Microtexture characterization of PZT ceramics and thin films by electron microscopy

Crystallographic orientations of lead zirconate titanate, Pb(Zr(x),Ti(1-x))O(3) abbreviated PZT, were investigated by the technique of electron backscatter diffraction pattern (EBSP) in the scanning electron microscope (SEM). The samples included unpoled and poled ceramics and a thin film. Several hundreds of crystal orientations in the bulk ceramics and thin films were examined by EBSP and the results were plotted in microtexture pole- and inverse pole-figures for determination of the average and local preferred orientations. In addition, local textures in certain selected regions in PZT ceramics and the misorientations between the nearest neighboring grains were also determined.