FERROELECTRICS Laser transfer processing for the integration of thin and thick film ferroelectrics C. James Æ T. Chakraborty Æ A. Brown Æ T. Comyn Æ R. Dorey Æ J. Harrington Æ A. J. Laister Æ R. E. Miles Æ C. Puchmark Æ B. Xu Æ W. Xiong Æ Q. Zhang Æ S. J. Milne Received: 17 April 2009 / Accepted: 16 May 2009 / Published online: 2 June 2009 Ó Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2009 Abstract Laser transfer processing (LTP) offers the potential to overcome the problems of integrating ferro- electric thin and thick film materials with polymers and other technologically useful substrate materials that cannot sustain the high process temperatures, 600–1,000 °C, required for normal film deposition. The LTP technique involves the fabrication of a ceramic film on a high-tem- perature substrate material such as sapphire, and sub- sequent release by application of pulsed ultra-violet laser radiation. Here, the LTP technique is reviewed in the context of ferroelectric thin and thick films, and current developments are presented. Micro- and nanostructural features of the films before and after transfer to a second substrate are revealed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The consequences of laser-generated structural changes on ferroelectric properties are illustrated, and measures to mitigate the effects of an amorphous damage-layer are discussed. Introduction The integration of ferroelectric ceramics with semicon- ductor, metal and polymer substrates opens up a range of new device applications. These include system-in-pack- age applications involving light-weight low-cost poly- mer materials for use in mobile communications. The high temperatures required to produce a dense polycrystalline ferroelectric film make it difficult to maximize integration opportunities due to the thermal instability of the substrates and circuitry. Physical and chemical methods of fabricating ferroelectric thin films generally involve heating the coated substrate at 600–700 °C to form a well-crystallized film with favourable electrical properties. Thin films can be integrated with silicon semiconductor manufacturing pro- cesses, but only if the coatings are applied at an early stage, before heat-sensitive circuitry is developed, which limits circuit design options. For thick film ferroelectrics, tens of microns in thickness, the densification of tape-cast or screen printed particulate coatings necessitates sintering at mini- mum temperatures of 850 °C, if liquid-phase sintering additives are employed, and at C1,000 °C if no fluxes are present. Upper process temperatures (approximate) for avoiding substrate degradation, or deleterious substrate-film reactions are: blank silicon 725–750 °C, semiconductors 400 °C, polymers 200 °C (specialist polymers, 400 °C). Laser transfer processing (LTP), or laser lift off, is one promising approach to overcoming the integration prob- lems and enabling the properties of ferroelectrics to be exploited on polymer, metal and semiconductor substrate C. James Á A. Brown Á T. Comyn Á J. Harrington Á W. Xiong Á S. J. Milne (&) Institute for Materials Research, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK e-mail: S.J.Milne@leeds.ac.uk T. Chakraborty Á A. J. Laister Á R. E. Miles Institute for Microwaves and Photonics, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK R. Dorey Á Q. Zhang Advanced Materials Group, Cranfield University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL, UK C. Puchmark Department of Physics, Naresuan University, Phitsanuloke 65000, Thailand B. Xu Palo Alto Research Centre, 3333 Coyote Hill Road, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA 123 J Mater Sci (2009) 44:5325–5331 DOI 10.1007/s10853-009-3609-2