Recent Progress on Energy-Related Applications of HfO2-Based Ferroelectric and Antiferroelectric Materials

Ferroelectric and antiferroelectric materials are promising options for energyrelated (such as energy harvesting, energy storage, IR detection, and refrigeration) and memory applications (such as ferroelectric random-access memory (FeRAM) and ferroelectric field-effect transistor (FeFET)). In the past, several classes of materials (such as polymers, ceramics, single crystals, and glasses) have been studied for these properties. However, because of a large deposition thickness (in micrometers or larger), these materials are inappropriate for future nanoscale devices. Recently, the ferroelectric and antiferroelectric HfO2-based thin films have also been studied for the energy-related and memory applications. HfO2-based materials have many advantages over the conventional materials, such as compatibility with Si-based semiconductor technology, ultrasmall thicknesses (nm), and simple compositions, and they are appropriate for integration within 3-D nanostructures. HfO2-based materials can be promising for energy-related applications, such as energy storage, pyroelectric energy harvesting, IR sensors, and solid-state cooling. This article provides some basic knowledge of these energy-related properties. Moreover, this article reviews the energy-related properties of HfO2-based thin films, their origins, and the prospects of this research field.