Bismuth volatility effects on the perfection of SrBi2Nb2O9 and SrBi2Ta2O9 films

Abstract

The volatility of bismuth and bismuth oxide species complicates the growth of phase-pure films of SrBi2Nb2O9 and SrBi2Ta2O9. Films that appear phase-pure by x-ray diffraction can have microstructural defects caused by transient bismuth nonstoichiometry which have a significant impact on properties. Such defects are resolved by transmission electron microscopy. Post-growth loss of bismuth from a slowly cooled SrBi2Ta2O9 film resulted in the generation of a high density of out-of-phase boundaries (OPBs), which are demonstrated to be ferroelectrically inactive. In another film, the difference in the rate of desorption of bismuth oxides from SrTiO3 versus that from SrBi2Nb2O9 led to bismuth enrichment at the film–substrate interface, and the formation of an epitaxial reaction layer in an otherwise stoichiometric SrBi2Nb2O9 film. This different-composition layer would be expected to alter the electrical properties of the film as a whole. These results help explain the scatter in electrical data reported for similarly oriented films.