Critical Role of Interlayer in Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 Ferroelectric FET Nonvolatile Memory Performance

We fabricate, characterize, and establish the critical design criteria of Hf
_0.5
Zr
_0.5
O
₂
(HZO)-based ferroelectric field effect transistor (FeFET) for nonvolatile memory application. We quantify VTH shift from electron (hole) trapping in the vicinity of ferroelectric (FE)/interlayer (IL) interface, induced by erase (program) pulse, and VTH shift from polarization switching to determine true memory window (MW). The devices exhibit extrapolated retention up to 10 years at 85 °C and endurance up to 5 × 10
⁶
cycles initiated by the IL breakdown. Endurance up to 10
¹²
cycles of partial polarization switching is shown in metal-FE-metal capacitor, in the absence of IL. A comprehensive metal- FE-insulator-semiconductor FeFET model is developed to quantify the electric field distribution in the gate-stack, and an IL design guideline is established to markedly enhance MW, retention characteristics, and cycling endurance.