Surface modification and effects of organic ferroelectrics with blending hyperbranched polymer

Abstract

The surface modification of ferroelectric films is expected to improve the properties of fatigue, which is important for application in memory devices. In this study, we fabricated thin insulators at an electrode–ferroelectric interface by the phase separation of a ferroelectric polymer and an insulator. The surface and bulk characterization indicated that the insulators consisting of a hyperbranched polymer spontaneously phase-separated from the organic ferroelectric polymer by thermal annealing. It was revealed that the separated layers were composed of three layers and had a lower surface energy than the ferroelectric films. The annealing time evolution of the surface contact angle and dielectric spectra indicated the phase separation dynamics and structural behavior. The fatigue properties of the surface-modified ferroelectric films improved, but the remanent polarization and coercive electric field value resulted in a trade-off.