Lanthanum modified lead zirconate titanate thin films by sol-gel and plasma annealing for integrated passive nanophotonic devices

Lanthanum modified lead zirconate titanate (PLZT) thin films were prepared by sol-gel and the plasma annealing process. The PLZT thin films are pure perovskite phase and highly crystalline. The polarization-electric loops confirmed quadratic PLZT thin films. The optical properties were determined by a spectroscopic ellipsometry analyzer, showing an absorption coefficient of near zero and an energy gap of around 3.6 eV. The insertion losses of the optical devices based on PLZT films are less than 5 dB. These films have the potential to be applied in the field of integrated nanophotonic devices.