Chemical solution growth of ferroelectric oxide thin films and nanostructures.

Chemical solution deposition (CSD) provides a low-cost, versatile approach for processing of thin and ultrathin ferroelectric films, as well as short and high aspect ratio ferroelectric nanostructures. This review discusses the state of the art in the processing of ferroelectric oxide thin films and nanostructures by CSD, with special emphasis on nucleation and growth phenomena. The effects of choice of precursor solution, substrate and bottom electrode stack, and thermal treatment conditions on the nucleation and growth are examined. Furthermore, methods to control ferroelectric thin film's microstructure, including phase content, texture, grain size and chemical homogeneity, are reviewed. Lastly, current CSD-based methods for processing of ferroelectric oxide nanostructures are presented with special consideration of the structural development, as well as advantages and shortcomings associated with each method. Lead zirconate-titanate, Pb(ZrxTi1-x)O3 (PZT), and barium titanate, BaTiO3 (BT), are used throughout the discussion, as specific examples for CSD processing of perovskite ferroelectrics.

White light lateral shear interferometer with holographic shear lenses and spatial Fourier transform.

Lateral shear interferometer is a simple yet powerful method for testing wavefronts or measuring refractive index changes. Previously, we have reported a method of using two holographic lenses to obtain shear and to generate a spatial frequency carrier, which was used for quantitative analysis. This technique has some advantages such as stability and instantaneous measurements. In this Letter, we report a method of using white light with holographic gratings to obtain shear and also to perform wavefront analysis using the spatial carrier fringes generated at a specific selected wavelength from the white light spectrum. We show that the sensitivity of the setup can be changed by selecting different wavelengths from the spectrum.

Spatially multiplexed X-Y lateral shear interferometer with varying shears using holographic lens and spatial Fourier transform.

Current methods in shear interferometry provide shear only along one direction at a time. We propose a method in which interferograms with shear along the x, y, and xy directions can be obtained simultaneously from a single exposure recording via the concept of spatial multiplexing. The method utilizes holographic lenses, which have been recorded on a single plate with their optical centers translated along the x and y directions. The phase information is extracted through the Fourier transform method. In addition, this technique also provides a method to obtain interferograms with shear in multiples of the original shear along the x and y axis in one single frame capture due to the nonlinearity inherent in the phase holographic lens.

Free-standing ferroelectric nanotubes processed via soft-template infiltration.

A new nano-manufacturing method for the creation of high aspect-ratio ferroelectric (PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3) nanostructures by use of polymeric templates is presented. The ferroelectric response is characterized by band-excitation PFM, supporting the high quality of the nanostructures. Piezoelectric size effects for ferroelectric materials are reported for the first time in nanotube configuration (critical thickness ∼15 nm) and compared to thin films' response.