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12
Introduction
treatedasalow-size(local)phenomenon.Hence,thebookpresentssurface
sensitivemethodssuchasLCAFM,PFM,KPFMbywhichswitchingpro-
cessesatthenanoscaleareinvestigated.Especiallythetransportphenom-
enaalongfilamentsinsideoxidesaredescribedindetailbeinganalyzed
throughresistiveswitchingmechanismfromsemiconductingtoametallic
state.Thismechanismisassociatedwithamanipulationbasedonthere-
doxreactionoftheelectricalpropertiesofdislocationscoreinthesurface
regionoftwomodelmaterialsTiO
2andSrTiO
3.Itshouldbeemphasized
thatmostchaptersaredealingwiththeimportantrolesplayedjustbysur-
facelayerandsurfaceregionsinoxidescrystal.Anexampleofthatisthe
complicatedtransformationofthecrystallographicandchemicalstructure
ofthesurfacelayerinTiO
2andSrTiO
3.Butthetheoryofswitchingfrom
insulating/semiconductingoxidestometallicstateisnotrestrictedinthis
booktothesurfaceorfilaments.Presentedisalsothetheoryofisolator/
metal(IM)transitionintheentirevolume,asitisdescribedforbulkvana-
diumandcobaltoxides.Additionally,unconventionalbehaviorofpolariza-
tionformedattheinterfacebetweenthesurfaceandvolumeinferroelectric
crystals,calledself-polarization,ispresented.
Weareawarethattheswitchingefectspresentedinthisbook,like
complexphysicalandchemicalphenomenainnon-homogenoussystems,
requirebroadknowledgeinthefieldsofdefectchemistry,crystallography,
electronicstructure,andlatticedynamics.Thatiswhyfewchaptersare
sacrificedtothesetopicsaswell.Therearealsochaptersexplainingprin-
ciplesofmeasurementmethodsthatareimportantforexperimentalstudies
ofswitchingprocessesinoxidesatthenanoscale.Inspiteofthat,inevery
singlechapter,onecanfindashortdescriptionofotherexperimentalmeth-
odsorreferencescontainingrelevantinformationaboutthem.
Wethinkthatthisbookisakindofbreakthroughintheanalysisofthe
variabilityofthephysicalandchemicalpropertiesofmultinarytransition
metaloxides.Namely,westatethatmacroscopicdescriptions-which
dominateinliterature-ofswitchingphenomena,willnotbecompleteif
researchatthenanoscaleisnottakenintoaccount.Inthissense,thebook
isinlinewiththeoldmottobyGoethe,whichreadsasfollows:Ifthe
wholeisevertogladdenthee,thatwholeinthesmallestthingthoumust
see(J.W.Goethe,Gedichte.AusgabeletzterHand.Gott,GemütundWelt,
1827).