Ferroelectrochemistry

Abstract

100 years have passed since the initiate of ferroelectrics, molecular ferroelectrics with homochirality. Although inorganic ceramics have gained widespread utilization, especially in electronic, optical, and energy harvesting devices, the development of a molecular ferroelectric is still in its infancy because of the difficulty in finding a new one, let alone controllably optimizing its performance. It is noteworthy that some recently developed chemical design approaches, including the ideas of quasi-spherical theory, introducing homochirality, and H/F substitution, significantly contribute to the chemical design as well as performance optimization of a wide range of molecular ferroelectrics. This, in fact, changes the way of discovering a new molecular ferroelectric from blind search into targeted design. In this Perspective, we lay out three key strategies for chemical design and performance optimization of molecular ferroelectrics, which are the vital components for ferroelectrochemistry and provide fresh insights into how to design a new molecular ferroelectric relying on the established methodology. This, undoubtedly, opens the floodgate in the development of molecular ferroelectrics, especially for their academic and commercial desire. We wish to briefly exhibit our systematical studies on the targeted design and performance optimization of molecular ferroelectrics and set off the trend of targeted design in the next 100 years for ferroelectrics.