Giant switchable non thermally-activated conduction in 180° domain walls in tetragonal Pb(Zr,Ti)O3.

Conductive domain walls in ferroelectrics offer a promising concept of nanoelectronic circuits with 2D domain-wall channels playing roles of memristors or synoptic interconnections. However, domain wall conduction remains challenging to control and pA-range currents typically measured on individual walls are too low for single-channel devices. Charged domain walls show higher conductivity, but are generally unstable and difficult to create. Here, we show highly conductive and stable channels on ubiquitous 180° domain walls in the archetypical ferroelectric, tetragonal Pb(Zr,Ti)O3. These electrically erasable/rewritable channels show currents of tens of nanoamperes (200 to 400 nA/µm) at voltages ≤2 V and metallic-like non thermally-activated transport properties down to 4 K, as confirmed by nanoscopic mapping. The domain structure analysis and phase-field simulations reveal complex switching dynamics, in which the extraordinary conductivity in strained Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 films is explained by an interplay between ferroelastic a- and c-domains. This work demonstrates the potential of accessible and stable arrangements of nominally uncharged and electrically switchable domain walls for nanoelectronics.

Temperature Dependence of Dielectric Properties of Ferroelectric Heterostructures with Domain-Provided Negative Capacitance.

It is well known that the ferroelectric layers in dielectric/ferroelectric/dielectric heterostructures harbor polarization domains resulting in the negative capacitance crucial for manufacturing energy-efficient field-effect transistors. However, the temperature behavior of the characteristic dielectric properties, and, hence, the corresponding behavior of the negative capacitance, are still poorly understood, restraining the technological progress thereof. Here we investigate the temperature-dependent properties of domain structures in the SrTiO3/PbTiO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures and demonstrate that the temperature-thickness phase diagram of the system includes the ferroelectric and paraelectric regions, which exhibit different responses to the applied electric field. Using phase-field modeling and analytical calculations we find the temperature dependence of the dielectric constant of ferroelectric layers and identify the regions of the phase diagram wherein the system demonstrates negative capacitance. We further discuss the optimal routes for implementing negative capacitance in energy-efficient ferroelectric field-effect transistors.