Understanding the Reliability of Ferroelectric Tunnel Junction Operations using an Advanced Small-Signal Model

Ferroelectric technology is becoming ever more appealing for a variety of applications, especially analog neuromorphic computing. In this respect, elucidating the physical mechanisms occurring during device operation is of key importance to improve the reliability of ferroelectric devices. In this work, we investigate ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) consisting of a ferroelectric hafnium zirconium oxide (HZO) layer and an alumina (Al
2
O
3
) layer by means of C-f and G-f measurements performed at multiple voltages and temperatures. For a dependable interpretation of the results, a new small signal model is introduced that goes beyond the state of the art by i) separating the role of the leakage in the two layers; ii) including the significant impact of the series impedance (that depends on the samples layout); iii) including the frequency dependence of the dielectric permittivity; iv) accounting for the fact that likely not the whole HZO volume crystallizes in the orthorhombic ferroelectric phase. The model correctly reproduces measurements taken on different devices in different conditions. Results highlight that the typical estimation method for interface trap density may be misleading.