A Fundamental Study of Sol-Gel Solid Phase Epitaxy in Ferroelectric Thin Films

9303564 Sandwip这一合作和跨学科研究计划的目标在于统一探索一种潜在有用的薄膜铁电材料--掺入不同数量的Nb的锆钛酸铅。基础研究将包括溶胶-凝胶固相外延生长(SPE)的基础科学，最终将导致最佳的商业加工程序。这项研究将包括对外延非晶到晶体转变的热力学和动力学的系统研究。具体地说，显微镜的结构和形态性质(HTREM)。应阐明衬底取向和异价掺杂Nb的作用以及它们的转变动力学。此外，还将进行电容测量，以提供相变的独立测量。此外，还将比较原位和非原位热处理对SPE生长速度的影响，以从根本上了解相关的基本过程。由这些材料制成的外延薄膜器件具有巨大的潜在商业价值，包括电光、压电和热释电器件。这种方法和铁电薄膜提案中涉及的许多基础科学都是新的；因此，涉及的人员将在一个注定对新兴科学和技术非常重要的领域获得培训。***

9303564 Sandwip The objectives of this collaborative and interdisciplinary research program reside in the unified exploration of a potentially useful thin-film ferroelectric material, lead zirconate-titanate, doped with varying amounts of niobium. The basic studies will cover the fundamental science of sol- gel solid phase epitaxial growth (SPE)which eventually should lead to optimum commercial processing schedules. The research will include systematic studies of the thermodynamics and kinetics of the epitaxial amorphous-to- crystalline transition. Specifically, the structural and morphological nature of the microscopy (HTREM). The role of substrate orientation and aliovalent dopant niobium shall be elucidated along with their transformation kinetics. Additionally, capacitance measurements will be carried out to provide an independent measure of the phase transformation. Moreover, a comparison between in-situ and ex-situ heat treatments on SPE growth rates will be made to gain a fundamental understanding of the basic processes involved. %%% Epitaxial thin-film devices manufactured from these materials have enormous potential commercial value including electrooptic, piezoelectric and pyroelectric devices. This approach and much of the underlying science involved in this proposal on ferroelectric thin films are new; hence, the personnel involved will gain training in an area destined to be of great importance in emerging science and technology. ***