UV Laser Ablation of PLZT and PSZT Films

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe ablation of strontium-doped lead zirconate titanate (PSZT) and lanthanum-doped lead zirconate titanate (PLZT) films has been examined using a 5 ns pulsed excimer laser. Individual squares were patterned with sides in the range of 10-30 µm using single and multiple pulses. The depth of ablation in PLZT films was higher at all fluences than in PSZT films. The morphology of the etched surfaces has comprised the formation of globules which had diameters of 200-250 nm in PLZT and 1400-1600 nm in PSZT films. The diameter of the globules has been shown to increase with fluence until reaching an approximately constant size at >20 J/cm2 in both types of film. The composition of the films following ablation has been analyzed using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy.