Low-temperature crystallization of sol-gel derived Pb(Zr0.4,Ti0.6)O3 thin films

Ve have studied the crystallization of sol-gel derived Pb(Zr0.4Ti0.6)O-3 [PZT(40/60)] thin films at 435, down to 420 degreesC. The PZT(40/60) films were prepared at these temperatures on Pt/SiO2/Si substrates by a combination of diol-based solutions and modified film preparation processes. Various properties of the PZT(40/60) films such as microstructures, crystal orientation, ferroelectric properties, relative permittivity, and leakage current density were evaluated. It was found that PZT(40/60) films could be crystallized at 435 to 420 degreesC by the diol-based solutions and the modified film preparation processes. The PZT(40/60) films had microstructures with perovskite-single -phase fine columnar grains and good electric characteristics such as remanent polarization (P-r) of 12 to 15 muC/cm(2), relative permittivity (epsilon (r)) of 780, and breakdown voltage of more than 10 V.