight. PE is found in several forms including low density (LDPE), high density (HDPE), and ultra-high molecular weight (UHMWPE). The focus here was on HDPE and UHMWPE, of pedigree described in the following section. Materials were well-characterized prior to study and are representative of semi-crystalline polymers of interest to DOE and DoD. Semi-crystalline PE undergoes a glass transition at low temperature (-35°C) and melts across a range of moderate temperatures (~80-180°C), depending on its structure. It is typically inert chemically, has low strength and high ductility, and the high strength and anisotropy of UHMWPE ber, in particular, have driven its use in engineering, impact, and armor applications. Surprisingly little is known, however, about the influence of PE's crystalline structure and associated phase transitions (including melt) on its response to dynamic compression. A broad suite of experiments was used to calibrate the GAP model for HDPE and UHMWPE. Section IV examines the effects of tensile strain on the structure and integrity of PE crystalline domains. These data were used to inform the preliminary damage model described in Section XII, whose roots lie in statistical physics and network theory. The viscoelastic and plastic components of GAP rely heavily on the stress-strain data of Section VI, which also include dynamic extrusion and Taylor anvil experiments used to validate the damage model. The thermal data of Section X provide crucial inputs to the equilibrium EOS in GAP, as well as the much broader range SESAME EOS whose construction is outlined in Section XI. Section VII details plate impact experiments characterizing the low-pressure shock locus and failure (spall) using in situ electromagnetic gauges. A previously reported \cusp" in the principal Hugoniot near 0.5 kbar was confirmed, and a multi-wave structure was observed over a limited input stress range above the cusp. This cusp is believed due to solid-solid phase transitions associated with the crystalline domains of the polymer.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

A computational study of symmetry and well-posedness of structural topology optimization

We report on computational topological optimization of elastic structures, in particular minimization of compliance subject to a constraint on the mass. Through computational experiments, it is discovered that even very simple optimization problems can exhibit complex behavior such as critical points and bifurcation. In the vicinity of significant points, structural topology optimization problems are not well-posed since infinitesimally small perturbations lead to distinct topologies.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Observation of 9-Fold Coordinated Amorphous TiO 2 at High Pressure

Knowledge of the structure in amorphous dioxides is important in many fields of science and engineering. In this paper, we report new experimental results of high-pressure polyamorphism in amorphous TiO 2 (a-TiO 2 ). Our data show that the Ti coordination number (CN) increases from 7.2 ± 0.3 at ~16 GPa to 8.8 ± 0.3 at ~70 GPa and finally reaches a plateau at 8.9 ± 0.3 at ≲86 GPa. The evolution of the structural changes under pressure is rationalized by the ratio ($γ$) of the ionic radius of Ti to that of O. It appears that the CN ≈ 9 plateau correlates with the two 9-fold coordinated polymorphs (cotunnite, Fe 2 P) with different $γ$ values. This CN-$γ$ relationship is compared with those of a-SiO 2 and a-GeO 2 , displaying remarkably consistent behavior between CN and $γ$. The unified CN-$γ$ relationship may be generally used to predict the compression behavior of amorphous AO 2 compounds under extreme conditions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Insights into the Morphology and Kinetics of Growth of Silver Metal–Organic Nanotubes

The kinetics of the formation of novel porous metal organic nanotubes, [Ag2(4,4 -(1,4-(xylene)diyl)bis- (1,2,4-triazole) (NO3)2] NMP, was investigated by means of ex-situ time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The SAXS results were modeled using the Gualtieri model, which decouples the nucleation and growth processes giving additional insight into the crystal formation mechanism. The results show that the semirigid 4,4 -(1,4-(xylene)diyl)bis(1,2,4-triazole) ligand (L) binds with silver ions, adopting a seesaw geometry to form a polydisperse isotropic framework immediately after mixing the ligands and metal ions. In addition, the SEM imaging demonstrates that the microcrystals grow anisotropically, with nucleation along the edge of the 3D aggregate. These combined data demonstrate that the growth of this MONT occurs in two steps: a rapid formation of an isotropic porous structure immediately after mixing the reactant, which then develops anisotropically as the aggregates of nanorods grow in a preferred direction. The anisotropic growth of the crystal is autocatalytic and determined by the rate of nucleation of new growth sites on the crystals. Moreover, the results of this analysis elucidate, for the rst time, the exact order of the competing processes that occur in the synthesis of these MONTs, showing that their anisotropic growth occurs on the initial 3D aggregate and appears to be directed by the interplay between the surface energies that exist during the MONT formation process. This insight is crucial to the use of crystal engineering to guide the crystal formation processes in MONTs to targeted structures, properties, and applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Revealing the three-dimensional arrangement of polar topology in nanoparticles

In the early 2000s, low dimensional ferroelectric systems were predicted to have topologically nontrivial polar structures, such as vortices or skyrmions, depending on mechanical or electrical boundary conditions. A few variants of these structures have been experimentally observed in thin film model systems, where they are engineered by balancing electrostatic charge and elastic distortion energies. However, the measurement and classification of topological textures for general ferroelectric nanostructures have remained elusive, as it requires mapping the local polarization at the atomic scale in three dimensions. Here we unveil topological polar structures in ferroelectric BaTiO3 nanoparticles via atomic electron tomography, which enables us to reconstruct the full three-dimensional arrangement of cation atoms at an individual atom level. Our three-dimensional polarization maps reveal clear topological orderings, along with evidence of size-dependent topological transitions from a single vortex structure to multiple vortices, consistent with theoretical predictions. The discovery of the predicted topological polar ordering in nanoscale ferroelectrics, independent of epitaxial strain, widens the research perspective and offers potential for practical applications utilizing contact-free switchable toroidal moments.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗