Degradation of the electrical conductivity of charged domain walls in reduced lithium niobate crystals

In this work, the effect of long-term room temperature exposure on the electrical conductivity of the charged domain wall (CDWs) in nonpolar x-cut congruent lithium niobate (LiNbO3, LN) crystals has been studied. Bidomain ferroelectric structures containing head-to-head charged domain boundaries have been produced by diffusion annealing in air near the Curie temperature and by infrared annealing. The crystals have been reduction annealed in a nitrogen atmosphere for the formation of color centers and growth of the electrical conductivity. The current measured during the recording of the I-V curves of the specimens using scanning probe microscope after room temperature exposure for 91 days has been found to decrease. The effect of storage conditions on the electrical conductivity of the CDWs has been studied. Degradation of the electrical conductivity does not originate from the effect of environment on the crystal surface. It has been hypothesized that the degradation is caused by distribution of charge carriers shielding the bound charge of the CDWs.