We report on the observation of nanoscale conduction at ferroelectric domain walls in hexagonal HoMnO 3 protected by the topology of multiferroic vortices using in situ conductive atomic force microscopy, piezoresponse force microscopy, and Kelvin-probe force microscopy at low temperatures. In addition to previously observed Schottky-like rectification at low bias ( Phys. Rev. Lett. 104 , 217601 ( 2010 ) PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.217601 ), conductance spectra reveal that negatively charged tail-to-tail walls exhibit enhanced conduction at high forward bias, while positively charged head-to-head walls exhibit suppressed conduction at high reverse bias. Our results pave the way for understanding the semiconducting properties of the domains and domain walls in small-gap ferroelectrics.
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