Fabrication of continuous ultrathin ferroelectric films by chemical solution deposition methods

Date published

2008-10

Free to read from

Supervisor/s

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Materials Research Society

Department

Type

Article

ISSN

0884-2914

Format

Citation

J. Ricotea, S. Holgado, Z. Huang, P. Ramos, R. Fernández and M.L. Calzada, Fabrication of continuous ultrathin ferroelectric films by chemical solution deposition methods, Journal of Materials Research, Volume 23, Number 10, October 2008, Pages 2787-2795

Abstract

The integration of ferroelectrics in nanodevices requires firstly the preparation of high-quality ultrathin films. Chemical solution deposition is considered a rapid and cost-effective technique for preparing high-quality oxide films, but one that has traditionally been regarded as unsuitable, or at least challenging, for fabricating films with good properties and thickness below 100 nm. In the present work we explore the deposition of highly diluted solutions of pure and Ca-modified lead titanates to prepare ultrathin ferroelectric films, the thickness of which is controlled by the concentration of the precursor solution. The results show that we are able to obtain single crystalline phase continuous films down to 18 nm thickness, one of the lowest reported using these methods. Below that thickness, the films start to be discontinuous, which is attributed to a microstructural instability that can be controlled by an adequate tailoring of the processing conditions. The effect of the reduction of thickness on the piezoelectric behavior is studied by piezoresponse force microscopy. The results indicate that films retain a significant piezoelectric activity regardless of their low thickness, which is promising for their eventual integration in nanodevices, for example, as transducer elements in nanoelectromechanical systems.

Description

Software Description

Software Language

Github

Keywords

DOI

Rights

Copyright 2008 Materials Research Society

Relationships

Relationships

Supplements

Funder/s