Pseudo in situ investigation of structural changes in strained ferroelectric thin films

Strain in ferroelectric thin films is known to have a pronounced effect on the functional properties of materials. The lead-free ferroelectric SrxBa1-xNb2O6 (SBNx×100) has a flexible tetragonal tungsten bronze crystal structure which offers the tuning of its functional properties. From earlier beam times a fundamental understanding of the nucleation and growth of SBN thin films prepared by CSD has been reached. We will now conduct pseudo in situ X-ray diffraction studies on pre-made films to identify and quantify the strain in the thin films and the change in crystal structure when exposed to heating around the Curie temperature. For these studies, films with different texture orientations giving both in-plane and out-of-plane polarization, and different thermal histories to induce strain from the substrate will be used. The data will be coupled with ex situ ferroelectric measurements of the thin films to correlate the strain, structural changes, and ferroelectric properties.