Abstract
The influence of La doping on the crystal structure and multiferroic properties of BiFe O3 (BFO) thin films was investigated. BFO-based films of pure perovskite phase were deposited on BaPb O3 PtTi Ox Si O2 Si substrates by rf-magnetron sputtering. The increased dielectric constant and remanent polarization of the La-doped BFO films were due to the increased lattice parameters and an improved crystallinity. The polarization switching and the fatigue behavior of the BFO films were significantly enhanced by the La doping. The in-plane magnetization-field curves revealed that the room-temperature saturated magnetization of the BFO films increased with La doping. © 2006 American Institute of Physics.