Enhanced multiferroic properties of (1 1 0)-oriented BiFeO3 film deposited on Bi3.5Nd0.5Ti3O12-buffered indium tin oxide/Si substrate

Abstract

BiFeO3 (BFO) films with and without a Bi3.5Nd0.5Ti3O12 (BNT) buffer layer were fabricated on indium tin oxide (ITO)/Si substrates using a metal organic decomposition process. X-ray diffraction measurements reveal that a BNT buffer layer can favour the growth of (1 1 0)-oriented grains in the BFO film. BFO film with a BNT buffer layer exhibits well saturated P–E hysteresis loops with good rectangularity as well as large remanent polarization (∼70.2 µC cm−2) owing to its higher volume fraction of (1 1 0)-oriented grains, lower leakage current and lower coercive field in comparison with those of the BFO film deposited directly on the ITO/Si substrate. In addition, the magnetization of the (1 1 0)-oriented BFO film is more easily saturated compared with that of the polycrystalline BFO film without a BNT buffer layer.