Chemical solution deposition of highly oriented strontium titanate buffer layers for coated conductors

Highly oriented strontium titanate films have been processed on single-crystal lanthanum aluminate and on textured nickel substrates using solution deposition. Precursor solutions of strontium acetate and titanium Iv butoxide in acetic acid and methanol were deposited on substrates using spin coating and heat treated in a reducing atmosphere in a single stage to yield textured strontium titanate films. A dense crack-free microstructure with a grain size of the order of 100 nm was achieved along with a texture of the same order as the underlying substrate. These results offer promise for scalable processing of buffer layers on textured nickel.