  We report nanoscale bandgap engineering via a local strain across the
inhomogeneous ferroelectric interface, which is controlled by the
visible-light-excited probe voltage. Switchable photovolatic effects and the
spectral response of the photocurrent were explore to illustrate the reversible
bandgap variation (~0.3eV). This local-strain-engineered bandgap has been
further revealed by in situ probe-voltage-assisted valence electron energy-loss
spectroscopy (EELS). Phase-field simulations and first-principle calculations
were also employed for illustration of the large local strain and the bandgap
variation in ferroelectric perovskite oxides. This reversible bandgap tuning in
complex oxides demonstrates a framework for the understanding of the
opticallyrelated behaviors (photovoltaic, photoemission, and photocatalyst
effects) affected by order parameters such as charge, orbital, and lattice
parameters.
