Anomalously abrupt switching of wurtzite-structured ferroelectrics: simultaneous non-linear nucleation and growth model

Yazawa, Keisuke; Hayden, John; Maria, Jon-Paul; Zhu, Wanlin; Trolier-McKinstry, Susan; Zakutayev, Andriy; Brennecka, Geoffrey L.

doi:10.1039/d3mh00365e

Title: Anomalously abrupt switching of wurtzite-structured ferroelectrics: simultaneous non-linear nucleation and growth model

Journal Article · 03 May 2023 · Materials Horizons

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/d3mh00365e · OSTI ID:1973173

^[1]; Hayden, John ^[2]; Maria, Jon-Paul ^[2]; Zhu, Wanlin ^[2]; Trolier-McKinstry, Susan ^[2];

^[3];

^[4]

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States)
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA (United States)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States)

Ferroelectric polarization switching is one common example of a process that occurs via nucleation and growth, and understanding switching kinetics is crucial for applications such as ferroelectric memory. Here we describe and interpret anomalous switching dynamics in the wurtzite-structured nitride thin film ferroelectrics Al_0.7Sc_0.3N and Al_0.94B_0.06N using a general model that can be directly applied to other abrupt transitions that proceed via nucleation and growth. When substantial growth and impingement occur while nucleation rate is increasing, such as in these wurtzite-structured ferroelectrics under high electric fields, abrupt polarization reversal leads to very large Avrami coefficients (e.g., n = 11), inspiring an extension of the KAI (Kolmogorov–Avrami–Ishibashi) model. We apply this extended model to two related but distinct scenarios that crossover between (typical) behavior described by sequential nucleation and growth and a more abrupt transition arising from significant growth prior to peak nucleation rate. This work therefore provides a more complete description of general nucleation and growth kinetics applicable to any system while specifically addressing the anomalously abrupt polarization reversal behavior in new wurtzite-structured ferroelectrics.

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Research Organization:: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Tunable Ferroelectric Nitrides (TUFEN) Program; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Science Foundation (NSF)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC36-08GO28308; DARPA-PA-19-04-03; DMR-2119281; HR0011-20-9-0047; W911NF-20-20274; SC0021118

OSTI ID:: 1973173

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1974021

Report Number(s):: NREL/JA-5K00-84750; MainId:85523; UUID:97a9eccd-8f95-4ea3-a130-b809c23275a1; MainAdminID:69469

Journal Information:: Materials Horizons, Vol. 10, Issue 8; ISSN 2051-6347

Publisher:: Royal Society of ChemistryCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
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Title: Anomalously abrupt switching of wurtzite-structured ferroelectrics: simultaneous non-linear nucleation and growth model

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