Magnetic, electric, and optical functionalities of (PLZT)x(BiFeO3)1−x ferroelectric–ferromagnetic thin films Original Research Article

We have prepared a series of (PLZT)x(BiFeO3)1−x transparent thin films with thickness of 300 nm by a thermal pyrolysis method. Only films with x≦0.10 formed a single phase of perovskite structure. The film where x=0.10 exhibited both ferromagnetic and ferroelectric properties at room temperature with spontaneous magnetization and coercive magnetic fields of 0.0027μB and 5500 G, respectively. The remanent electric polarization and coercive electric field for the film where x=0.10 were 3.0 μC/cm2 and 24 kV/cm, respectively. Additionally, films with 0.02≦x≦0.10 showed both magneto-optical effects and the second harmonic generation of transmitted light.