Domain structures of PbTiO3 and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 thin films controlled by tensile strain induced by a Sr(Zr,Ti)O3 buffer layer

Abstract

Thin films of Sr(Zr,Ti)O3 were investigated as buffer layers to induce tensile strain in ferroelectric thin films such as PbTiO3 and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 to control the domain structure. By tuning the composition of Sr(Zr,Ti)O3, (100)-oriented PbTiO3 and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 films were obtained, revealing that tensile strain was introduced into the thin films by the lattice of the buffer layer. We propose a methodology for the successive control of tensile stress, which is useful for understanding and controlling the domain structures of ferroelectric films that result in the ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of ferroelectric thin films.