{
  "abstract": "Polar vortices in ferroelectric heterostructures hold promise for high-density, energy-efficient nanoelectronics, but their controlled motion remains elusive due to strong pinning and lattice-coupled dynamics. Here, we report real-time observation of vortex boundary motion in PbTiO₃/SrTiO₃ heterostructures using localized trailing electric fields applied via a conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM) tip. The vortex boundaries show reversible motion that depends on both field polarity and AFM tip trajectory. By precisely steering the tip along specific paths, we achieve controlled, reconfigurable vortex boundary motion with remarkable stability over extended periods. In-situ scanning transmission electron microscopy further confirmed the controlled motion of the vortex boundary. Phase-field simulations reveal that this motion is governed by switching of the zigzag pattern at the vortex core, pinpointing the underlying physical mechanism. These results establish the feasibility of externally controlled vortex boundary motion, advancing both fundamental understanding of polar topological dynamics and prospects for next-generation polar-vortex-based nanoelectronic devices.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Materials Research Centre, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, 560012 Karnataka India",
    "Center of Electron Microscopy, State Key Laboratory of Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China",
    "School of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China",
    "Institute of Fundamental and Transdisciplinary Research, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 311121 China",
    "Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Advanced Solid State Energy Storage Technology and Applications, Taizhou Institute of Zhejiang University, Taizhou, Zhejiang 318000 China",
    "Pico Electron Microscopy Center, Hainan University, Haikou, 570228 China",
    "Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA USA",
    "Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, CA USA",
    "Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA USA"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 10,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Pushpendra Gupta",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9449-6742"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Mohit Tanwani"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Qi Xu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Guanshihan Du"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Peiran Tong",
      "orcid": "0009-0004-3009-1545"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yongjun Wu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3,
        4
      ],
      "name": "Zijian Hong",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3491-0884"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        3,
        5
      ],
      "name": "He Tian",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2108-3100"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6,
        7,
        8
      ],
      "name": "Ramamoorthy Ramesh",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-0524-1332"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Sujit Das",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9823-0207"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7zkvqm9dva0n2.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41467-026-78049-z",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13714293/",
  "id": "7zkvqm9dva0n2",
  "issns": [
    "2041-1723"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-78049-z",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Article"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2505|Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7214656587",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-78049-z_reference.pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13714293",
  "pmid": "42946726",
  "published": "2026-09-28",
  "publisher": "Nature Publishing Group",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7zkvqm9dva0n2.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-01T12:21:49Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13714293",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-78049-z"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2505|Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials",
      "subfield": "materials-polymers"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Controlled motion of polar vortex boundary in oxide heterostructures",
  "title_text": "Controlled motion of polar vortex boundary in oxide heterostructures",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-01T12:21:49Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7zkvqm9dva0n2",
  "venue": "Nature Communications",
  "versions": []
}