Enhanced radiation tolerance in Mn-doped ferroelectric thin films
Abstract
This work investigates the role of Mn-doping of ferroelectric lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin films exposed to a range of ionizing radiation doses. PZT thin films were fabricated with both undoped and 4% Mn-doped compositions, and the functional response was compared both before and after exposure to gamma radiation doses up to 10 Mrad. A phenomenological model was applied to quantify defect interactions and compare trends in the degradation of the functional response. Mn-doped PZT samples demonstrate reduced magnitude of functional response in non-irradiated samples but exhibit vastly superior radiation tolerance of dielectric and ferroelectric properties across the range of gamma doses studied here. Strong MnZr/Ti″−VO·· defect dipoles pin domain walls, resulting in a lower initial functional response and mitigating the deleterious effects of irradiation on extrinsic contributions to the said response. Piezoelectric response trends as a function of radiation dose are highly nonlinear. The results of this work can be leveraged to engineer next-generation radiation-tolerant ferroelectric materials for applications where high levels of functional response stability are required, especially at elevated ionizing radiation dose.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Jul 10, 2017
- Source ID
- 10.1063/1.4992791
Entities
People
- Cory D. Cress
- Evan R. Glaser
- L. A. Griffin
- M. Rivas
- N. Bassiri-gharb
- Ronald G. Polcawich
- Ryan Q. Rudy
- S. C. Williams
- Steven J. Brewer
Organizations
- Defense Threat Reduction Agency
- Georgia Tech
- United States Army Research Laboratory
- United States Naval Research Laboratory
- University of Connecticut