Total Ionizing Dose Effects on Piezoelectric Thin-Film Cantilevers With Oxide Electrodes.

This paper reports on the ionizing radiation effects in lead-zirconate-titanate (PZT) with varied top electrode material and bias condition during radiation. A technique to characterize the piezoelectric performance of films unclamped from the substrate is described, and used to demonstrate the effects of radiation on the material's electromechanical behavior. Both platinum and iridium oxide top electrodes were examined, and iridium oxide appears to significantly mitigate radiation-induced damage that is observed in platinum top electrode samples.