Matthijn Dekkers

ZnIr2O4, a p-type transparent oxide semiconductor in the class of spinel zinc-d6-transition metal oxide

The authors report on the growth of spinel ZnMd62O4 M=Co, Rh, and Ir, a ρ-type wide band gap semiconductor by pulsed laser deposition. The band gap of these compounds is determined by the ligand field splitting in the subbands of the metallic d6 cation. Photoemission spectroscopy revealed that the valence band maximum is composed of occupied t2g 6 states. The observed band gap is increasing for higher quantum numbers, being as large as 3 eV for ZnIr2O4, which is expected from theoretical predictions. Grown in polycrystalline phase, films of these materials display high conductivity, well above 2 S cm−1.

Ferroelectric properties of epitaxial Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 thin films on silicon by control of crystal orientation

Crystalline Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) thin films between metallic-oxide SrRuO3 (SRO) electrodes were prepared using pulsed laser deposition on CeO2/yttria-stabilized zirconia buffered silicon (001) substrates. Different deposition conditions for the initial layers of the bottom SRO electrode result in an orientation switch. Either (110)- or (001)-oriented SRO thin films are obtained and the PZT films deposited on the bottom electrode continued both growth directions. The ferroelectric characteristics of the SRO/PZT/SRO capacitors are found to be strongly dependent on their crystalline orientation: PZT (001)-oriented thin films showed stable, high quality ferroelectric response, while the remnant polarization of the PZT (110)-oriented thin films only show high response after multiple switching cycles.

Misfit strain dependence of ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of clamped (001) epitaxial Pb(Zr0.52,Ti0.48)O3 thin films

A study on the effects of the residual strain in Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (PZT) thin films on the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties is presented. Epitaxial (001)-oriented PZT thin film capacitors are sandwiched between SrRuO3 electrodes. The thin film stacks are grown on different substrate-buffer-layer combinations by pulsed laser deposition. Compressive or tensile strain caused by the difference in thermal expansion of the PZT film and substrate influences the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties. All the PZT stacks show ferroelectric and piezoelectric behavior that is consistent with the theoretical model for strained thin films in the ferroelectric r-phase. We conclude that clamped (001) oriented Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 thin films strained by the substrate always show rotation of the polarization vector

Characterization of epitaxial Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 thin films deposited by pulsed laser deposition on silicon cantilevers

This paper reports on the piezoelectric-microelectromechanical system micro-fabrication process and the behavior of piezoelectric stacks actuated silicon cantilevers. All oxide layers in the piezoelectric stacks, such as buffer-layer/bottom-electrode/film/top-electrode: YSZ/SrRuO3/Pb(Zr,Ti)3/SrRuO3, were grown epitaxially on the Si template of silicon-on-insulator substrates by pulsed laser deposition. By using an analytical model and finite element simulation, the initial bending of the cantilevers was calculated. These theoretical analyses are in good agreement with the experimental results which were determined using a white light interferometer. The dependences of the cantilever displacement, resonance frequency and quality factor on the cantilever geometry have been investigated using a laser-Doppler vibrometer. The tip displacement ranged from 0.03 to 0.42 µm V−1, whereas the resonance frequency and quality factor values changed from 1010 to 18.6 kHz and 614 to 174, respectively, for the cantilevers with lengths in the range of 100–800 µm. Furthermore, the effect of the conductive oxide electrodes on the stability of the piezoelectric displacement of the cantilevers has been studied.

Pulsed laser deposition in Twente: from research tool towards industrial deposition

After the discovery of the perovskite high Tc superconductors in 1986, a rare and almost unknown deposition technique attracted attention. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD), or laser ablation as it was called in the beginning, became popular because of the possibility to deposit complex materials, like perovskites, as thin film. By introducing in situ diagnostics and control of the laser fluence, PLD became a technique for several experimental studies of diverse complex materials. Nowadays, first steps towards industrial applications of PLD thin films on large wafers, up to 200 mm, are underway. In this paper we give a brief overview of the progress that PLD has made in our research group in Twente. Starting with control of deposition parameters, via in situ diagnostics with reflection high-energy electron diffraction and ending with the latest development in equipment for large-area deposition.

Epitaxial Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 (67/33) thin films with large tunable self-bias field controlled by a PbZr1−xTixO3 interfacial layer

Epitaxial Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-PbTiO3 200 nm thick, (001) oriented, perovskite phase-pure films were grown on a range of PbZr1−xTixO3 buffer layers (x = 0.2–0.8) and sandwiched between SrRuO3 electrodes on (001) SrTiO3 substrates to form a ferroelectric capacitor structure. Devices without a buffer layer or with a buffer layer of highly tetragonal PbZr1−xTixO3 show very large self-bias fields up to 1.0 × 107 V/m. These self-bias fields correlate with strain gradient layers near the bottom electrode observed in these devices only. The large self-bias was explained quantitatively in terms of the flexoelectric effect.

Optimized electrode coverage of membrane actuators based on epitaxial PZT thin films

This research presents an optimization of piezoelectric membrane actuators by maximizing the actuator displacement. Membrane actuators based on epitaxial Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 thin films grown on all-oxide electrodes and buffer layers using silicon technology were fabricated. Electrode coverage was found to be an important factor in the actuation displacement of the piezoelectric membranes. The optimum electrode coverage for maximum displacement was theoretically determined to be 39%, which is in good agreement with the experimental results. Dependences of membrane displacement and optimum electrode coverage on membrane diameter and PZT-film/Si-device-layer thickness ratio have also been investigated.

Research Update: Enhanced energy storage density and energy efficiency of epitaxial Pb0.9La0.1(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 relaxor-ferroelectric thin-films deposited on silicon by pulsed laser deposition

Pb 0.9La0.1(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (PLZT) relaxor-ferroelectric thin films were grown on SrRuO3/SrTiO3/Si substrates by pulsed laser deposition. A large recoverable storage density (U reco) of 13.7 J/cm3 together with a high energy efficiency (η) of 88.2% under an applied electric field of 1000 kV/cm and at 1 kHz frequency was obtained in 300-nm-thick epitaxial PLZT thin films. These high values are due to the slim and asymmetric hysteresis loop when compared to the values in the reference undoped epitaxial lead zirconate titanate Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 ferroelectric thin films (U reco = 9.2 J/cm3 and η = 56.4%) which have a high remanent polarization and a small shift in the hysteresis loop, under the same electric field.

Enhanced piezoelectric properties of (110)-oriented PbZr1−xTixO3 epitaxial thin films on silicon substrates at shifted morphotropic phase boundary

Piezoelectrical, ferroelectrical, and structural properties of epitaxial pseudocubic (110)pc oriented 500 nm thick PbZr1−xTixO3 thin films, prepared by pulsed laser deposition on (001) silicon substrates, were measured as a function of composition. The dependence of the measurement data on the Ti content is explained by an abrupt transition from the rhombohedral r-phase to the tetragonal (c/a) 45 phase for x  ≈  0.6, indicating a shift of the Morphotropic Phase Boundary to this value, where the effective piezoelectric coefficient e3 1 ,eff and dielectric constant e33 ,eff reach their maximum values. These findings are of great significance for Si-based piezo-micro electro mechanical systems, in particular energy harvesters. The largest value of the figure-of-merit for such devices was found for x  = 0.6, FOM=24.0 GPa

Pulsed laser deposited-PZT based MEMS energy harvesting devices

PZT thin films are a huge attraction in the rapid growing MEMS field, especially in the field of energy harvesting. This paper describes the PLD deposited PZT thin film growth and its integration into MEMS energy harvesting devices. We have shown a maximum power output of 51 μW with 63.6 μW/g2 sensitivity for a sinusoidal input excitation. The potential applications of these vibrational harvesters in car tires are explored by applying a shock input excitation.