Discovery of robust in-plane ferroelectricity in atomic-thick SnTe

• DOI: 10.1126/science.aad8609
• Publication Date: 2016-07-14T21:18:39Z
• Authors: Kai Chang; Junwei Liu; Haicheng Lin; Na Wang; Kun Zhao; Anmin Zhang; Feng Jin; Yong Zhong; Xiaopeng Hu; Wenhui Duan; Qingming Zhang; Liang Fu; Qi-Kun Xue; Xi Chen; Shuai-Hua Ji
• Keywords: 01 natural sciences; 0104 chemical sciences

Thinning a ferroelectric makes it better

As a ferroelectric material becomes thinner, the temperature below which it develops its permanent electrical polarization usually decreases. Chang et al. fabricated high-quality thin films of SnTe that, in contrast to this conventional wisdom, had a considerably higher transition temperature than that of the material in bulk (see the Perspective by Kooi and Noheda). This was true even for single-unit cell films, whereas only slightly thicker films became ferroelectric above room temperature. This finding may enable the miniaturization of ferroelectric devices.

Science , this issue p. 274 ; see also p. 221