Piezoelectric thin films for MEMS applications—A comparative study of PZT, 0.7PMN–0.3PT and 0.9PMN–0.1PT thin films grown on Si by r.f. magnetron sputtering

PMN–PT (0.7), PMN–PT (0.9) and PZT (54/46) thin films were deposited by sputtering on silicon substrate covered bottom TiOx/Pt electrodes. The top and lower electrodes are grown by r.f. sputtering. The objective in this paper here is to compare the dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of different materials, and material compositions, in thin films form. For these films the electric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties have been determined and compared to PZT films of the same thickness. The comprehensive characterization process clearly reveals the merits of each film composition for a particular application. The results for the three film compositions are presented and discussed.