Ferroelectric and dielectric properties of Nd3+∕Zr4+ cosubstituted Bi4Ti3O12 thin films

Abstract

Thin films of Nd3+∕Zr4+ cosubstituted Bi4Ti3O12 (BIT), i.e., Bi3.15Nd0.85Ti2.8Zr0.2O12 (BNTZ), were fabricated on Pt∕Ti∕SiO2∕Si(100) substrates by chemical solution deposition and annealed at different temperatures of 600, 650, 700, and 800°C. The effects of annealing temperature on the microstructure, leakage current, ferroelectric, and dielectric properties of the BNTZ films were investigated in detail. Significantly, compared with the Bi3.15Nd0.85Ti3O12 film, the BNTZ thin film has a lower coercive field (2Ec) and leakage current density and a slightly larger remnant polarization (2Pr). It shows that Nd3+∕Zr4+ cosubstitution in BIT film might be an effective way to improve ferroelectric properties of BIT.