Polarization-dependence of the Raman response of free-standing strained CeGdO membranes.

Square-shaped CeGdO (GDC) membranes are prepared by microstructuring techniques from (111)-oriented, polycrystalline GDC thin films. The strain state of the membranes is investigated by micro-Raman mapping using polarized excitation light. Using circularly polarized excitation, the maps of the Raman shifts reveal circular contour lines in concordance with the quadratic shape of the membrane and with optical investigations of the residual strain distribution.