Buy article online - an online subscription or single-article purchase is required to access this article.
research papers
A complex pattern of opposite and antiparallel periodic poled domains in LiNbO3 single crystals has been studied by X-ray topography. The antiparallel periodic poled domains appear directly at the growth interface during the growth in alternating crescent-shaped (CS) domains. The measured Li/Nb ratio is higher in the CS domains than in other zones. A model of the electric fields responsible for the observed configuration is proposed, connected to the role of the Li atom. Diffraction contrast associated with the different domain walls is examined and different kinds of dislocations associated with the ferroelectric domains are also studied, determining their geometrical characters.