{
  "abstract": "In this work, we show that superlattice engineering, through the combination of relaxor ferroelectric 0.5Ba(Zr 0.2 Ti 0.8 )O ₃ −0.5(Ba 0.7 Ca 0.3 )TiO ₃ and paraelectric SrTiO ₃ layers, is a powerful approach to simultaneously optimize energy density and efficiency of recoverable energy storage at low applied electric fields, outperforming both single layer 0.5Ba(Zr 0.2 Ti 0.8 )O ₃ −0.5(Ba 0.7 Ca 0.3 )TiO ₃ thin film and other lead-free ferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric thin film capacitors. The mechanisms responsible are a) decreasing the size of polar nanoregions which promote relaxor behavior by superlattice confinement and b) formation of a strain gradient in the superlattice which plays a significant role in modification of the built-in electric field, to enhance imprint, allowing for further enhancement of the energy storage performance. Overall, our interface-engineered Pb-free 0.5Ba(Zr 0.2 Ti 0.8 )O ₃ −0.5(Ba 0.7 Ca 0.3 )TiO ₃ /SrTiO ₃ superlattices show record dielectric energy storage efficiency close to 99% at 920 kV/cm, with high recoverable energy storage density of 12.6 J/cm ³ , significantly outperforming other lead-free ferroelectric and relaxor ferroelectric thin film capacitors. Our thin film system meets the performance requirements for environmentally friendly energy storage devices for future self-powered electronics.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 17,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Matilde M. G. S. Oliveira"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ampattu R. Jayakrishnan",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2045-6593"
    },
    {
      "name": "Duarte J. M. Ribeiro",
      "orcid": "0009-0004-4558-0667"
    },
    {
      "name": "Tiago Rodrigues"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jingye Zou"
    },
    {
      "name": "Surya K. P. Nair"
    },
    {
      "name": "Raluca Negrea"
    },
    {
      "name": "Marian C. Istrate"
    },
    {
      "name": "Manuel J. L. F. Rodrigues"
    },
    {
      "name": "Michael Belsley",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7968-5038"
    },
    {
      "name": "Bernardo G. Almeida",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7604-0111"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mario Pereira"
    },
    {
      "name": "Judith L. MacManus-Driscoll",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-4987-6620"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ignasi Fina",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-4182-6194"
    },
    {
      "name": "Florencio Sánchez",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5314-453X"
    },
    {
      "name": "Luís Marques",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7477-6934"
    },
    {
      "name": "José P. B. Silva",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3485-7032"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3pjssq1x68yva.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41467-026-77971-6",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13728193",
  "id": "3pjssq1x68yva",
  "issns": [
    "2041-1723"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-77971-6",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Article"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2505|Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220475101",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-77971-6_reference.pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13728193",
  "pmid": "42971972",
  "published": "2026-10-05",
  "publisher": "Springer Science and Business Media LLC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3pjssq1x68yva.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:38Z",
      "native_id": "10.1038/s41467-026-77971-6",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-77971-6"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T15:20:44Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42971972",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42971972"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-06T12:23:55Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13728193",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-77971-6"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2505|Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials",
      "subfield": "materials-polymers"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Superlattice Engineering in Relaxor Ferroelectric-based Capacitors for Ultra-Highly Efficient Recoverable Energy Storage Density",
  "title_text": "Superlattice Engineering in Relaxor Ferroelectric-based Capacitors for Ultra-Highly Efficient Recoverable Energy Storage Density",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-07T12:21:13Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3pjssq1x68yva",
  "venue": "Nature Communications",
  "versions": []
}