Atomic-scale fatigue mechanism of ferroelectric tunnel junctions

Ferroelectric tunnel junctions (FTJs) are promising candidates for next-generation memories due to fast read/write speeds and low-power consumptions. Here, we investigate resistance fatigue of FTJs, which is performed on Pt/BaTiO(3)/Nb:SrTiO(3) devices. By direct observations of the 5–unit cell–thick BaTiO(3) barrier with high-angle annular dark-field imaging and electron energy loss spectroscopy, oxygen vacancies are found to aggregate at the Pt/BaTiO(3) interface during repetitive switching, leading to a ferroelectric dead layer preventing domain nucleation and growth. Severe oxygen deficiency also makes BaTiO(3) lattices energetically unfavorable and lastly induces a destruction of local perovskite structure of the barrier. Ferroelectric properties are thus degraded, which reduces barrier contrast between ON and OFF states and smears electroresistance characteristics of Pt/BaTiO(3)/Nb:SrTiO(3) FTJs. These results reveal an atomic-scale fatigue mechanism of ultrathin ferroelectric barriers associated with the aggregation of charged defects, facilitating the design of reliable FTJs and ferroelectric nanoelectronic devices for practical applications.