Structural and electrical properties of seeded lead zirconate titanate thin films

Films of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) (52/38) on platinum passivated silicon substrates were prepared from sol precursors with the addition of perovskite PZT seeds (52/48, 0-5 mol.%). The phase evolution and microstructure of the films were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis. The effect of seeds an the crystallization kinetics is discussed. For the different films X-ray rocking curves were constructed and the crystallogaphic orientation of the films is discussed, stressing the influence of seeds on the orientation of the films. Ferroelectric properties were measured and compared between films prepared with and without seeds. The addition of perovskite seeds to the PZT precursor soIs induced the formation of the pure perovskite phase at lower temperatures in thin films. Although seeded films show less intense preferred orientation, they show superior ferroelectric properties over unseeded ones. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.