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Updated: Jan 17, 2026

Fabrication of Schottky Diodes on Zn-polar BeMgZnO/ZnO Heterostructure Grown by Plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy
Published on: October 23, 2018
Field-Induced Structural Dynamics of Polarization Switching in HfxZr1-xO2 Thin Films
Sangjun Lee1, Sunghyun Kim1, Seong Yong Park1
1Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT), Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, Suwon, 16678, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
The polarization characteristics of HfxZr1-xO2 (HZO) are intrinsically linked to its crystal structure. Optimizing its functionality in ferroelectric (FE) and antiferroelectric (AFE) devices requires understanding the structural evolution during polarization switching, which remains insufficiently understood. Here, the switching mechanism in HZO thin films is elucidated by combining in situ microbeam grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and first-principles-based metadynamics simulations, providing unambiguous evidence of phase evolution. Across compositions (x = 0 to 0.5), switching involves reversible transitions between the nonpolar tetragonal (t) P42/nmc and polar orthorhombic (o) Pca21 phases. Zr-rich AFE compounds undergo a complete t-phase transition during polarization reversal, while in Hf-rich FE compounds, transient t-phase formation facilitates the nucleation and growth of o-phase domains with reversed polarization. This study promotes engineering phase evolution in HZO for advanced devices.
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