Document Type

Article

Publication Date

July 2019

Publication Title

Nature Communications

Volume

10

DOI

10.1038/s41467-019-11089-w

Disciplines

Materials Science and Engineering

Abstract

The unique properties of ferroelectric materials enable a plethora of applications, which are hindered by the phenomenon known as ferroelectric fatigue that leads to the degradation of ferroelectric properties with polarization cycling. Multiple microscopic models explaining fatigue have been suggested; however, the chemical origins remain poorly understood. Here, we utilize multimodal chemical imaging that combines atomic force microscopy with time-of-flight secondary mass spectrometry to explore the chemical phenomena associated with fatigue in PbZr0.2Ti0.8O3 (PZT) thin films. Investigations reveal that the degradation of ferroelectric properties is correlated with a local chemical change and migration of electrode ions into the PZT structure. Density functional theory simulations support the experimental results and demonstrate stable doping of the thin surface PZT layer with copper ions, leading to a decrease in the spontaneous polarization. Overall, the performed research allows for the observation and understanding of the chemical phenomena associated with polarization cycling and their effects on ferroelectric functionality.

Comments

SJSU users: Use the following link to login and access the article via SJSU databases.This article was published in Nature Communications, volume 10, 2019, and can also be found online here. Copyright © 2019, The Authors

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Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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