American Institute of Physics, Applied Physics Letters, 10(104), p. 102902
DOI: 10.1063/1.4868431
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Crystallographic structure of sol-gel-processed lead-free (K,Na)NbO3 (KNN) epitaxial films on [100]-cut SrTiO3 single-crystalline substrates was investigated for a deeper understanding of its piezoelectric response. Lattice parameter measurement by high-resolution X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the orthorhombic KNN films on SrTiO3 (100) surfaces are [010] oriented (b-axis-oriented) rather than commonly identified c-axis orientation. Based on the crystallographic orientation and corresponding ferroelectric domain structure investigated by piezoresponse force microscopy, the superior piezoelectric property along b-axis of epitaxial KNN films than other orientations can be explained.