Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
Bismuth based artificial superlattices have been formed by a layer-by-layer laser deposition with in-situ monitoring of RHEED. The Bi2O2/WO6, Bi2O2/SrTa2O9, Bi2O2/SrTa2O9 /SrTiO3 and Bi2O2/SrTa2O9/BaTiO3 are constructed epitaxially by a single, double and triple perovskite layers sandwiched by Bi2O2 layers, respectively. The dielectric constant increases with increasing the number of perovskite layers. And the D-E hysteresis loop (ferroelectric properties) appears along the c-axis direction in odd perovskite layers (n=l and 3). We have also formed the SrTiO3/BiWO6/SrTiO3 multi layers. With this combination, the STO layers are isolated by the BWO layers. The dimensionality of STO layer can be controlled by changing the thickness of BWO layers. Below the BWO thickness of 500 Å, the εr increases monotonously with decreasing the BWO thickness. Therefore, the the coulomb force, which is in proportion to inverse of the distance, plays an essential role for the dielectric constant. The formation of “artificially constructed ferroelectric films” by a layer-by-layer deposition method will be discussed ad an essential approach to elucidate the mechanism of ferroelectricity.