Temperature-Dependent {111}-Texture Transfer to Hf0.5Zr0.5O2 Films from {111}-Textured TiN Electrode and Its Impact on Ferroelectricity

Abstract

The crystallographic texture of Hf_0.5Zr_0.5O₂ (HZO) thin films plays a crucial role in determining their ferroelectric properties, requiring a deeper understanding of the texture transfer from the substrate. This study investigated the influence of the deposition temperature on the crystallographic texture, residual stress, and ferroelectric properties of HZO thin films. Grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering analyses confirmed a pronounced increase in the {111} texture of the HZO films when the deposition temperature increased from 200 to 300 °C. The observed {111} texture was attributed to the influence of the thermodynamic stability on in situ nucleation and growth during atomic layer deposition at elevated temperatures, which led to preferential crystallization along the {111} direction. The improved {111}-texture of the HZO film was shown to correlate directly with a ∼25.0% increase in the remanent polarization (P_r) in positive-up-negative-down measurements and a ∼17.2% decrease in the P_r change during the wake-up effect, reinforcing the superior performance of the films produced at higher temperatures.