The influence of structural distortions on flexoelectricity in perovskite oxides

Flexoelectric materials, which couple strain gradients to electric fields, are a promising class of materials receiving renewed interest as possible replacements for piezoelectrics in many applications. While much work has been done to elucidate the relationship between  structural distortions and ferroelectricity, particularly those associated with phonon instabilities,  the link between similar distortions and flexoelectric coefficients is still under active study. Through a combination of group theory and density functional theory, we explore the relationship between structural distortions in ABO3 perovskites and their predicted flexoelectric coefficients. In addition to a deeper understanding of the coupling between atomic displacements to flexoelectricity in these systems, this work provides insight into how flexoelectricity could be enhanced or suppressed in other systems which exhibit similar structural instabilities.