Growth of tetragonal BaTiO3 single crystal fibers

With the increasing use of optical fibers in the telecommunication network, there is need for fiber geometry compatible optical devices such as optical amplifiers, switches, couplers, and isolators. These active devices are based on field-dependent material properties, such as electro-optic and magneto-optic effects, which are stronger in single crystal than in amorphous materials. Single crystal fibers can be grown by the laser heated pedestal growth (LHPG) technique. In this paper we report the growth of single crystal fibers of ferroelectric barium titanate from sintered ceramic rods of stoichiometric barium titanate. Barium titanate is one of the most extensively investigated ferroelectric materials. However, its growth from stoichiometric melt always results in its hexagonal nonferroelectric phase. Using LHPG, single crystal strontium titanate seed, and sintered ceramic barium titanate rods, we have succeeded in growing single crystal fibers (similar to 100 mu m diameter) of pure barium titanate with tetragonal (ferroelectric) crystal structure. This paper discusses growth and characterization of these fibers.