Role of texture on the antiferroelectric switching of PbZrO3 films

Antiferroelectrics have been recently sparking interest due to their potential use in energy storage and electrocaloric cooling. Their main distinctive feature is antiferroelectric switching, i.e. the possibility to induce a phase transition to a polar phase by an electric field. Here we investigate the switching behavior of the model antiferroelectric perovskite PbZrO3 using thin films processed by chemical solution deposition in different geometries and orientations. Both out-of-plane and in-plane switching configurations are investigated. We discuss the different characteristics of the switching loops and the switching fields in relation with the texture of the films, and show that those are consistent with a switching to a rhombohedral polar phase. We finally estimate the importance of crystallite orientation and film texturation in the variations observed in the literature.