Engineering Thermoelectric Performance of α-GeTe by Ferroelectric Distortion

The rhombohedralα-GeTe can be approximated as a slightly distorted rock-salt structure along its[111]direction and possesses superb thermoelectric performance.However,the role of such a ferroelectric-like structural distortion on its transport properties remains unclear.Herein,we performed a systematic study on the crystal structure and electronic band structure evolutions of Ge_(1-x)Sn_(x)Te alloys where the degree of ferroelectric distortion is continuously tuned.It is revealed that the band gap is maximized while multiple valence bands are converged at x=0.6,where the ferroelectric distortion is the least but still works.Once undistorted,the band gap is considerably reduced,and the valence bands are largely separated again.Moreover,near the ferro-to-paraelectric phase transition Curie temperature,the lattice thermal conductivity reaches its minima because of significant lattice softening enabled by ferroelectric instability.We predict a peak ZT value of 2.6 at 673 K inα-GeTe by use of proper dopants which are powerful in suppressing the excess hole concentrations but meanwhile exert little influence on the ferroelectric distortion.

Robust and Tunable Ferroelectricity in Ba/Co Codoped (K_(0.5)Na_(0.5))NbO_(3) Ceramics

The 0.98(K_(0.5)Na_(0.5))NbO_(3)-0.02Ba(Nb_(0.5)Co_(0.5))O_(3-δ) ceramics with doped Ba^(2+) and Co^(2+) ions are fabricated,and the impacts of the thermal process are studied.Compared with the rapidly cooled (RC) sample,the slowly cooled (SC) sample possesses superior dielectric and ferroelectric properties,and an 11 K higher ferroelectricparaelectric phase transition temperature,which can be attributed to the structural characteristics such as the grain size and the degree of anisotropy.Heat treatment can reversibly modulate the content of the oxygen vacancies,and in turn the ferroelectric hysteresis loops of the samples.Finally,robust and tunable ferroelectric property is achieved in SC samples with good structural integrity.

Structural and Ferroelectric Transition in Few-Layer HfO_(2) Films by First Principles Calculations

The discovery of ferroelectricity in HfO_(2)-based materials with high dielectric constant has inspired tremendous research interest for next-generation electronic devices.Importantly,films structure and strain are key factors in exploration of ferroelectricity in fluorite-type oxide HfO_(2) films.Here we investigate the structures and straininduced ferroelectric transition in different phases of few-layer HfO_(2) films(layer number𝑁=1–5).It is found that HfO_(2) films for all phases are more stable with increasing films thickness.Among them,the Pmn2_(1)(110)-oriented film is most stable,and the films of𝑁=4,5 occur with a𝑃21 ferroelectric transition under tensile strain,resulting in polarization about 11.8μC/cm^(2) along in-plane𝑎-axis.The ferroelectric transition is caused by the strain,which induces the displacement of Hf and O atoms on the surface to non-centrosymmetric positions away from the original paraelectric positions,accompanied by the change of surface Hf–O bond lengths.More importantly,three new stable HfO_(2)2D structures are discovered,together with analyses of computed electronic structures,mechanical,and dielectric properties.This work provides guidance for theoretical and experimental study of the new structures and strain-tuned ferroelectricity in freestanding HfO_(2) films.

Hole-Doped Nonvolatile and Electrically Controllable Magnetism in van der Waals Ferroelectric Heterostructures

Electrical control of magnetism in van der Waals semiconductors is a promising step towards development of two-dimensional spintronic devices with ultralow power consumption for processing and storing information.Here, we propose a design for two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures(vdWHs) that can host ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism simultaneously under hole doping. By contacting an In Se monolayer and forming an InSe/In_(2)Se_(3) vd WH, the switchable built-in electric field from the reversible out-of-plane polarization enables robust control of the band alignment. Furthermore, switching between the two ferroelectric states(P_↑ and P_↓)of hole-doped In_(2)Se_(3) with an external electric field can interchange the ON and OFF states of the nonvolatile magnetism. More interestingly, doping concentration and strain can effectively tune the magnetic moment and polarization energy. Therefore, this provides a platform for realizing multiferroics in ferroelectric heterostructures,showing great potential for use in nonvolatile memories and ferroelectric field-effect transistors.

Thin film ferroelectric photonic-electronic memory

To reduce system complexity and bridge the interface between electronic and photonic circuits,there is a high demand for a non-volatile memory that can be accessed both electrically and optically.However,practical solutions are still lacking when considering the potential for large-scale complementary metal-oxide semiconductor compatible integration.Here,we present an experimental demonstration of a non-volatile photonic-electronic memory based on a 3-dimensional monolithic integrated ferroelectric-silicon ring resonator.We successfully demonstrate programming and erasing the memory using both electrical and optical methods,assisted by optical-to-electrical-to-optical conversion.The memory cell exhibits a high optical extinction ratio of 6.6 dB at a low working voltage of 5 V and an endurance of 4×104 cycles.Furthermore,the multi-level storage capability is analyzed in detail,revealing stable performance with a raw bit-error-rate smaller than 5.9×10−2.This ground-breaking work could be a key technology enabler for future hybrid electronic-photonic systems,targeting a wide range of applications such as photonic interconnect,high-speed data communication,and neuromorphic computing.

BaTiO_(3)/p-GaN/Au self-driven UV photodetector with bipolar photocurrent controlled by ferroelectric polarization

Ferroelectric materials are promising candidates for ultraviolet photodetectors due to their ferroelectric effect.In this work,a BaTiO_(3)/p-GaN/Au hybrid heterojunction-Schottky self-driven ultraviolet photodetector was fabricated with excellent bipolar photoresponse property.At 0 V bias,the direction of the photocurrent can be switched by flipping the depolarization field of BaTiO_(3),which allows the performance of photodetectors to be controlled by the ferroelectric effect.Meanwhile,a relatively large responsivity and a fast response speed can be also observed.In particular,when the depolarization field of BaTiO_(3) is in the same direction of the built-in electric field of the Au/p-GaN Schottky junction(up polarized state),the photodetector exhibits a high responsivity of 18 mA/W at 360 nm,and a fast response speed of<40 ms at 0 V.These findings pave a new way for the preparation of high-performance photodetectors with bipolar photocurrents.

New‑Generation Ferroelectric AlScN Materials

Ferroelectrics have great potential in the field of nonvolatile memory due to programmable polarization states by external electric field in nonvolatile manner.However,complementary metal oxide semiconductor compatibility and uniformity of ferroelectric performance after size scaling have always been two thorny issues hindering practical application of ferroelectric memory devices.The emerging ferroelectricity of wurtzite structure nitride offers opportunities to circumvent the dilemma.This review covers the mechanism of ferroelectricity and domain dynamics in ferroelectric AlScN films.The performance optimization of AlScN films grown by different techniques is summarized and their applications for memories and emerging in-memory computing are illustrated.Finally,the challenges and perspectives regarding the commercial avenue of ferroelectric AlScN are discussed.

Large and nonlinear electric field response in a two-dimensional ferroelectric Rashba material

The achievement of electrical spin control is highly desirable.One promising strategy involves electrically mod-ulating the Rashba spin orbital coupling effect in materials.A semiconductor with high sensitivity in its Rashba constant to external electric fields holds great potential for short channel lengths in spin field-effect transistors,which is crucial for preserving spin coherence and enhancing integration density.Hence,two-dimensional(2D)Rashba semiconductors with large Rashba constants and significant electric field responses are highly desirable.Herein,by employing first-principles calculations,we design a thermodynamically stable 2D Rashba semiconductor,YSbTe_(3),which possesses an indirect band gap of 1.04 eV,a large Rashba constant of 1.54 eV·Åand a strong electric field response of up to 4.80 e·Å^(2).In particular,the Rashba constant dependence on the electric field shows an unusual nonlinear relationship.At the same time,YSbTe_(3)has been identified as a 2D ferroelectric material with a moderate polarization switching energy barrier(~0.33 eV per formula).By changing the electric polarization direction,the Rashba spin texture of YSbTe_(3)can be reversed.These out-standing properties make the ferroelectric Rashba semiconductor YSbTe_(3)quite promising for spintronic applications.

Ultra‑Stable Sodium‑Ion Battery Enabled by All‑Solid‑State Ferroelectric‑Engineered Composite Electrolytes

Symmetric Na-ion cells using the NASICON-structured electrodes could simplify the manufacturing process,reduce the cost,facilitate the recycling post-process,and thus attractive in the field of large-scale stationary energy storage.However,the long-term cycling performance of such batteries is usually poor.This investigation reveals the unavoidable side reactions between the NASICON-type Na_(3)V_(2)(PO_(4))_(3)(NVP)anode and the commercial liquid electrolyte,leading to serious capacity fading in the symmetric NVP//NVP cells.To resolve this issue,an all-solid-state composite electrolyte is used to replace the liquid electrolyte so that to overcome the side reaction and achieve high anode/electrolyte interfacial stability.The ferroelectric engineering could further improve the interfacial ion conduction,effectively reducing the electrode/electrolyte interfacial resistances.The NVP//NVP cell using the ferroelectric-engineered composite electrolyte can achieve a capacity retention of 86.4%after 650 cycles.Furthermore,the electrolyte can also be used to match the Prussianblue cathode NaxFeyFe(CN)_(6−z)·nH_(2)O(NFFCN).Outstanding long-term cycling stability has been obtained in the all-solid-state NVP//NFFCN cell over 9000 cycles at a current density of 500 mA g^(-1),with a fading rate as low as 0.005%per cycle.

Ferroelectricity Induced by Oxygen Vacancies in Rhombohedral ZrO_(2) Thin Films

Rhombohedral phase Hf_(x)Zr_(1.x)O_(2)(HZO,x from 0 to 1)films are promising for achieving robust ferroelectric polarization without the need for an initial wake-up pre-cycling,as is normally the case for the more commonly studied orthorhombic phase.However,a large spontaneous polarization observed in rhombohedral films is not fully understood,and there are also large discrepancies between experimental and theoretical predictions.In this work,in rhombohedral ZrO_(2)thin films,we show that oxygen vacancies are not only a key factor for stabilizing the phase,but they are also a source of ferroelectric polarization in the films.This is shown experimentally through the investigation of the structural properties,chemical composition and the ferroelectric properties of the films before and after an annealing at moderate temperature(400℃)in an oxygen environment to reduce the V_(o)concentration compared.The experimental work is supported by density functional theory(DFT)calculations which show that the rhombohedral phase is the most stable one in highly oxygen defective ZrO_(2)films.The DFT calculations also show that V_(o)contribute to the ferroelectric polarization.Our findings reveal the importance of V_(o)for stabilizing rhombohedral ZrO_(2)thin films with superior ferroelectric properties.

Enhanced ferroelectric and improved leakage of BFO-based thin films through increasing entropy strategy

BiFeO_(3)(BFO)has received considerable attention as a lead-free ferroelectric film due to its large theoretical remnant polariza-tion.However,BFO suffers from a large leakage current,resulting in poor ferroelectric properties.Herein,the sol-gel method was used to deposit a series of BFO-based thin films on fluorine-doped tin oxide substrates,and the effects of the substitution of the elements Co,Cu,Mn(B-site)and Sm,Eu,La(A-site)on the crystal structure,ferroelectricity,and leakage current of the BFO-based thin films were invest-igated.Results confirmed that lattice distortion by X-ray diffraction can be attributed to the substitution of individual elements in the BFO-based films.Sm and Eu substitutions contribute to the lattice distortion in a pseudo-cubic structure,while La is biased toward pseudo-tet-ragonal.Piezoelectric force microscopy confirmed that reversible switching of ferroelectric domains by nearly 180°can be realized through the prepared films.The ferroelectric hysteresis loops showed that the order for the polarization contribution is as follows:Cu>Co>Mn(B-site),Sm>La>Eu(A-site).The current density voltage curves indicated that the order for leakage contribution is as follows:Mn<Cu<Co(B-site),La<Eu<Sm(A-site).Scanning electron microscopy showed that the introduction of Cu elements facilitates the formation of dense grains,and the grain size distribution statistics proved that La element promotes the reduction of grain size,leading to the increase of grain boundaries and the reduction of leakage.Finally,a Bi_(0.985)Sm_(0.045)La_(0.03)Fe_(0.96)Co_(0.02)Cu_(0.02)O_(3)(SmLa-CoCu)thin film with a qualitative leap in the remnant polarization from 25.5(Bi_(0.985)Sm_(0.075)FeO_(3))to 98.8µC/cm^(2)(SmLa-CoCu)was prepared through the syner-gistic action of Sm,La,Co,and Cu elements.The leakage current is also drastically reduced from 160 to 8.4 mA/cm^(2)at a field strength of 150 kV/cm.Thus,based on the increasing entropy strategy of chemical engineering,this study focuses on enhancing ferroelectricity and decreasing leakage current,providing a promising path for the advancement of ferroelectric devices.

Non-contact intelligent sensor for recognizing transparent and naked-eye indistinguishable materials based on ferroelectric BiFeO_(3)thin films

At present,the research on ferroelectric photovoltaic materials mainly focuses on photoelectric detection.In the context of the rapid development of the Internet of Things(IoT),it is particularly important to use smaller thin-film devices as sensors.In this work,an indium tin oxide/bismuth ferrite(BFO)/lanthanum nickelate device has been fabricated on an F-doped tin oxide glass substrate using the sol–gel method.The sensor can continuously output photoelectric signals with little environmental impact.Compared to other types of sensors,this photoelectric sensor has an ultra-low response time of 1.25 ms and ultra-high sensitivity.Furthermore,a material recognition system based on a BFO sensor is developed.It can effectively identify eight kinds of materials that are difficult for human eyes to distinguish.This provides new ideas and methods for developing the IoT in material identification.

Reliable ferroelectricity down to cryogenic temperature in wakeup free Hf_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_(2)thin films by thermal atomic layer deposition

The performance and reliability of ferroelectric thin films at temperatures around a few Kelvin are critical for their application in cryo-electronics.In this work,TiN/Hf_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_(2)/TiN capacitors that are free from the wake-up effect are investigated systematically from room temperature(300 K)to cryogenic temperature(30 K).We observe a consistent decrease in permittivity(εr)and a progressive increase in coercive electric field(Ec)as temperatures decrease.Our investigation reveals exceptional stability in the double remnant polarization(2P_(r))of our ferroelectric thin films across a wide temperature range.Specifically,at 30 K,a 2P_(r)of 36μC/cm^(2)under an applied electric field of 3.0 MV/cm is achieved.Moreover,we observed a reduced fatigue effect at 30 K in comparison to 300 K.The stable ferroelectric properties and endurance characteristics demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing HfO_(2)based ferroelectric thin films for cryo-electronics applications.

Hydrogen-bonded organic framework modified separator for simultaneously enhancing the safety and electrochemical performance of Ni-rich lithium-ion battery

Nickel-rich layered oxide cathode(LiNi_(x)Co_(y)Mn_(1−x−y)O_(2),x>0.5,NCM)shows substantial potential for applications in longer-range electrical vehicles.However,the rapid capacity decay and serious safety concerns impede its practical viability.This work provides a hydrogen-bonded organic framework(HOF)modification strategy to simultaneously improve the electrochemical performance,thermal stability and incombustibility of separator.Melamine cyanurate(MCA),as a low-cost and reliable flame-retardant HOF,was implemented in the separator modification layer,which can prevent the battery short circuit even at a high temperature.In addition,the supermolecule properties of MCA provide unique physical and chemical microenvironment for regulating ion-transport behavior in electrolyte.The MCA coating layer enabled the nickel-rich layered oxide cathode with a high-capacity retention of 90.3%after 300 cycles at 1.0 C.Collectively,the usage of MCA in lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)affords a simple,low-cost and efficient strategy to improve the security and service life of nickel-rich layered cathodes.

Enhancing BiVO_(4)photoanode performance by insertion of an epitaxial BiFeO_(3)ferroelectric layer

BiVO_(4)(BVO)is a promising material as the photoanode for use in photoelectrochemical applications.However,the high charge recombination and slow charge transfer of the BVO have been obstacles to achieving satisfactory photoelectrochemical performance.To address this,various modifications have been attempted,including the use of ferroelectric materials.Ferroelectric materials can form a permanent polarization within the layer,enhancing the separation and transport of photo-excited electron-hole pairs.In this study,we propose a novel approach by depositing an epitaxial BiFeO_(3)(BFO)thin film underneath the BVO thin film(BVO/BFO)to harness the ferroelectric property of BFO.The self-polarization of the inserted BFO thin film simultaneously functions as a buffer layer to enhance charge transport and a hole-blocking layer to reduce charge recombination.As a result,the BVO/BFO photoanodes showed more than 3.5 times higher photocurrent density(0.65 mA cm^(-2))at 1.23 V_(RHE)under the illumination compared to the bare BVO photoanodes(0.18 m A cm^(-2)),which is consistent with the increase of the applied bias photon-to-current conversion efficiencies(ABPE)and the result of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS)analysis.These results can be attributed to the self-polarization exhibited by the inserted BFO thin film,which promoted the charge separation and transfer efficiency of the BVO photoanodes.

Interfacial stress engineering toward enhancement of ferroelectricity in Al doped HfO_(2) thin films

Ferroelectric HfO_(2)has attracted much attention owing to its superior ferroelectricity at an ultra-thin thickness and good compatibility with Si-based complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor(CMOS)technology.However,the crystallization of polar orthorhombic phase(o-phase)HfO_(2)is less competitive,which greatly limits the ferroelectricity of the as-obtained ferroelectric HfO_(2)thin films.Fortunately,the crystallization of o-phase HfO_(2)can be thermodynamically modulated via interfacial stress engineering.In this paper,the growth of improved ferroelectric Al doped HfO_(2)(HfO_(2):Al)thin films on(111)-oriented Si substrate has been reported.Structural analysis has suggested that nonpolar monoclinic HfO_(2):Al grown on(111)-oriented Si substrate suffered from a strong compressive strain,which promoted the crystallization of(111)-oriented o-phase HfO_(2)in the as-grown HfO_(2):Al thin films.In addition,the in-plane lattice of(111)-oriented Si substrate matches well with that of(111)-oriented o-phase HfO_(2),which further thermally stabilizes the o-phase HfO_(2).Accordingly,an improved ferroelectricity with a remnant polarization(2P_(r))of 26.7C/cm^(2) has been obtained.The results shown in this work provide a simple way toward the preparation of improved ferroelectric HfO_(2)thin films.

Structure,ferroelectric,and enhanced fatigue properties of sol–gel-processed new Bi-based perovskite thin films of Bi(Cu_(1/2)Ti_(1/2))O_(3)–PbTiO_(3)

Bi-based perovskite ferroelectric thin films have wide applications in electronic devices due to their excellent ferroelectric properties.New Bi-based perovskite thin films Bi(Cu_(1/2)Ti_(1/2))O_(3)–PbTiO_(3)(BCT–PT) are deposited on Pt(111)/Ti/SiO_(2)/Si substrates in the present study by the traditional sol–gel method.Their structures and related ferroelectric and fatigue characteristics are studied in-depth.The BCT–PT thin films exhibit good crystallization within the phase-pure perovskite structure,besides,they have a predominant(100) orientation together with a dense and homogeneous microstructure.The remnant polarization(2P_(r)) values at 30 μC/cm^(2) and 16 μC/cm^(2) are observed in 0.1BCT–0.9PT and 0.2BCT–0.8PT thin films,respectively.More intriguingly,although the polarization values are not so high,0.2BCT–0.8PT thin films show outstanding polarization fatigue properties,with a high switchable polarization of 93.6% of the starting values after 10^(8) cycles,indicating promising applications in ferroelectric memories.

Paraelectric Doping Simultaneously Improves the Field Frequency Adaptability and Dielectric Properties of Ferroelectric Materials:A Phase-Field Study

Recent years,the polarization response of ferroelectrics has been entirely studied.However,it is found that the polarization may disappear gradually with the continually applied of electric field.In this paper,taking K0.48Na0.52NbO3(KNN)as an example,it was demonstrated that the residual polarization began to decrease when the electric field frequency increased to a certain extent using a phase-field methods.The results showed that the content of out-of-plane domains increased first and then decreased with the increase of applied electric field frequency,the maximum polarization disappeared at high frequencies,and the hysteresis loop became elliptical.In order to further study the abnormal changes of hysteresis loops of ferroelectrics under high electric field frequency,we analyzed the hysteresis loop and dielectric response of solid solution 0.1SrTiO_(3)-0.9K_(0.48)Na_(0.52)NbO_(3).It was found that the doped hysteresis loop maintained its shape at higher frequency and the dielectric constant increased.This kind of doping has a higher field frequency adaptability,which has a key guiding role in improving the dielectric properties of ferroelectric thin films and expanding the frequency application range of ferroelectric nano memory。

Optimal parameter space for stabilizing the ferroelectric phase of Hf_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_(2) thin films under strain and electric fields

Hafnia-based ferroelectric materials, like Hf_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_(2)(HZO), have received tremendous attention owing to their potentials for building ultra-thin ferroelectric devices. The orthorhombic(O)-phase of HZO is ferroelectric but metastable in its bulk form under ambient conditions, which poses a considerable challenge to maintaining the operation performance of HZO-based ferroelectric devices. Here, we theoretically addressed this issue that provides parameter spaces for stabilizing the O-phase of HZO thin-films under various conditions. Three mechanisms were found to be capable of lowering the relative energy of the O-phase, namely, more significant surface-bulk portion of(111) surfaces, compressive c-axis strain,and positive electric fields. Considering these mechanisms, we plotted two ternary phase diagrams for HZO thin-films where the strain was applied along the in-plane uniaxial and biaxial, respectively. These diagrams indicate the O-phase could be stabilized by solely shrinking the film-thickness below 12.26 nm, ascribed to its lower surface energies. All these results shed considerable light on designing more robust and higher-performance ferroelectric devices.

Single-atom catalysts based on polarization switching of ferroelectric In_(2)Se_(3) for N_(2) reduction

The polarization switching plays a crucial role in controlling the final products in the catalytic pro-cess.The effect of polarization orientation on nitrogen reduction was investigated by anchoring transition metal atoms to form active centers on ferroelectric material In_(2)Se_(3).During the polariza-tion switching process,the difference in surface electrostatic potential leads to a redistribution of electronic states.This affects the interaction strength between the adsorbed small molecules and the catalyst substrate,thereby altering the reaction barrier.In addition,the surface states must be considered to prevent the adsorption of other small molecules(such as *O,*OH,and *H).Further-more,the V@↓-In_(2)Se_(3) possesses excellent catalytic properties,high electrochemical and thermody-namic stability,which facilitates the catalytic process.Machine learning also helps us further ex-plore the underlying mechanisms.The systematic investigation provides novel insights into the design and application of two-dimensional switchable ferroelectric catalysts for various chemical processes.