Growth and structure of Bi0.5(Na0.7K0.2Li0.1)0.5TiO3 thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition technique

Bi_0.5(Na_0.7K_0.2Li_0.1)_0.5TiO₃ (BNKLT) thin films were prepared on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. The films prepared were examined by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The effects of the processing parameters, such as oxygen pressure, substrate temperature and laser power, on the crystal structure, surface morphology, roughness and deposition rates of the thin films were investigated. It was found that the substrate temperature of 600 °C and oxygen pressure of 30 Pa are the optimized technical parameters for the growth of textured film, and all the thin films prepared have granular structure, homogeneous grain size and smooth surfaces.     

Effect of microstructure of MgO buffer layer on BaTiO3 grown on silicon substrates

MgO ultrathin films were grown on Si(1 0 0) substrates as buffer layers for the growth of ferroelectric BaTiO₃ thin films by laser molecular beam epitaxy (L-MBE). The deposition process of MgO buffer layers grown on silicon was in situ monitored by reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED). The structure of BaTiO₃ films fabricated on MgO buffers was investigated by X-ray diffraction. Biaxially textured MgO was obtained at high laser energy density, but when the laser energy was lowered, MgO buffer was transformed to the form of texture with angular dispersion with the increase of the film thickness. BaTiO₃ films grown on the former buffer were completely (0 0 1) textured, while those on the latter were (0 0 1) preferred orientated. Furthermore, the fabricated MgO buffers and BaTiO₃ films had atomically smooth surface and interface. All these can reveal that the quality of textured MgO buffer is a key factor for the growth of BaTiO₃ films on silicon.     

Molecular Beam Epitaxy of GaSb on GaAs Substrates with AlSb Buffer Layers

We investigate the molecular beam epitaxy growth of GaSb films on GaAs substrates using AlSb buffer layers. Optimization of AlSb growth parameter is aimed at obtaining high GaSh crystal quality and smooth GaSh surface. The optimized growth temperature and thickness of AlSb layers are found to be 450℃ and 2.1 nm, respectively. A rms surface roughness of 0.67 nm over 10 × 10 μm^2 is achieved as a 0.5 μm GaSh film is grown under optimized conditions.     

Chemical Oxidation of La2CuO4 Epitaxial Thin Films Grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Chemical oxidation is used to induce superconductivity in La2CuO4 expitaxial thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition technique. Details about the influence of oxidation time on structural, surface morphology, Raman spectra, and electrical properties have been investigated. The results convince that successful uptake of oxygen occurs in the oxidized films, and the content of the inserted oxygen increases with increasing oxidation interval. The possible mechanism for the excess oxygen insertion into the film is also discussed.     

Asymmetric Magnetization Reversal Probed by Recoil Loop Measurements inan Exchange Biased La0.67Sr0.33MnO3/La0.33Ca0.67MnO3 Bilayer Film

We exploit the recoil loop measurements to study La0.07 Sr0.33 Mn O3/La0.33 Ca0.67 Mn O3 bilayer film. the asymmetric magnetization reversal in an exchange-biased It is found that the recoil curve encloses a marked area only in the second quadrant of the hysteresis loop, and the recoil susceptibility in the descending branch of the major loop is evidently higher than that in the ascending branch. The study indicates that the exchange anisotropy of a unidirectional nature and an orientation deviated from the easy axis of the ferromagnetic layer plays a crucial role in creating the reversal asymmetry.     

Microstructure of epitaxial SrRuO3 thin films on MgO substrates

SrRuO₃ thin films have been grown on singular (1 0 0) MgO substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) in 30 Pa oxygen ambient and at a temperature of 400-700 °C. Ex situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) as well as X-ray diffraction (XRD) θ/2θ scan indicated that the films deposited above 650 °C were well crystallized though they had a rough surface as shown by atom force microscopy (AFM). XRD Φ scans revealed that these films were composed of all three different types of orientation domains, which was further confirmed by the RHEED patterns. The heteroepitaxial relationship between SrRuO₃ and MgO was found to be [1 1 0] SRO//[1 0 0] MgO and 45°-rotated cube-on-cube [0 0 1] SRO//[1 0 0] MgO. These domain structures and surface morphology are similar to that of ever-reported SrRuO₃ thin films deposited on the (0 0 1) LaAlO₃ substrates, and different from those deposited on (0 0 1) SrTiO₃ substrates that have an atomically flat surface and are composed of only the [1 1 0]-type domains. The reason for this difference was ascribed to the effect of lattice mismatch across the film/substrate interface. The room temperature resistivity of SrRuO₃ films fabricated at 700 °C was 300 μΩ cm. Therefore, epitaxial SrRuO₃ films on MgO substrate could serve as a promising candidate of electrode materials for the fabrication of ferroelectric or dielectric films.     

Photovoltaic Characteristic of La0.7Sr0.3MnO3/ZnO p-n Heterojunction

We report on the photovoltaic properties of Lao.7Sro.3MnO3//ZnO heterojunction fabricated by pulsed laser deposition methods. Nanosecond photovoltaic pulses are observed in this junction in the wavelength range from ultraviolet-visible to infrared. A qualitative explanation is presented, based on an analysis of the photovoltaic signals of p-n heterojunction.     

Acceptor Concentration Effects on Photovoltaic Response in the La1-xSrxMnO3/SrNbyTi1-yO3 Heterojunction

Photovoltaic response in the heterojunction of La1-x SrxMnO3/SrNby Ti1-yO3 （LSMO/SNTO） is analyzed theoretically based on the drift-diffusion model. It is found that the decrease of acceptor concentration in the La1-xSrxMnO3 layer of hereto junction can increase the peak value of photovoltaic signal and the speed of photovoltaic response, whereas the changing of donor concentration in the SrNby Ti1-yO3 layer has no such evident effect. Furthermore, the result also indicates that the modulation of Sr doping in La1-xSrxMnO3 is an effective method to accommodate the sensitivity and the speed of photovoltaic response for LSMO/SNTO photoelectric devices.     

Ferromagnetic Antiresonance and Giant Microwave Magneto-Impedance in Polycrystalline La0.49Sr0.51MnO3

The ferromagnetic antiresonance （FMAR） phenomenon, i.e., the minimum of the microwave absorption, in polycrystalline La0.49Sr0.51MnO3 is observed near Curie temperature TC = 282 K. Temperature-dependences of magnetization μ0M are obtained from the FMAR. The results show that as μ0H = 0, by fitting the scaling law M ∝ （TC -T）^β to temperature-dependences of μ0M at the different microwave frequencies, it yields TC=281.2 K and β = 0.47. However, temperature-dependences of μ0M under different μ0H are not in agreement with the scaling law. Due to FMAR, about 40% giant microwave magneto-impedance at 11.9 GHz can occur under a low field μ0H = 0.03 T.     

Ferroelectric Properties of Bi3.25La0.75Ti3O12 Thin Films Crystallized inDifferent N2/O2 Ambients

Bi3.25La0.75 Ti3O12 （BLT） ferroelectric thin films are deposited by sol-gel method and annealed for crystallizaion in total l eccm N2/02 mixed gas with various ratio at 750℃ for 30rain. The effect of crystallization ambient on the structural and ferroelectric properties of the BLT films is studied. The growth direction and grain size of BLT film are revealed to affect ferroeleetric properties. Alter the BLT film is annealed in 20%O2, the largest P~ value is obtained, which is ascribed to an increase of random orientation and large grain size. The fatigue property is improved with the concentration of oxygen in the ambient increasing, which is ascribed to annealing in the ambient with high concentrated oxygen adequately decreasing the defects related to lack of oxygen.     

Enhanced Magnetoresistance of （La0.67Ca0.33MnO3） Composites Coated by Zn0.95Co0.05O

La0.7Ca0.3MnO3：xZn0.95Co0.05O （x=0.0,0.05, 0.1, 0.15mol） composites are prepared by a sol-gel process. X- ray diffraction and energy diffraction spectroscopy reveal that there is no evidence of a reaction between the La0.7 Ca0.3 MnO3 （LCMO） and Zn0.95Co0.05 O （ZCO）. Magnetization M, Curie temperature Tc and metal-insulator transition temperatures Tp are observed to decrease with increasing ZCO content. Compared with x = 0.0, a great enhancement in the magnetoresistance （MR） is observed at around Tc for x = 0.05, 0.10, 0.15. Based on the tunneling MR and percolation models, this great change of MR is well explained.     

Microstructure of Epitaxial Er2O3 Thin Film on Oxidized Si (111) Substrate

Er₂O₃ thin films are grown on oxidized Si (111) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy. The sample grown under optimized condition is characterized in its microstructure, surface morphology and thickness using grazing incidence x-ray diffraction (GIXRD), atomic force morphology and x-ray reflectivity. GIXRD measurements reveal that the Er₂O₃ thin film is a mosaic of single-crystaldomains. The interplanar spacing d in-plane residual strain tensor ε_| and the strain relaxation degree ξ are calculated. The Poisson ratio μ obtained by conventional x-ray diffraction is in good agreement with that of the bulkEr₂O₃. In-plane strains in three sets of planes, i.e. (440), (404), and (044), are isotropic.     

（Na0.52K0.44Li0.04）Nb0.9-xSbxTa0.1O3 Lead-Free Piezoelectric Ceramics with High Performance and High Curie Temperature

（Na0.52K0.44Li0.04）Nb0.9-x Sbx Ta0.1O3 lead-free piezoelectric ceramics are prepared by a solid-state reaction method. With increasing Sb content, the transition temperature from orthorhombic to tetragonal polymorphic phase decreased. A composition （Na0.52K0.44Li0.04）Nb0.863Sb0.037Ta0.1O3 is found to possess excellent piezo- electric and electromechanical performances （d33 = 306pC/N, kp =48%, and kt=50%）, and high Curie temperature （Tc = 320 ℃）. These results indicate that （Na0.52K0.44Li0.04）Nb0.863Sb0.037 Ta0.1O3 is a promising lead-free piezoceramics replacement for lead zirconate titanate.     

Thickness-dependent surface morphology of La0.9Sr0.1MnO3 ultrathin films

La_0.9Sr_0.1MnO₃ (LSMO) ultrathin films with various thickness (in the range of 5-50 unit cells) are grown on (0 0 1) substrates of the single-crystal SrTi_0.99Nb_0.01O₃ by laser molecular-beam epitaxy (laser-MBE), and the surface morphology of these films were measured by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). STM images of LSMO ultrathin film surface reveal that surface morphology becomes more flat with increasing film thickness. This study highlights the important effect of strain caused by the lattice mismatch between substrates and ultrathin films. And the results should be useful to the investigations on growing manganite perovskite materials.     

Effect of Pyrolysis Atmosphere on Ferroelectric Properties of Bi3.25La0.75Ti3O12 Films Prepared by Sol-Gel Method

The effect of pyrolysis atmosphere is investigated for Bi3.25 La0.75 Ti3O12 （BLT） films prepared on Pt/TiO2/SiO2/p-Si（100substrates by sol-gel processes. The pyrolysis is carried out at 400℃ for 20 min under air or O2 atmosphere and the successive anneal is performed at 700℃ for 30min under O2 atmosphere. The pyrolysis under O2 is enough for complete removal of organic species, however after pyrolysis under air, carbon and hydrogen atomic species as organic fragment are partly remained in the film. This incomplete removal of organic fragments affects the grain growth and cause more defects in the film or between interfaces during the annealing for the crystallization of BLT film. The growth direction and grain size of the BLT film is revealed to affect ferroelectric properties. The remanent polarization PTfor the BLT films of pyrolysis in O2 and air are measured to be 18.85μC/cm^2 and 12.56μC/cm^2,respectively. The defects degrade the fatigue property dramatically for the film of pyrolysis in air. It can be concluded that the pyrolysis is an important procedure to control ferroeleetrie properties.     

Long-Lasting Phosphorescence Properties of Pyrochlore La2Ti2O7：Pr^3＋ Phosphor

The La2Ti2O7：Pr^3＋, which emits red color luminescence upon UV light excitation, is prepared by the conventional high-temperature solid-state method and its luminescent properties are systematically investigated. X-ray diffraction, photoluminescence, afterglow emission spectra and long-lasting phosphorescence （LLP） decay curves are used to characterize this phosphor. After irradiation by a 290-nm UV light for 3 rain, the Pr^3＋-doped La2Ti2O7 phosphor emits intense red emitting afterglow from the ^1D2 →^ 3H4 transitions, and its afterglow can be seen with the naked eye in the dark clearly for more than 1 h after removal of the excitation source. The afterglow decay curve of the Pr^3＋-doped La2Ti2O7 phosphor contains a fast decay component and another slow decay one. The possible mechanism of this red light emitting LLP phosphor is also discussed based on the experimental results.     

Epitaxial growth and structural characterization of Pb(Fe1/2Nb1/2)O3 thin films

We have grown lead iron niobate thin films with composition Pb(Fe_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃ (PFN) on (0 0 1) SrTiO₃ substrates by pulsed laser deposition. The influence of the deposition conditions on the phase purity was studied. Due to similar thermodynamic stability spaces, a pyrochlore phase often coexists with the PFN perovskite phase. By optimizing the kinetic parameters, we succeeded in identifying a deposition window which resulted in epitaxial perovskite-phase PFN thin films with no identifiable trace of impurity phases appearing in the X-ray diffractograms. PFN films having thicknesses between 20 and 200 nm were smooth and epitaxially oriented with the substrate and as demonstrated by RHEED streaks which were aligned with the substrate axes. X-ray diffraction showed that the films were completely c-axis oriented and of excellent crystalline quality with low mosaicity (X-ray rocking curve FWHM?0.09°). The surface roughness of thin films was also investigated by atomic force microscopy. The root-mean-square roughness varies between 0.9 nm for 50-nm-thick films to 16 nm for 100-nm-thick films. We also observe a correlation between grain size, surface roughness and film thickness.     

Effects of LSMO Buffer Layer on Crystalline Orientation and Ferroelectric Properties of Bi2.9Pr0.9Ti3O12 Thin Films Prepared by Radio-Frequency Magnetron Sputtering

Ferroelectric Bi_2.9Pr_0.9Ti₃O₁₂/La_0.67Sr_0.33MnO₃ (BPT/LSMO) films are fabricated on Pt(111)/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates by rf-magnetron sputtering method. The influences of the LSMO deposition conditions and LSMO layer thickness on properties of BPT thin films are studied. The LSMO layer deposited at 300°C and 450°C favours preferred (117) orientation of BPT films, while deposited at 600°C for LSMO layer leads to strong (111)-preferred orientation of BPT film. With the LSMO buffer layer, the films exhibit improved ferroelectric properties and Pt/BPT/LSMO(20nm)/Pt capacitor shows the largest remnant polarization P_r of 18.4μC/cm² at 14V. A similar change in dielectric constant with the increase of LSMO layer thickness is also observed and the highest dielectric constant of 342.7 is obtained for the Pt/BPT/LSMO(20nm)/Pt film. Compared with the Pt/BPT/Pt film, the Pt/BPT/LSMO/Pt films exhibit better fatigue endurance after 5×10⁹ switching cycles. Moreover, the LSMO layer has apparent effect on leakage current density and the Pt/BPT/LSMO(20nm)/Pt film exhibits the lowest leakage current density.     

Optical Properties of Co-BaTiO3/Mg（100） Nano-Composite Films Grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition Method

Co nanoparticles embedded in a BaTiO3 matrix, namely Co-BaTiO3 nano-composite films are grown on Mg（100） single crystal substrates by the pulsed laser deposition （PLD） method at 650℃. Optical properties of the CoBaTiO3 nano-composite films are examined by absorption spectra （AS） and photoluminescence （PL） spectra. The results indicate that the concentration of Co nano-particles strongly influences the electron transition of the Co BaTiO3 nano-composite films. The PL emission band ranging from 1.9 to 2.2eV is reported. The AS and PL spectra suggest that the band gap is in the range of 3.28-3.7eV.     

Sensitized luminescence through nanoscopic effects of ZnO encapsulated in SiO2:Tb sol gel derived phosphor

Terbium (1 mol%) doped ZnO-SiO₂ binary system was prepared by a sol-gel process. Nanoscopic effects of ZnO on the photoluminescence (PL) and the cathodoluminescence (CL) properties were studied. Defects emission from ZnO nanoparticles was measured at 560 nm and the line emission from Tb³⁺ ions in SiO₂:Tb³⁺ and ZnO-SiO₂:Tb³⁺ with a major peak at 542 nm was measured. The PL excitation wavelength for 542 nm Tb³⁺ emission was measured at ∼320 nm in both SiO₂:Tb³⁺ and ZnO-SiO₂:Tb³⁺. The CL data showed quenched luminescence of the ZnO nanoparticles at 560 nm from a composite of ZnO-SiO₂:Tb³⁺ and a subsequent increase in 542 nm emission from the Tb³⁺ ions. This suggests that energy was transferred from the ZnO nanoparticles to enhance the green emission of the Tb³⁺ ions. The PL and CL properties of ZnO-SiO₂:Tb³⁺ binary system and possible mechanism for energy transfer from the ZnO nanoparticles to Tb³⁺ ions are discussed.