Electromechanical behavior of BaTiO3 from first principles

Using an effective Hamiltonian parametrized from first principles, Monte Carlo simulations are performed in order to study the piezoelectric response of BaTiO3 in the ferroelectric tetragonal phase as a function of temperature. The effect of an electric field on the phase behavior is also illustrated by a simulation of the transformation of a rhombohedral domain into a tetragonal one under a strong field.