Neutron irradiation effects on domain wall mobility and reversibility in lead zirconate titanate thin films
- Nuclear Engineering Teaching Laboratory, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78758 (United States)
- Electronic, Optic and Nano Materials Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185 (United States)
- Materials Science and Engineering Program, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78751 (United States)
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 12180 (United States)
- Advanced Power Sources R and D Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185 (United States)
The effects of neutron-induced damage on the ferroelectric properties of thin film lead zirconate titanate (PZT) were investigated. Two sets of PbZr{sub 0.52}Ti{sub 0.48}O{sub 3} films of varying initial quality were irradiated in a research nuclear reactor up to a maximum 1 MeV equivalent neutron fluence of (5.16 {+-} 0.03) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} cm{sup -2}. Changes in domain wall mobility and reversibility were characterized by polarization-electric field measurements, Rayleigh analysis, and analysis of first order reversal curves (FORC). With increasing fluence, extrinsic contributions to the small-signal permittivity diminished. Additionally, redistribution of irreversible hysterons towards higher coercive fields was observed accompanied by the formation of a secondary hysteron peak following exposure to high fluence levels. The changes are attributed to the radiation-induced formation of defect dipoles and other charged defects, which serve as effective domain wall pinning sites. Differences in damage accumulation rates with initial film quality were observed between the film sets suggesting a dominance of pre-irradiation microstructure on changes in macroscopic switching behavior.
- OSTI ID:
- 22102322
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 113, Issue 12; Other Information: (c) 2013 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-8979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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