Resumen:
The development of low-temperature sol-gel (solution) processes for the fabrication of crystalline metal oxide thin films has become a key objective in the emerging Flexible Electronics. To achieve this target, crystalline oxide films need to be deposited on flexible substrates, which have degradation temperatures below 350 C (e.g., polymers or textile). This achievement would be a step towards improving the performance of the flexible device, making feasible applications now restrained (e.g. smart-skin, flexible-displays or solar-cells) and whose performance is associated to the functional properties of the crystalline oxide (e.g., ferroelectricity, pyroelectricity or piezoelectricity). However, this is a challenge because the crystallization of these oxides usually occurs at high temperatures, over 600 C. This paper shows an overview to the solution strategies devised in our group for the low-temperature fabrication of crystalline metal oxide thin films, mostly ferroelectric perovskites (e.g., BiFeO3, PbTiO3 or Pb(Zr,Ti)O-3). We have made use of UV-light as an alternative energy source to the thermal energy conventionally used to obtain the crystalline oxide. High photosensitive sol-gel solutions have been synthesized and the solution-deposited layers irradiated with UV-excimer lamps. A precise control of the photoreactions occurring during the irradiation of these layers has been carried out with the aim of advancing the formation of a high-densified, defect-free amorphous metal oxide film that easily can be converted into crystalline at temperatures compatible with the use of polymer substrates. [GRAPHICS]
