Characterization of Ferroelectric Properties of PZT Grains Utilizing KFM Measurements

Abstract

Ferroelectric properties of PbZr 0.4 Ti 0.6 O 3 (PZT) grains were examined by monitoring the surface potential. Hysteretic and time dependent behaviors of small grain were compared with those of large grain. The smaller grain yields smaller value of the surface potential. However, the normalize voltage versus surface potential behavior indicates the earlier saturation with respect to writing voltages. On the other hand, the surface potential hysteresis loop obtained from the smaller grain shows a similar shape that might be obtained from Zr rich PZT film, whereas hysteresis loop of the larger grain looks like that obtained from Ti-rich film. In addition, the time dependent behaviors of the smaller grains also reveal the better response than those of the larger grains. The overall ferroelectric property of smaller grain seems to be better than that of larger grain. At present, it is not sure about the whether the difference is due to the difference in the stoichiometry or not. In this study, the Ti/Zr ratio of PZT film was 60/40.