Synthesis and investigation of properties of barium titanate doped with ferromagnetic materials for use in spin field effect transistors

Abstract

The fundamental aspect of this research was to synthesize nano particles of certain materials and to investigate their properties related to potential use in spin-field effect transistor (Spin-FET). Barium titanate was doped with ferromagnetic material and nano particles of this material were synthesized using a sol-gel process. Sol-gels were characterized for their size and shape using an atomic force microscope and a scanning electron microscope. Composition of these compounds and the distribution of dopents were investigated using x-ray fluorescence and the scanning electron microscope. Dielectric properties were measured using high precision impedance, capacitance, and resistance (LCR) meter. Barium titanate, when doped with ferromagnetic materials, becomes ferroelectric material. Ferroelectric materials have finite polarization even in the absence of an applied electric field, which can be exploited for their use as source/drain in spin-FET. The sintering temperature and pH of the sol-gel solution play important roles in determining the dielectric constants, particle size and distribution of dopent in barium titanate. It was found that iron has advantage over nickel and cobalt as a dopent, as it has high electrical susceptibility.