Effect of electrically induced cracks on the properties of PZT thin film capacitors

We present a study of the effect of electrically induced cracks on both the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of Pt/PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PZT)/Pt capacitors and correlations with domain structures of PZT films. Above a threshold bipolar electric field, cracks appear inside the PZT layer thickness leading to an increase in the ferroelectric polarization (+50% for the remnant polarization, from 16 to 25 mu C/cm(2)) and the longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient d(33,f) (from & SIM;150 to & SIM;220 pm/V). The use of x-ray diffraction during in situ biasing provides direct evidence for a modification of the PZT crystalline structure as well as the a/c domain configuration. After cracking, the fraction of c-domains is strongly increased, thus contributing to higher polarization and larger strain in the out-of-plane direction.

Automated summary

This study investigates the effect of electrically induced cracks on the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of Pt/PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PZT)/Pt capacitors and their correlations with the domain structures of PZT films. The results show that cracks inside the PZT layer thickness lead to an increase in ferroelectric polarization and the longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient. X-ray diffraction during biasing provides direct evidence for changes in the PZT crystalline structure and domain configuration.