Hanhan Zhou

Effect of microstructure on irradiated ferroelectric thin films

This work investigates the role of microstructure on radiation-induced changes to the functional response of ferroelectric thin films. Chemical solution-deposited lead zirconate titanate thin films with columnar and equiaxed grain morphologies are exposed to a range of gamma radiation doses up to 10 Mrad and the resulting trends in functional response degradation are quantified using a previously developed phenomenological model. The observed trends of global degradation as well as local rates of defect saturation suggest strong coupling between ferroelectric thin film microstructure and material radiation hardness. Radiation-induced degradation of domain wall motion is thought to be the major contributor to the reduction in ferroelectric response. Lower rates of defect saturation are noted in samples with columnar grains, due to increased grain boundary density offering more sites to act as defect sinks, thus reducing the interaction of defects with functional material volume within the grain interior. R...

Temperature-induced local and average structural changes in BaTiO3−xBi(Zn1/2Ti1/2)O3 solid solutions: The origin of high temperature dielectric permittivity

The existence of local tetragonal distortions is evidenced in the BaTiO3–xBi(Zn1/2Ti1/2)O3 (BT–xBZT) relaxor dielectric material system at elevated temperatures. The local and average structures of BT-xBZT with different compositions are characterized using in situ high temperature total scattering techniques. Using the box-car fitting method, it is inferred that there are tetragonal polar clusters embedded in a non-polar pseudocubic matrix for BT-xBZT relaxors. The diameter of these polar clusters is estimated as 2–3 nm at room temperature. Sequential temperature series fitting shows the persistence of the tetragonal distortion on the local scale, while the average structure transforms to a pseudocubic paraelectric phase at high temperatures. The fundamental origin of the temperature stable permittivity of BT-xBZT and the relationship with the unique local scale structures are discussed. This systematic structural study of the BT-xBZT system provides both insight into the nature of lead-free perovskite r...