Detection of the prototype symmetry of ferroelastic WO3 domain walls by angle-resolved polarized Raman spectroscopy

Abstract

The symmetry of a domain wall in ferroelastic WO3 is analyzed by angle-resolved polarized Raman spectroscopy. We find that a low-energy Raman mode at 46 cm(-1) is largely enhanced within the confined region of the domain wall, whose width is presumed to be similar to 25 nm from diffusive x-ray scattering. The wall effect on the enhancement of the Raman signal per unit area is estimated to be three times larger than the contribution of the domains. The light-polarization-dependent Raman intensity at the wall is characterized by the symmetric A1g Raman tensor that is attributed to the prototypic quasitetragonal phase imposed by the ferroelastic compatibility relationship.