Imaging of ferroelectric domain walls by force microscopy

Saurenbach, F.; Terris, B. D.

doi:10.1063/1.103122

Cited by 232 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The resulting features were then imaged by exploiting the piezoelectric response of the material. 14 Writing times in the range from 250 ns to 3 s were investigated for writing voltages between 6 and 12 V, after a uniformly polarized background was obtained by repeated scanning of the 10 mϫ10 m designated test area at Ϫ10 V.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanoscale control of ferroelectric polarization and domain size in epitaxial Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 thin films

Paruch

Tybell

Triscone

2001

Applied Physics Letters

196

136

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We demonstrate that atomic force microscopy can be used to precisely manipulate individual sub-50 nm ferroelectric domains in ultrahigh density arrays on high-quality epitaxial Pb͑Zr 0.2 Ti 0.8 ͒O 3 thin films. Control of domain size was achieved by varying the strength and duration of the voltage pulses used to polarize the material. Domain size was found to depend logarithmically upon the writing time and linearly upon the writing voltage. All domains, including those written with ϳ100 ns pulses, remained completely stable for the 7 day duration of the experiment. © 2001 American Institute of Physics. ͓DOI: 10.1063/1.1388024͔Increasing demand for ultrahigh density ͑uhd͒ information storage has fueled significant interest in the use of atomic force microscopy ͑AFM͒ for nanoscopic read/write operations. General requirements of nonvolatile uhd memories are fast operating times, small bit size, and long-term data retention. Nonreversible AFM lithography by local oxidation and thermomechanical processes has been extensively researched. 1-3 Solutions incorporating parallel processing have also been explored, increasing the scan range and speed of possible applications. 4,5 A particularly appealing approach, allowing dynamic memory as well as data storage, is to locally modify the reversible and nonvolatile polarization of ferroelectric oxides with an AFM-generated electric field, 6-12 a technique recently extended to ferroelectric/silicon heterostructures. 13 Detailed studies of domain switching behavior in these materials, focusing on domain size and stability in relation to writing time, writing voltage, and the shape of the AFM tip, are therefore important for the development of memory applications. Such studies would also aid in understanding the fundamental physics of domain dynamics in thin films. The perovskite Pb͑Zr x Ti 1Ϫx )O 3 ͑PZT͒, a stable compound with high remanent polarization, has been widely recognized as an attractive candidate for memory applications. Epitaxially grown monocrystalline films of this material are particularly suitable for domain behavior studies due to the uniformity of their switching properties over the sample surface. 10 Although desirable long-term stability has been found for standard 100 nm sized capacitors in 1000-Å-thick films of related ferroelectric compounds, 11 studies of retention loss in sub-100 nm PZT domains using the AFM approach, with the tip itself serving as a mobile top electrode, present contradictory results. The extrapolation of temperature dependence data for epitaxial PZT films gives polarization retention estimates of decades at RT, 9 while other groups report spontaneous reversal of polarization after a few hours. 8 In this letter we demonstrate nanoscopic control of read/ write operations in uhd arrays, and report on the time dependence of domain switching behavior for domains as small as 40 nm, over eight orders of magnitude in writing time, down to ϳ100 ns. We also discuss how different applied voltages affect the size of the polarized domains. Final...

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanoscale control of ferroelectric polarization and domain size in epitaxial Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 thin films

Paruch

Tybell

Triscone

2001

Applied Physics Letters

196

136

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“…The advent of the scanning probe microscopes made available techniques for sensing charges, dielectric constants, film thickness of insulating layers, photo-voltage and electric potentials (Nonnenmacher et al 1991) and ferroelectric domain imaging (Saurenbach and Terris 1990). For instance, the electrostatic force microscope (EFM) maps the spatial variation and potential energy difference between a tip and a sample, arising from non-uniform charge distributions and local variations in surface work function (Nyffenegger et al 1997).…”

Section: Scanning Electric Probe Microscopiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Supramolecular ionics: electric charge partition within polymers and other non-conducting solids

Galembeck

Costa

Galembeck

et al. 2001

An. Acad. Bras. Ciênc.

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Electrostatic phenomena in insulators have been known for the past four centuries, but many related questions are still unanswered, for instance: which are the charge-bearing species in an electrified organic polymer, how are the charges spatially distributed and which is the contribution of the electrically charged domains to the overall polymer properties? New scanning probe microscopies were recently introduced, and these are suitable for the mapping of electric potentials across a solid sample thus providing some answers for the previous questions. In this work, we report results obtained with two of these techniques: scanning electric potential (SEPM) and electric force microscopy (EFM). These results were associated to images acquired by using analytical electron microscopy (energy-loss spectroscopy imaging in the transmission electron microscope, ESI-TEM) for colloid polymer samples. Together, they show domains with excess electric charges (and potentials) extending up to hundreds of nanometers and formed by large clusters of cations or anions, reaching supramolecular dimensions. Domains with excess electric charge were also observed in thermoplastics as well as in silica, polyphosphate and titanium oxide particles. In the case of thermoplastics, the origin of the charges is tentatively assigned to their tribochemistry, oxidation followed by segregation or the Mawell-Wagner-Sillars and Costa Ribeiro effects.

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“…In particular, we describe the use of EFM and KPFM for the determination of surface potentials, band bending, and surface state densities and how these parameters relate to device design. While detailed descriptions of EFM [52,53] and KPFM [54] can be found elsewhere, including this book, here we provide a brief background to facilitate useful discussion.…”

Section: Characterization Of Surface Electronic Properties By Spmmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The force gradient technique employs a lift height approach, in which the cantilever first measures topography, and then retraces the same line at a certain lift height to measure only the electrostatic interaction, which manifests itself as a shift in the resonant frequency of the tip. The voltage modulation approach developed by Terris et al [52] and Saurenbach et al [53] uses both modulations (mechanically (2) driven cantilever and voltage modulation applied to the tip), allowing topographic and electrostatic images to be acquired simultaneously.…”

Section: Characterization Of Surface Electronic Properties By Spmmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Nanoscale Characterization of Electronic and Electrical Properties of III-Nitrides by Scanning Probe Microscopy

Rodriguez

Gruverman

Nemanich

Scanning Probe Microscopy

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Recent interest in the technological potential of nitride-based semiconductors has led to the development and commercialization of a wide range of electronic devices. The nanoscale investigation of the electric properties of III-nitride thin films, bulk crystals, and heterostructures is of considerable interest for determining how interfaces, defects, and inversion domain boundaries affect device performance. The pyroelectric nature of wurtzitic III-nitrides is characterized by a spontaneous polarization that exists without the presence of an external field and by a polarization-bound surface charge. Scanning probe-based measurements of surface contact potentials and surface band bending in these materials, which are of crucial importance to device design, are summarized in this review chapter. In addition, the role of charged defects on device performance is explored by scanning probe techniques. Lastly, the measurement of polarity and of the screening mechanism of III-nitrides, which are fundamental issues for the fabrication of devices based on polarity effects, are discussed. This chapter provides a critical analysis of the contributions made by scanning probe-based techniques toward a deeper understanding of the III-nitride material system.

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Imaging of ferroelectric domain walls by force microscopy

Cited by 232 publications

References 16 publications

Nanoscale control of ferroelectric polarization and domain size in epitaxial Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 thin films

Nanoscale control of ferroelectric polarization and domain size in epitaxial Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 thin films

Supramolecular ionics: electric charge partition within polymers and other non-conducting solids

Nanoscale Characterization of Electronic and Electrical Properties of III-Nitrides by Scanning Probe Microscopy

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