Intrinsic electrocaloric effect in ultrathin ferroelectric capacitors

Electrocaloric effect in ultrathin SrRuO3/BaTiO3/SrRuO3 capacitors is calculated using a multiscale thermodynamic model. It is found that the electrocaloric coefficient vs working temperature is shifted to higher temperatures with increasing the BaTiO3 layer thickness (above the critical thickness). The electrocaloric effect above the critical thickness is much stronger than that below it. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that a giant electrocaloric effect (3.5K under 0.24 V) in such capacitors (six BaTiO3 unit cells) at 300K can be achieved, which suggests that ultrathin ferroelectric capacitors may be promising candidates for room temperature solid-state refrigeration. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4711213]