Preparation of antiferroelectric PZT thin films on bare and on RuO2 coated steel substrates

PZT antiferroelectric thin films have been prepared by chemical solution deposition using alkoxide precursor compounds. With the aim to establish the compositional transition from the ferroelectric to the antiferroelectric phase state, the films were prepared with different Zr/Ti-ratio ranging from 92/8 to 100/0. In order to compare the dielectric properties of the films, deposition of the PZT was either on bare steel substrates or on substrates coated with an RuO2 interface layer. In general, the PZT films with the additional RuO2 layer had smaller coercive fields, while the values of spontaneous polarization essentially did not differ. The clearest double hysteresis characteristic was obtained for PZT (95/5); using conventional multi-coating technique, homogeneous films of up to 2.5 um thickness were prepared.