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Cryogenic ferroelectricity of HZO with an aluminum oxide interlayer

Mamidala, Karthik Ram LU orcid and Wernersson, Lars-Erik LU (2025) In IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices
Abstract
In this work, we investigate the cryogenic performance of hafnia-based ferroelectric capacitors with and without an aluminum oxide (ALO) interlayer, comparing conventional metal-ferroelectric-metal (MFM) structures to metal-ferroelectric-insulator-metal (MFIM) counterparts. Devices employing Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 as the ferroelectric layer were characterized from 300 K down to 10 K, targeting temperature ranges relevant to cryogenic logic and quantum memory. Our results reveal that the ultrathin ALO interlayer effectively suppresses leakage across all temperatures while altering the coercive field symmetry and reducing remnant polarization as the temperature is reduced. Dynamic switching measurements and analysis show that MFM capacitors achieve... (More)
In this work, we investigate the cryogenic performance of hafnia-based ferroelectric capacitors with and without an aluminum oxide (ALO) interlayer, comparing conventional metal-ferroelectric-metal (MFM) structures to metal-ferroelectric-insulator-metal (MFIM) counterparts. Devices employing Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 as the ferroelectric layer were characterized from 300 K down to 10 K, targeting temperature ranges relevant to cryogenic logic and quantum memory. Our results reveal that the ultrathin ALO interlayer effectively suppresses leakage across all temperatures while altering the coercive field symmetry and reducing remnant polarization as the temperature is reduced. Dynamic switching measurements and analysis show that MFM capacitors achieve near temperature-independent polarization switching at a 3.0 V WRITE amplitude. In contrast, MFIM devices show more pronounced temperature dependence in the switching behavior, particularly at temperatures below 77 K. While both the MFM and MFIM devices exhibit endurance 107 cycles at 77 and 10 K, the MFIM devices are more affected by polarization fatigue. Benchmarking against state-of-the-art literature values confirms that our MFM and MFIM structures demonstrate among the highest reported 2Pr values below 77 K at low operating voltages ( ≤ 3.5 V). These results highlight the promise of interlayer-engineered hafnia capacitors for low-power cryogenic memory applications. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
epub
subject
keywords
Cryogenic electronics, Ferroelectric, Ferroelectricity, Ferroelectric materials, quantum memory
in
IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices
pages
7 pages
publisher
IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:105021658154
ISSN
0018-9383
DOI
10.1109/TED.2025.3629590
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
03244bac-6810-4459-b89b-c640587cdadf
date added to LUP
2025-11-13 22:37:44
date last changed
2025-12-02 11:38:40
@article{03244bac-6810-4459-b89b-c640587cdadf,
  abstract     = {{In this work, we investigate the cryogenic performance of hafnia-based ferroelectric capacitors with and without an aluminum oxide (ALO) interlayer, comparing conventional metal-ferroelectric-metal (MFM) structures to metal-ferroelectric-insulator-metal (MFIM) counterparts. Devices employing Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 as the ferroelectric layer were characterized from 300 K down to 10 K, targeting temperature ranges relevant to cryogenic logic and quantum memory. Our results reveal that the ultrathin ALO interlayer effectively suppresses leakage across all temperatures while altering the coercive field symmetry and reducing remnant polarization as the temperature is reduced. Dynamic switching measurements and analysis show that MFM capacitors achieve near temperature-independent polarization switching at a 3.0 V WRITE amplitude. In contrast, MFIM devices show more pronounced temperature dependence in the switching behavior, particularly at temperatures below 77 K. While both the MFM and MFIM devices exhibit endurance 107 cycles at 77 and 10 K, the MFIM devices are more affected by polarization fatigue. Benchmarking against state-of-the-art literature values confirms that our MFM and MFIM structures demonstrate among the highest reported 2Pr values below 77 K at low operating voltages ( ≤ 3.5 V). These results highlight the promise of interlayer-engineered hafnia capacitors for low-power cryogenic memory applications.}},
  author       = {{Mamidala, Karthik Ram and Wernersson, Lars-Erik}},
  issn         = {{0018-9383}},
  keywords     = {{Cryogenic electronics; Ferroelectric; Ferroelectricity; Ferroelectric materials; quantum memory}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{11}},
  publisher    = {{IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.}},
  series       = {{IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices}},
  title        = {{Cryogenic ferroelectricity of HZO with an aluminum oxide interlayer}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/232932052/CryoMIM_Interlayer_TED_MandRev_NoHighlight.pdf.pdf}},
  doi          = {{10.1109/TED.2025.3629590}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}