Mechanical Polarization Switching in Hf_0.5Zr_0.5O₂ Thin Film

HfO₂-based films with high compatibility with Si and complementary metal-oxide semiconductors (CMOS) have been widely explored in recent years. In addition to ferroelectricity and antiferroelectricity, flexoelectricity, the coupling between polarization and a strain gradient, is rarely reported in HfO₂-based films. Here, we demonstrate that the mechanically written out-of-plane domains are obtained in 10 nm Hf_0.5Zr0_.5O₂ (HZO) ferroelectric film at room temperature by generating the stress gradient via the tip of an atomic force microscope. The results of scanning Kelvin force microscopy (SKPM) exclude the possibility of flexoelectric-like mechanisms and prove that charge injection could be avoided by mechanical writing and thus reveal the true polarization state, promoting wider flexoelectric applications and ultrahigh-density storage of HZO thin films.