Mist Deposition of Micron-Thick Lead Zirconate Titanate Films

ABSTRACTA majority of the work published on liquid source misted chemical deposition (LSMCD) has focused on the fabrication of thin ferroelectric films for random access memory (RAM) applications. However, the ability of LSMCD to combine the characteristically good stoichiometry control of a chemical solution deposition process with good film conformality, makes this a desirable technique for other applications, including microactuators and integrated passive components. For these applications, though, LSMCD is limited by its low throughput. This paper describes the feasibility of depositing micron-thick lead zirconate titanate (PZT) films using the LSMCD tool. PZT films of 52/48 composition were deposited on both platinized silicon and platinized alumina substrates. The chamber temperature and the delivery geometry of the LSMCD tool were identified as limiting factors in the rate at which micron-thick samples can be prepared. By switching to a focused nozzle delivery geometry and increasing the chamber temperature from room temperature to 60°C, the total process time for 1 μm thick films can be reduced from 480 min to 90 min. Polarization hysteresis measurements indicated a 75% higher remanent polarization for PZT films deposited on platinized alumina substrates (35 μC/cm2) compared to those deposed on platinized silicon substrates (20 μC/cm2). The polarization loop for the silicon substrate sample was also tilted. These observations are evidence of higher tensile stresses in the PZT films deposited on silicon substrates due to a larger mismatch in the thermal expansion coefficients of the film and the substrate.