Antiferroelectric to ferroelectric phase switching thin films in the lead zirconate stannate titanate solid solution system

Thin films of lead zirconate stannate titanate (PSZT) with slight additions of niobium and lanthanum have been prepared by the sol-gel, spin coat process. Antiferroelectric tetragonal and orthorhombic compositions have been evaluated on the criteria of P-E loop squareness, maximum polarization and field induced strain for the applications of energy storage and conversion in integrated devices. The orthorhombic compositions in both the niobium and lanthanum doped systems have shown square loop hysteretic behavior with large switchable polarizations (30-40 μC/cm²), and field-induced strains of 0.33% have been measured in the niobium doped system, thus both systems provide attractive possibilities for practical use