Rapid thermal annealing of sol-gel derived lead zirconate titanate thin films

Sol-gel derived ferroelectric thin films of lead zirconate titanate have been annealed through the rapid thermal annealing (RTA) technique to investigate the effect of various annealing temperature-time combinations. Crystallization of the film into the perovskite phase required 10 s at 600 °C and a mere 1 s at 700 °C. Rapid thermally annealed films recorded weak-field permittivities greater than 1000, dissipation losses of 0.02–0.05, maximum remanent polarization of 29 μC/cm2, and coercive field around 40 kV/cm. RTA films are distinguished by superior breakdown strengths, and morphologically smoother surfaces. The frequency dependent dielectric constants have been discussed in terms of a lumped circuit model.