Impact of electrodes and interfaces on ferroelectric switching of Al1-xScxN

Abstract This work reports the role of different metal bottom electrodes such as Tungsten (W), Titanium/Ruthenium (Ti/Ru), and Scandium (Sc) on the Ferroelectric Switching of sub-100-nm Al 1-x Sc x N thin films deposited via reactive co-sputtering techniques. The impact of leakage current on the ferroelectric behavior in these Al 1-x Sc x N thin films is investigated in the metal–insulator–metal (MIM) configuration. Ferroelectric characteristics have been investigated through the Positive-Up-Negative-Down (PUND) techniques accounting for leakage current in reporting the ‘true’ remnant polarization (P r ) values in these III–V nitride thin films. The film microstructures have been investigated using TEM analysis. Graphical abstract