Abstract
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•High-quality single crystals PbGa6Te10 grown by Bridgman method.•PbGa6Te10 crystals were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.•Temperature dependent thermal conductivity was investigated .•Was discovered a rare possibility to improve piezoelectric features using the external infrared laser beams.•The observed effect opens a new stage for the production of the IR operated devices including piezotronics.
A ternary compound PbGa6Te10 grown by Bridgman method was studied with respect to IR induced piezoelectricity. We have found an opportunity to induce piezoelectric features using the external infrared laser (IR) beams for PbGa6Te10 crystals. The three principal wavelengths corresponding to fundamental 10.6 μm, doubled frequency 5.3 μm and third harmonic 3.5 μm laser beams were explored as photoinduced beams. Maximally achieved IR induced piezoelectricity was observed at laser induced wavelength 5.3 μm. The optimal photoinduced power density was varied within 150–160 MW/cm2 . The observed space gratings are very crucial for the observed photo-induced piezoelectricity, which is indicated, that we deal with interference of the photoinduced coherent beams. The role of the surface states was discussed based on the XPS spectra. Additionally, the temperature dependence of thermal diffusivity was measured. The determined thermal conductivity indicates prevailingly the phonon contribution and possesses very low values in the measured temperature ranges.