Characterisation of ferroelectric thin films by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy

In this work an example of the application of glancing angle X-ray diffract ion (GAD), scanning (SEM) and transmission (TEM) electron microscopy techni ques, on the study of the phase distribution and microstructure of PbZr0.52 Ti0.48O3 films deposited by two different methods, sol-gel and laser ablati on, on different substrates, is reported. The investigations performed on t he samples allowed us to obtain information on the phase distribution insid e the films, on the diffusion processes occurred during the crystallisation treatments, on the presence of ferroelectric domains and on the structure of the columnar grains. The results showed that the electrical behaviour co uld be correlated to the microstructure of the films suggesting the best de position conditions. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.