Enhanced electro-mechanical coupling of TiN/Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 thin film electrostrictor

Gadolium doped ceria, Gd:CeO2 (CGO), have recently been shown to possess an exceptional high electrostriction coefficient (Q), which is at the least three orders of magnitude larger than the best performing lead-based electrostrictors, e.g. Pb(Mn1/3Nb2/3)O3. Herein, we show that CGO thin films fabricated by a pulsed laser deposition method can be directly integrated onto the Si substrate by using TiN films of few nanometers as functional electrodes. The exceptional good coupling between TiN and Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 yields a high electrostriction coefficient of Qe = 40 m4 C−2 and a superior electrochemomechanical stability with respect to the metal electrodes.