title: Interface-induced polarization and inhibition of ferroelectricity in epitaxial SrTiO₃/Si.
abstract: We use SrTiO₃/Si as a model system to elucidate the effect of the interface on ferroelectric behavior in epitaxial oxide films on silicon. Using both first-principles computations and synchrotron x-ray diffraction measurements, we show that structurally imposed boundary conditions at the interface stabilize a fixed (pinned) polarization in the film but inhibit ferroelectric switching. We demonstrate that the interface chemistry responsible for these phenomena is general to epitaxial silicon-oxide interfaces, impacting on the design of silicon-based functional oxide devices.
authors.affiliation: Center for Research on Interface Structures and Phenomena, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8284, USA.
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kolpak
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Reiner
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Segal
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Sawicki
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Broadbridge
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ismail-Beigi