Investigation of the Electro-optic and Dielectric Properties of Epitaxial Ferroelectric Thin Films:
Integrated Oxide Thin Films Supplement
Brent H. Hoerman
Abstract:
Epitaxial ferroelectric thin films are potentially enabling materials for microphotonic applications due to their large non-linear optical properties. Subsequently, efforts have been directed toward developing these materials for use as the active layer in integrated, high-bandwidth, electro-optic modulators. This dissertation supplement documents recent progress toward the integration of BaTiO3 films with silicon substrates. In this study epitaxial BaTiO3 thin films have been successfully deposited by MOCVD on (001) MgO / (001) silicon substrates prepared by metal-organic molecular beam epitaxy (MOMBE). To achieve epitaxial MgO a thin, epitaxial beta-SiC interlayer was first deposited on the Si using MOMBE. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy indicate that BaTiO3 and MgO films are epitaxial, with an orientational relationship of BaTiO3 (100) // MgO (100) // Si (001) and BaTiO3 [011] // MgO [011] // Si [110]. Initial polarization and dielectric measurements indicated that the BaTiO3 / Si films are in a FE state.