Research Projects

Rationale of Research: Ferroelectric materials have evolved from Rochelle salt to perovskites, polymers, and 2D systems, yet challenges persist in stability, scalability, and environmental compatibility. Organic and hybrid ferroelectrics offer unique advantages—flexibility and tunable properties, but their design and integration into high-performance devices remain underexplored. This project addresses critical gaps by developing low-symmetry organic, hybrid, and metal-organic ferroelectrics for next-generation sensors, energy harvesters, and neuromorphic electronics. Leveraging nitrogen/phosphorus-centric scaffolds, we aim to create materials with robust polarization, piezoelectricity, and switchable electronic properties (e.g., negative capacitance (NC), negative differential resistance (NDR) and neuromorphism) to enable self-powered, lightweight, and sustainable devices. Scientific Objectives: Synthesis, Structure and Characterization: Targeting ferroelectric materials using various organic cations and organophosphate/halogenometallate and pseudohalogenometallate anions, targeting non-centrosymmetric structures with high polarization attributes. Device Fabrication: Engineer polymer composites, thin films, and multi-stack and nanogap architectures for sensors (RPM, wind-speed, mat-type) and memtransistors. Neuromorphic Applications: Develop FeFETs and artificial neural learning based integrated circuits exhibiting long-term potentiation/depression (LTP/LTD), spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), multi-state memory, pattern recognition, decryption, facial recognition. Mechanistic Studies: Probe polarization switching, charge transport, and NDR/NC effects via advanced electrical characterization. Hypothesis/Model: Low-symmetry molecular scaffolds will stabilize room-temperature ferroelectricity with tunable properties. Hybrid perovskitoids and MOFs with distorted metal-ligand coordination will enable fast polarization switching for FeFETs. Ferroelectric-polymer composites will exhibit high mechanical sensitivity, enabling self-powered sensors for real-time monitoring. NDR/NC effects in molecular ferroelectrics will facilitate ultra-low-power logic and memory devices. Key Experiments: Synthesis: Green synthesis of organic and hybrid materials and characterization via X-ray diffraction, P-E loop measurements, dielectric spectroscopy and piezoresponsive force microscopy(PFM) . Sensor Development: Fabricate flexible piezoelectric devices for RPM/wind-speed sensing; integrate with IoT platforms for wireless monitoring. NDR/NC Characterization: Perform high-frequency I-V sweeps and transient voltage measurements to identify negative resistance/capacitance regimes. FeFETs/Neuromorphic Devices: Deposit ferroelectric thin films (spin-coating/thermal evaporation) for top-gate FeFETs with semiconductor polymers (e.g., P3HT) on silicon substrates. Measure transfer characteristics (ID-VG hysteresis) and synaptic functions (PPF, STDP) using pulse protocols. Significance: Fundamental Impact: Establish design strategies for molecular ferroelectrics with tailored polarization, piezoelectricity, and electronic (NDR and NC) properties. Decipher structure-property relationships in hydrogen bonding, metal-ligand distortion, and charge-transport mechanisms. Applied Impact: Sustainable Electronics: Lead-free, flexible sensors and memory devices compatible with wearable/wireless technologies. Energy Efficiency: Self-powered sensors and NC-FETs with sub-60 mV/decade switching for IoT and edge computing. Neuromorphic studies: Molecular memtransistors mimicking biological synapses, enabling low-power AI hardware. Societal Benefits: Scalable fabrication of cost-effective sensors for structural health monitoring and biomedical diagnostics. By bridging molecular design with device engineering, this project will develop a new class of ferroelectric materials, positioning India at the forefront of flexible electronics and neuromorphic technology.