Preparation of Lead Zirconate Titanate Thick Films by Arc-Discharged Reactive Ion-Plating Method

Abstract

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thick films of 1 to 3 µm thickness were prepared by an arc-discharged reactive ion-plating (ADRIP) method. Each PZT thick film had a columnar dense structure. The films showed a perovskite single phase without any thermal treatment after deposition. A high plasma density of the arc discharge enabled a high deposition rate of more than 3 µm/h. The relative dielectric constant (εr) of the PZT thick films with the Zr/Ti=53/47 composition was about 2000. This value was almost equivalent to that of PZT bulk ceramics. The films typically showed well-saturated P-E hysteresis curves with the remanent polarization (Pr) of 44 µC/cm2 and the coercive field (Ec) of 39 kV/cm. The butterfly-shaped property of the displacement curve, which is caused by the bending motion in the vertical direction on the film surface, was also observed. Furthermore, the PZT thick films with the (100)-dominant orientation could be obtained by depositing them onto (100)-preferred PZT thin layers which were prepared by a chemical solution deposition (CSD) process.