Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 and selected lower electrode structures as a pathway to integrated piezoelectric microelectromechanical systems

Abstract

The actuation mechanism is an important aspect of many micromachined devices. Electrostatic actuation has been the prevailing actuation method due to its relative ease in implementation using conventional silicon microfabrication techniques. Other mechanisms are becoming more accessible to micromachine designs as new materials are introduced into the microfabrication process. Recent progress in nonvolatile memory has led to successful incorporation of Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) thin films into microelectronic devices. The present work expands on this area and investigates PZT thin films and electrode/barrier combinations for applications in micromachined devices. Incorporation of PZT thin films into silicon micromachined devices requires electrode systems and deposition techniques that are compatible with silicon microfabrication. In this study, Ir/IrOx and Ir/(Ti,Al)N lower electrode systems were developed to suppress diffusion of reactive species (e.g., Pb) into silicon-based microelectromechanical system devices and to enhance PZT film adhesion. Piezoelectric PZT thin films from 0.3 to 1 μm thick were prepared on silicon wafers with these electrode structures by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. Hysteresis loops of longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient (d33) were measured by dual-beam interferometry and used to characterize piezoelectric activity in these films. The effective d33 exhibited an apparent dependence on film thickness. d33 values up to 70 pm/V were obtained for 1 μm films, while thinner films exhibited lower d33 values between 54 and 60 pm/V. The dielectric loss (tan δ) was below 2% for most films irrespective of their thickness.