Fabrication of ultrathin film capacitors by chemical solution deposition

Abstract

A facile solution-based processing route using standard spin-coating deposition techniques has been developed for the production of reliable capacitors based on lead lanthanum zirconate titanate (PLZT) with active areas of ⩾1 mm2 and dielectric layer thicknesses down to 50 nm. With careful control of the dielectric phase development through improved processing, ultrathin capacitors exhibited slim ferroelectric hysteresis loops and dielectric constants of >1000, similar to those of much thicker films. Thus, it has been demonstrated that chemical solution deposition is a viable route to the production of capacitor films which are as thin as 50 nm but are still macroscopically addressable with specific capacitance values >160 nF/mm2.