Nanoscale electromechanics of ferroelectric and biological systems: A new dimension in scanning probe microscopy

Functionality of biological and inorganic systems ranging from nonvolatile computer memories and microelectromechanical systems to electromotor proteins and cellular membranes is ultimately based on the intricate coupling between electrical and mechanical phenomena. In the past decade, piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) has been established as a powerful tool for nanoscale imaging, spectroscopy, and manipulation of ferroelectric and piezoelectric materials. Here, we give an overview of the fundamental image formation mechanism in PFM and summarize recent theoretical and technological advances. In particular, we show that the signal formation in PFM is complementary to that in the scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques, and we discuss the implications. We also consider the prospect of extending PFM beyond ferroelectric characterization for quantitative probing of electromechanical behavior in molecular and biological systems and high-resolution probing of static and dynamic polarization switching processes in low-dimensional ferroelectric materials and heterostructures.