Solving the ferroelectric scaling trilemma

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Source: Science Magazine

Original: https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.aee4597?af=R...

Published: 2026-01-29T07:00:02Z

An article in Science (Volume 391, Number 6784, Pages 445-446, January 2026) addresses the trilemma of ferroelectric scaling in gate layers, which includes polarizability, scalability, and isolation robustness[1]. Chinese researchers from Qilu University of Technology used an ultrathin film of ferroelectric oxide in the superparaelectric (SPE) state, where the polar order is local and dispersed in an amorphous matrix with a crystallite size below a few nanometers[1]. The diameter of the nano polar clusters (NPCs) depends on the sputter-deposition temperature, not on the film thickness, which allows excellent scalability of the permittivity k[1]. The critical NPC size for the SPE-PE transition is 1.3 to 1.8 nm, which corresponds to the thermodynamic limit of the BSZT material [1]. This approach promises to continue Moore's law by reducing the EOT value in the gate layers[1].