Regensburg 2025 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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KFM: Fachverband Kristalline Festkörper und deren Mikrostruktur

KFM 14: Poster

KFM 14.7: Poster

Mittwoch, 19. März 2025, 17:00–18:30, P1

Epitaxial Growth of Phase-Pure LiNbO3 Thin Films on LiTaO3 by Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) — •Hyeyeon Cho, Steffen Ganschow, René Bararugurika, and Jutta Schwarzkopf — Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung, Max-Born-Straße 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany

Lithium niobate (LiNbO3) is a widely used material in electro-optical and electroacoustic devices due to its outstanding ferroelectric, piezoelectric, electro-optical, and nonlinear optical properties. Thin-film LiNbO3 offers significant advantages, including component miniaturization, broader bandwidths at higher frequencies, and reduced operational voltages. However, achieving these benefits requires the growth of phase-pure films with excellent crystalline quality, stoichiometric composition, and low surface roughness. Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) is a reliable method for growing LiNbO3 thin films, providing precise control over stoichiometry and the ability to produce high-quality epitaxial layers. However, high volatility of Li2O at enhanced temperatures during deposition often leads to Li-poor secondary phase formation. In this study, we investigated the effects of various deposition parameters to optimize the growth of phase-pure LiNbO3 films on LiTaO3. Key parameters, including substrate temperature, oxygen partial pressure, laser fluence, laser frequency, and target-substrate distance, were systematically varied. We also explored the use of lithium-rich targets to address lithium loss at high temperatures. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) analyses confirmed the epitaxial growth of high-quality films with smooth surfaces.

Keywords: LiNbO3; Thin Films; PLD