Grain-size adjustment in Hf_0.5Zr_0.5O₂ ferroelectric film to improve the switching time in Hf_0.5Zr_0.5O₂-based ferroelectric capacitor

Abstract

By adjusting the rising time in annealing ferroelectric HfO2-based films, the grain size of the film can be controlled. In this study, we found that increasing the rising time from 10 s to 30 s at an annealing temperature of 700 °C in N2 atmosphere resulted in improved ferroelectric switching speed. This is because the larger grain size reduces the internal resistance components, such as the grain bulk resistance and grain boundary resistance, of the HZO film. This in turn lowers the overall equivalent resistance. By minimizing the RC time constants, increasing the grain size plays a key role in improving the polarization switching speed of ferroelectric films.