Interface-controlled uniaxial in-plane ferroelectricity in Hf0.5Zr0.5O2(100) epitaxial thin films

Hafnium oxide-based ferroelectric thin films are widely recognized as a CMOS-compatible and highly scalable material platform for next-generation non-volatile memory and logic devices. While out-of-plane ferroelectricity in hafnium oxide films has been intensively investigated and utilized in devices, purely in-plane ferroelectricity of hafnium oxides remains unexplored. In this work, we demonstrate a reversible structural modulation of the orthorhombic phase Hf<sub>0.5</sub>Zr<sub>0.5</sub>O<sub>2</sub> films between (111)-oriented [HZO(111)<sub>O</sub>] multi-domain and (100)-oriented [HZO(100)<sub>O</sub>] single-domain configurations by altering perovskite oxide buffer layers. Unlike conventional out-of-plane polarized HZO(111)<sub>O</sub> films, the HZO(100)<sub>O</sub> films exhibit uniaxial in-plane ferroelectric polarization, sustained even at a thickness of 1.0 nm. Furthermore, the in-plane ferroelectric switching achieves an ultralow coercivity of ~0.5 MV/cm. The HZO(100)<sub>O</sub> phase is stabilized by a staggered interfacial reconstruction, driven by the delicate interplays between symmetry mismatch and surface energy. These findings pave the way for innovative device designs and strategies for modulating the functionalities of hafnium oxide-based ferroelectrics.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Nature Communications
Published
2025-08-11
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62610-3
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.46
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Interface-controlled uniaxial in-plane ferroelectricity in Hf0.5Zr0.5O2(100) epitaxial thin films

Kunjie Dai, Jingdi Lu, Chao Ma, Houbing Huang et al.
2 citations
Nature Communications
Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices
1.46
article

Interface-controlled uniaxial in-plane ferroelectricity in Hf0.5Zr0.5O2(100) epitaxial thin films

Kunjie Dai, Jingdi Lu, Chao Ma, Houbing Huang, Jiachen Li, Shengchun Shen, Tianyuan Zhu, Zhenlin Luo, Qiming Lv, Yajun Tao, Haoliang Huang, Jie Fang, Kai Liu, Yuewei Yin, E Peng, Feng Jin, Shi Liu, Kuan Liu, Lingfei Wang, Wenbin Wu, Xingchang Zhang, Shouzhe Dong
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Hafnium oxide-based ferroelectric thin films are widely recognized as a CMOS-compatible and highly scalable material platform for next-generation non-volatile memory and logic devices. While out-of-plane ferroelectricity in hafnium oxide films has been intensively investigated and utilized in devices, purely in-plane ferroelectricity of hafnium oxides remains unexplored. In this work, we demonstrate a reversible structural modulation of the orthorhombic phase Hf<sub>0.5</sub>Zr<sub>0.5</sub>O<sub>2</sub> films between (111)-oriented [HZO(111)<sub>O</sub>] multi-domain and (100)-oriented [HZO(100)<sub>O</sub>] single-domain configurations by altering perovskite oxide buffer layers. Unlike conventional out-of-plane polarized HZO(111)<sub>O</sub> films, the HZO(100)<sub>O</sub> films exhibit uniaxial in-plane ferroelectric polarization, sustained even at a thickness of 1.0 nm. Furthermore, the in-plane ferroelectric switching achieves an ultralow coercivity of ~0.5 MV/cm. The HZO(100)<sub>O</sub> phase is stabilized by a staggered interfacial reconstruction, driven by the delicate interplays between symmetry mismatch and surface energy. These findings pave the way for innovative device designs and strategies for modulating the functionalities of hafnium oxide-based ferroelectrics.

Nature CommunicationsVol. 16(1)
Beijing Institute of Technology (CN), University of Science and Technology of China (CN), Hunan University (CN), Westlake University (CN), Hefei National Center for Physical Sciences at Nanoscale (CN), Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures (CN), National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (CN), Quantum Science Center of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (CN)
Affordable and clean energy
Openalex Percentile: Top 16%
Ferroelectric and Negative Capacitance Devices
1.46
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.