Microstructure and electrical properties of lead zirconate titanate thin films deposited by excimer laser ablation

Thin films of Pb(Zr_0.52 Ti_0.48)O₃ (PZT) were prepared by excimer laser ablation on a Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrate and were crystallized by subsequent annealing at 750°C for 90 min. Crystalline phases in the PZT films were investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis. The microstructure and composition of the films were studied by transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, respectively. It is found that the films consist almost entirely of the perovskite phase, but a thin layer of the pyrochlore phase exists at the surface of the films. Electrical properties of these films were evaluated by measuring P-E hysteresis loops and dielectric constants. The remanent polarization and the coercive field of the films were 23.9μC/cm² and 60.5 kV/cm, respectively, while the dielectric constant and loss values measured at 1 kHz were approximately 950 and 0.04, respectively. The effect of the microstructure on the electrical properties of the PZT thin films is discussed.