David Schrade

• This thesis is concerned with the modeling of the domain structure evolution in ferroelectric materials. Both a sharp interface model, in which the driving force on a domain wall is used to postulate an evolution law, and a continuum phase field model are treated in a thermodynamically consistent framework. Within the phase field model, a Ginzburg-Landau type evolution law for the spontaneous polarization is derived. Numerical simulations (FEM) show the influence of various kinds of defects on the domain wall mobility in comparison with experimental findings. A macroscopic material law derived from the phase field model is used to calculate polarization yield surfaces for multiaxial loading conditions.