Controllable giant dielectric constant in AlO_x/TiO_y nanolaminates

Dielectric materials exhibiting high dielectric constants play critical roles in a wide range of applications from microchip energy storage embedded capacitors for implantable biomedical devices to energy storage capacitors for a new generation of renewable energy generation/storage systems. Instead of searching for new materials, we demonstrate that giant dielectric constants can be achieved by integrating two simple oxides with low dielectric constants into nanolaminate structures. In addition, the obtained dielectric constant values are highly tunable by manipulating the sub-layer thicknesses of the component oxides to control the number of interfaces and oxygen redistribution. The work reported here opens a new pathway for the design and development of high dielectric constant materials based on the nanolaminate concept.