Electrocaloric Effect in Different Oriented BaZrTiO Single Crystals.

The electrocaloric effect of ferroelectrics is promising for new solid-state refrigeration. However, the current research on the electrocaloric effect of bulk ferroelectrics mainly focuses on (001) orientation. Thus, we studied the electrocaloric effect of BaZrTiO single crystals with different orientations through the nonlinear thermodynamic approach and entropy analysis. The results show that the dipolar entropy of (111)-oriented BaZrTiO single crystals exhibits a greater change after applying an external electric field, compared with (001)- and (110)-orientations, and the (001)-oriented electrocaloric responses are consistent with experimental observations. The (111)-oriented BaZrTiO single crystals have a more significant electrocaloric response, resulting in a broader work temperature range with a large electrocaloric effect. These insights offer an alternative way to enhance the electrocaloric response of ferroelectric single crystals.