Functional Interfaces

Interfaces sometimes contain functionalities that do not exist in the bulk. This discovery is fairly recent and has triggered a systematic search for materials where the functionalities such as superconductivity, ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism are the key desired physical properties of the interface. During phase transitions, interfaces nucleate and the functionality, such as the polarity in the Fig.1, co-nucleate and strongly interact with the adjacent bulk material to form specific vortex structures. This enables us to apply external fields, which induce novel features such as wall switching, Bloch line switching and high conductivity pathways. Several results from experimental observations and computer simulations will be discussed.