Li Jiaqi, Li Qiang, Liu Chen, Zhou Jinglin, Chen Jing, Wu Han, Wang Jiaou, Wang Huanhua, Chen Yu, Zhang Qinghua, Wang Xiaoge, Chen Xin, Lin Kun, Xing Xianran
Institute of Solid State Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China.
Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
Small. 2025 Sep;21(35):e2503618. doi: 10.1002/smll.202503618. Epub 2025 Jul 15.
HfO-based thin films possess the merits of robust ferroelectricity at the nanoscale and compatibility with modern Si technology, show great potential in nanoelectronics. However, the high coercive field (E) of such fluorite-structure oxide ferroelectrics usually leads to undesired endurance performance and dielectric breakdown, which impedes their practical applications. Herein, the Ho-doped HfO (HHO) film with high polarization and superior ferroelectric endurance is reported, enabled by local structural engineering through holmium doping and thickness modulation. The predominantly (111)-oriented films display enhanced remanent polarization (35 µC cm) and excellent endurance without failure even after 10 electric field cycles. The evolved rhombohedral distortion and stronger chemical bonding, regulated by local structure engineering, can avoid defect aggregation to overcome the undesirable fatigue drawback in the ferroelectric phase (Pca2). These results are significant in stabilizing ferroelectric hafnia-based films and make them more suitable for long-lasting device applications.
