Sm Doping Effects on Photovoltaic Properties of Flexible Multiferroic BiFeO₃ Thin Films

We investigated the photovoltaic properties of Sm-doped flexible BiFeO3 (SBFO) deposited on flexible Pt/mica substrates under the influence of the Sm doping concentration. The SBFO thin films, with Sm doping concentrations ranging from 0 to 15%, were deposited as preferentially (111)-oriented polycrystals. The SBFO thin films with a doping concentration of 10% Sm exhibited the best ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties as multiferroic thin films. In particular, the SBFO thin film with a 10% Sm doping concentration demonstrated improved photovoltaic characteristics with an open-circuit voltage of ∼0.61 V and a short-circuit current of ∼0.45 mA/cm2.