Structural, surface morphology, dielectric and magnetic properties of holmium doped BiFeO3 thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition

In this work, Bi1-xHoxFeO3 (with x = 0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15 and 0.20) thin films were successfully grown on Si (100) substrates using pulsed laser deposition and the effect of Ho doping on the crystal structure, dielectric and magnetic properties were studied. X-ray diffraction studies on undoped BiFeO3 confirmed the presence of a rhombohedral phase with crystallite sizes in the 14–24 nm range. The surface morphology and microstructure of the thin films were analysed by field emission scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The results reveal that the grain size decreases as the Ho doping concentration increases. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy was used to identify the chemical bonding, valance band and core levels of Ho doped BiFeO3 thin films. Dielectric constant and loss in Ho doped samples has been measured using a vector network analyzer and shows good dielectric behaviour compared to undoped BiFeO3. A vibrating sample magnetometer was used to investigate the magnetic properties for Ho doping with concentrations of x ≥ 0.15. In comparison to undoped BiFeO3, the doped films exhibited larger remanence and saturation magnetization. The enhancement of these properties due to Ho doping is discussed along with their relevance in designing multiferroic materials based on Bi1-xHoxFeO3 films for magnetic field sensors, multiple-state memories and spintronic elements.