American Institute of Physics, Applied Physics Letters, 26(93), p. 262905
DOI: 10.1063/1.3058708
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Room-temperature crystal structure, local ferroelectric, and magnetic properties of the Bi1−xGdxFeO3 (x = 0.1,0.2,0.3) polycrystalline samples have been investigated by x-ray diffraction, piezoresponse force microscopy, and magnetometry techniques. Performed measurements have revealed a sequence of the composition-driven structural phase transitions R3c→Pn21a (occurs at x ∼ 0.1) and Pn21a→Pnma (takes place within the concentrational range of 0.2<x<0.3). The latter structural transformation is attributed to the substitution-induced suppression of the polar displacements. Gd substitution has been shown to effectively induce the appearance of the spontaneous magnetization, thus indicating a promising way for improving multiferroic properties of antiferromagnetic BiFeO3.