Quantum-fluctuation-stabilized orthorhombic ferroelectric ground state in lead-free piezoelectric (Ba, Ca)(Zr, Ti)O3

We numerically investigate the phase diagram of the giant-piezoelectric (1 - x)Ba(Zr0.2TiO0.8)O-3-x(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 system, treating the ions either as classical objects (via classical Monte Carlo or CMC simulations) or quantum mechanically (via path-integral quantum Monte Carlo or PI-QMC simulations). It is found that PI-QMC not only provides a better agreement with available experimental data for the temperature-composition phase diagram, but also leads to the existence of an orthorhombic ground state in a narrow range of composition, unlike CMC that "only" yields ground states of rhombohedral or tetragonal symmetry. X-ray powder diffraction experiments are further conducted at 20 K. They confirm the occurrence of a quantum-fluctuation-induced orthorhombic state for some compositions and therefore validate the PI-QMC prediction. The role of quantum effects on the local structure, such as the annihilation of a homogeneous rhombohedral system in favor of an inhomogeneous mixing of orthorhombic and rhombohedral clusters, is also documented and discussed.