Fabrication and properties of solution processed all polymer thin-film ferroelectric device

Abstract

A ferroelectric device, making use of a flexible plastic, polyethylenterephtalate (PET), as a substrate was fabricated by all solution processes. PET was globally coated by a conducting polymer, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrenesulfonate) acid (PEDOT/PSSH), which is used as bottom electrode. The ferroelectric copolymer, poly(vinylidenefluoride–trifluoroethylene) (PVDF–TrFE), thin film was deposited by spin-coating process from solution. The top electrode, polyaniline, was coated by solution process as well. The ferroelectric properties were measured on this all solution processed all polymer ferroelectric thin-film devices. A square and symmetric hysteresis loop was observed with high-polarization level at 15-V drive voltage on a all polymer device with 700 A (PVDF–TrFE) film. The relatively inexpensive conducting polyaniline electrode is functional well and therefore is a good candidate as electrode material for ferroelectric polymer thin-film device. The remnant polarization Pr was 8.5 μC/cm2 before the fatigue. The ferroelectric degradation starts after 1 × 103 times of switching and decreases to 4.9 μC/cm2 after 1 × 105 times of switching. The pulse polarization test shows switching take places as fast as a few micro seconds to reach 90% of the saturated polarization. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011