{
  "abstract": "Ferroelectric phase transitions are driven by ion displacement-induced symmetry breaking, yet their chemical signatures are rarely probed directly at the atomic level. Here, we establish temperature-dependent X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) as a powerful and quantitative probe of ferroelectric phase transitions by tracking ion migration-induced changes in local chemical environments. Using van der Waals (vdW) layered ABP$_2$S$_6$ materials as a model system, we systematically compare CuCrP$_2$S$_6$ (CCPS), which undergoes a ferroelectric phase transition, with AgCrP$_2$S$_6$ (ACPS), which remains paraelectric over the same temperature range. While ACPS exhibits only smooth trivial thermal broadening and shifts in core-level spectra, CCPS shows pronounced and enormously large temperature-dependent XPS anomalies across the ferroelectric transition, demonstrating that XPS is intrinsically sensitive to ferroelectric order. Detailed analysis of the Cu 2p spectra reveals that these anomalies originate from temperature-driven Cu$^+$ ion migration associated with polarization switching, whereas concurrent changes in the Cr core levels reflect secondary lattice squeezing and modulation of d-electron correlation induced by Cu displacement. Supported by a ferroelectric structural model, we further correlate XPS binding-energy shifts with the magnitude of Cu-ion migration, enabling a quantitative estimation of ionic displacement directly from spectroscopic observables. This work also highlights the rich information provided by temperature-dependent XPS for detecting and quantifying ferroelectric phase transitions and ion migration, offering a general chemical probe for ferroic materials and ion-displacement-driven phase transitions.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2611.08728",
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Jing Tang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ruiqi Lu"
    },
    {
      "name": "J. Anibal Boscoboinik"
    },
    {
      "name": "Xi Ling"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b4bky04gwm51c.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2611.08728",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "b4bky04gwm51c",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.08728",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.mtrl-sci"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2611.08728",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-05",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b4bky04gwm51c.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-10T06:21:04Z",
      "native_id": "2611.08728",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2611.08728"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.mtrl-sci",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Ion Redistribution and Lattice-Distortion-Modulated d-Electron Correlation in Layered Multiferroic ABP$_2$S$_6$ Probed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy",
  "title_text": "Ion Redistribution and Lattice-Distortion-Modulated d-Electron Correlation in Layered Multiferroic ABP_2S_6 Probed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-10T06:21:04Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/b4bky04gwm51c",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}