The Domain Structure and Pyroelectric Properties of (111) Preferred Oriented PLT Thin Films Prepared By RF Magnetron Sputtering

The Pb_0.9La_0.1Ti_0.975O₃ (PLT10) thin films were grown on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si(100) substrates by using RF magnetron sputtering. The crystalline and domain properties of PLT 10 thin films were studied by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM). It was found that the head-to-tail polarization configurations exist constantly in PLT thin films, indicating that the low electrical energy configurations are quite common in PLT thin films. Nanoscale banded 90deg a-a domain patterns as small as 30 to 60 nm in width were clearly visualized in the PLT thin films. The banded domain alternated in adjacent lamellae which are a result of mechanical strains at the surface and the interface between the substrate and the PLT thin films is more stable. The PLT films have relatively large pyroelectric coefficient gamma=2.20times10^-8 Cldr(cm²ldrK)^-1 and relatively high figures of merit. Hence PLT10 thin films could be applied widely in IR detectors or uncooled focus plane arrays.