Multiferroic behavior and magnetoelectric effect in CoFe2O4/Pb(Zr0.53Ti0.47)O3 thick films

A CoFe2O4/Pb(Zr0.53Ti0.47)O3 (CFO/PZT) multiferroic composite thick film assisted by polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was prepared by a hybrid sol–gel processing and spin coating technique. Scanning electronic microscopy indicated a porous microstructure with a thickness of 6.2 μm. Pure PZT perovskite phase observed from x-ray diffraction suggested that the low ratio of CFO particles was deeply buried in the PZT matrix. Ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties were observed simultaneously at room temperature as well as a lower leakage current compared with a CFO/PZT thin film. The dynamic and static magnetoelectric effects were strongly dependent on the applied DC/AC magnetic field but their values were very low. The results demonstrated the prediction that ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties can induce a strong magnetoelectric coupling only if a dense microstructure was achieved.