Uncooled infrared detectors consisting of thin film pyroelectric oxide heterostructures have been fabricated. Pb(Zr,Ti)O₃ (PZT) and (Sr,Ba)Nb₂O₆ (BSN) thin films were integrated to YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x (YBCO) films on yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ)-buffered Si(100) and on LaAlO₃(100) substrates by the pulsed laser deposition technique. The YBCO thin films are used both as IR reflector- conductive electrodes and as atomic templates for PZT and BSN epitaxial growth, but not necessarily for their superconducting properties. The crystalline properties and photoresponse of the oxide thin film heterostructure infrared detectors were characterized from room temperature up to the phase transition temperatures of PZT and BSN. Detectivity values of approximately 10⁸ cmHz^1/2/W at room temperature have been obtained for simple heterostructure device configurations. The tunable phase transition temperature, dielectric constant and pyroelectric properties of the oxide allow for the development of an infrared detector with operation at temperatures higher than room temperature.

Date Published: 20 February 1998
PDF: 6 pages
Proc. SPIE 3175, Third International Conference on Thin Film Physics and Applications, (20 February 1998); doi: 10.1117/12.300682

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 3175:
Third International Conference on Thin Film Physics and Applications
Shixun Zhou; Yongling Wang; Yi-Xin Chen; Shuzheng Mao, Editor(s)