Effects of aging time of sol on the microstructure and electrical properties of (Pb0.5Ba0.5)ZrO3 thin films

In this work, (Pb0.5Ba0.5)ZrO3 (PBZ) thin films were prepared on Pt(1 1 1)/TiO2/SiO2/Si(1 0 0) substrates after the starting sol was aged for 24, 192 and 528 h, respectively. The effects of aging time of sol on the microstructure and electrical properties of PBZ films were investigated systemically. The phase structure and surface micrograph of PBZ thin films were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), respectively. It was showed that all PBZ thin films had a pure cubic perovskite structure without obvious difference and that the surface roughness of films was decreased as the aging time of sol increasing. Electrical measurements illustrated that dielectric constant and dielectric loss of PBZ films were also gradually declined with the increase of aging time of sol. As a result, films with a longer aging time also had an improved figure of merit (FOM) value.

► PBZ thin films were prepared after the starting sol aged for 24, 192 and 528 h.
► ɛr and tan δ of PBZ films were declined with the increase of sol aging time.
► All the PBZ films had an acceptable temperature-dependent stability.