{
  "abstract": "Multiferroic materials that combine magnetic and electric order at room temperature are rare. Here, we demonstrate strain-induced room-temperature polar order in the ferrimagnetic hexaferrite BaFe12O19. First-principles calculations reveal a strain-tunable energy landscape with multiple competing dipolar configurations and predict that compressive strain favors polar distortions. Using an isostructural Sr1.03Ga10.81Mg0.58Zr0.58O19 substrate, we grow coherently strained BaFe12O19 films with 1.1% in-plane biaxial compression. Second-harmonic generation measurements demonstrate inversion-symmetry breaking and establish a strain-stabilized polar phase that persists to at least 1000 K. Multislice electron ptychography directly reveals enhanced off-centering of Fe3+ ions within the trigonal-bipyramidal sites of the strained films and spatially varying local polarization, demonstrating the formation of polar nanoregions. Path-integral Monte Carlo simulations further show that compressive strain suppresses quantum fluctuations and stabilizes these local polar distortions. Together, these results establish strain-engineered BaFe12O19 as a room-temperature relaxor multiferroic, in which robust ferrimagnetism coexists with nanoscale polar order. Our work demonstrates a route for transforming an incipient ferroelectric ferrimagnetic into a polar magnetic material through epitaxial strain.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2609.21352",
  "author_total": 22,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Yilin Evan Li"
    },
    {
      "name": "Harikrishnan KP"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sankalpa Hazra"
    },
    {
      "name": "Zhiren He"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jayanti Higgins"
    },
    {
      "name": "ChanJu You"
    },
    {
      "name": "Mario Brützam"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jiaqiang Yan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Anna Park"
    },
    {
      "name": "Maya Ramesh"
    },
    {
      "name": "Wenwen Zhao"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jayda Shine"
    },
    {
      "name": "David G. Mandrus"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ramamoorthy Ramesh"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ankit S. Disa"
    },
    {
      "name": "Christo Guguschev"
    },
    {
      "name": "Guru Khalsa"
    },
    {
      "name": "Craig J. Fennie"
    },
    {
      "name": "Venkatraman Gopalan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Yu-Tsun Shao"
    },
    {
      "name": "David A. Muller"
    },
    {
      "name": "Darrell G. Schlom"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcjaj6jp1f1f.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2609.21352",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "7kcjaj6jp1f1f",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.21352",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.mtrl-sci"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2504|Multiferroics and related materials"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213956279",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2609.21352",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-18",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcjaj6jp1f1f.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:23:03Z",
      "native_id": "2609.21352",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.21352"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.mtrl-sci",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Strain-Induced Relaxor Multiferroicity at Room Temperature in Hexaferrite BaFe12O19 Thin Films",
  "title_text": "Strain-Induced Relaxor Multiferroicity at Room Temperature in Hexaferrite BaFe12O19 Thin Films",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:23:03Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kcjaj6jp1f1f",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}