Dielectric Properties of Strained Nickel Oxide Thin Films

The dielectric properties of NiO thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition have been studied as a function of strain at temperature from 10 to 300 K. Above 150 K, the contribution of space-charge polarization to the dielectric permittivity of NiO films becomes dominant, and the more defective films, which were grown at low temperatures shows a drastical increase in the dielectric constant up to room temperature. While the atomically-ordered film, which was grown at high temperature doesn't show any considerable change in the dielectric constant in the range from 10 to 300 K. Below 100 K, the effect of strain on the dielectric constant becomes clear. An increase in dielectric permittivity is observed in the strained films while the relaxed film doesn't show any remarkable deviation from its bulk value. The low-temperature dielectric behavior of NiO thin films can be interpreted based on the effect of strain on the lattice dynamics of rocksalt binary oxides.