Strain tuning of negative capacitance in epitaxial PbZr0.2Ti0.8O3 thin films

Abstract

In order to continue Moore’s Law, the reducing of power consumption is concerned by many researchers, and the discovery of ferronegative negative capacitance effect (NCE) provides a solution. Strain engineering has been widely studied as an effective means to regulate the physical properties of ferroelectric thin films. But the relevant mechanism of strain to ferroelectric negative capacitance regulation is not clear. Recently, the experimental results have shown that it is possible to stabilize the transient NCE in resistance-ferroelectric networks. In this work, we use the Landau-Khalatnikov theory to study the microscopic domain evolution and the influence of strain and temperature on NCE in a ferroelectric film. It is shown that compressive strain enhances NCE while NCE becomes weaker under a tensile strain. However, a larger compressive strain will give rise to a higher coercive voltage that hinders the NCE from forming. In addition, under a certain strain, the NCE becomes stronger at lower temperature. This work provides the theoretical basis for designing the negative capacitance devices and scaling towards nanoscale dimensions in future.