A review of the preparation and application of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin film sensors

Abstract

With the continuous exploration of nature by humans and the continuous innovation of technology, the development of micron-level, submicron-level, and even nanometer-level sensors with high precision, high sensitivity, and suitability for microelectronic systems has become an indispensable and important link in technological expansion. With the emergence of piezoelectric ceramics and their application in sensors, the size of piezoelectric sensors has been significantly reduced. At the same time, the excellent performance of piezoelectric ceramics greatly enhances the overall performance of sensors, enabling them to easily achieve high precision, high sensitivity, excellent response characteristics, and detailed range graduations. In the past 20 years, the application of ferroelectric thin films in the fields of piezoelectric sensors, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), and non-volatile memory has significantly increased. In piezoelectric sensors, lead zirconate titanate (PZT), as the most widely used piezoelectric ceramic, is mainly applied in the fields of sensors and actuators in MEMS devices. PZT thin films have excellent characteristics such as polarization value, dielectric constant, and piezoelectric constant, and are easy to integrate with various devices. Therefore, they are often used as actuating or sensing elements in MEMS. This paper mainly discusses the preparation process of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin film sensors, including the research on the production process of lead zirconate titanate, the preparation process of thin films, and the comparison between directional laser sintering of laser processing technology and traditional furnace annealing during sintering treatment. In addition, the comparison between plasma surface treatment technology and direct external electric field polarization will also be discussed, and the various properties of the treated PZT thin film will be analyzed in detail. Finally, this paper discusses the application scenarios of PZT thin film sensors in MEMS sensors, mainly involving ultrasonic sensors and acceleration sensors.