THIN FILM — X-ray scattering pattern from ferroelectric stripe domains in a thin film of lead titanate three unit cells thick. Research on ferroelectric thin films could lead to submicroscopic layered materials for use in various novel applications.

X-ray scattering pattern from ferroelectric stripe domains in a thin film of lead titanate three unit cells thick.

Thin films of ferroelectric material for use in future “electronic” devices can be exceedingly thin without loss of function, according to a synchrotron x-ray study carried out by researchers from Argonne National Laboratory and Northern Illinois University using XOR beamline 12-ID at the APS. The results show that a thin film of one particular ferroelectric material, lead titanate, is still stable even in a layer that is a mere 1.2 nanometers (three unit cells) thick. This tiny thickness limit for ferroelectricity bodes well for fabricating submicroscopic layers for use in various novel applications. See: D.D. Fong, G.B. Stephenson, S.K. Streiffer, J.A. Eastman, O.Auciello, P.H. Fuoss, and C. Thompson, "Ferroelectricity in Ultrathin Perovskite Films," Science 304 (5677), 1650, 11 June 2004).

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