Coexistence of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism in Ni-doped Al0.7Sc0.3N thin films
Zhengyuan Liu, Bingcheng Luo, Bo-Yu Hou
Abstract
Development of multiferroic materials with the capability of compatibility with the current semiconductor technology is of interest for practical applications. Recent experimental discovery of robust ferroelectricity in CMOS-compatible III-nitrides offers an alluring opportunity to construct multiferroic nitrides through chemical-doping engineering. We here reported the coexistence of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism in Ni-doped Al0.7Sc0.3N thin films. It is found that apart from the promising ferroelectric properties, including a square-like polarization–electric field (P–E) hysteresis loop with a large coercive field (∼3 MV/cm) and high remanent polarizations (∼100 μC/cm2), the films also exhibit room-temperature ferromagnetism, with a saturation magnetization of ∼8 emu/cm3. Additionally, the magneto-dielectric effect has also been experimentally confirmed. Our work provides a reference for subsequent research on nitride multiferroic materials and related applications.