Phase-Controlled Artificial SiZnSnO/P(VDF-TrFE) Synaptic Devices with a High Dynamic Range for Neuromorphic Computing

Abstract

Artificial synapses, such as ferroelectric field-effect transistors, aspire the brain-like computation in real life and are likely to replace conventional computing methods in the future. Amorphous SiZnSnO (a-SZTO)-based ferroelectric field-effect transistor is fabricated using the organic poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) P(VDF-TrFE) ferroelectric gate insulating layer. First, the ferroelectric properties of P(VDF-TrFE) are analyzed depending on the crystallization temperature for artificial synaptic transistor applications. The ferroelectricity becomes prominent with the evolution of the beta-phase till 140 degrees C and degrades thereafter. The a-SZTO-based ferroelectric field-effect transistors employing P(VDF-TrFE) show anticlockwise hysteresis, typical for a ferroelectric field-effect transistor. The nonlinearity for the potentiation and depression and the dynamic range is confirmed to be increased with higher beta-phase concentration. The rise in the concentration is related to the elevated thermodynamic stability of the beta-phase between curie temperature and the melting point. Utilizing the parameters obtained from the a-SZTO-P(VDF-TrFE) synaptic transistor, the simulation studies exhibit a high recognition rate of 86.8%, which makes it a promising candidate for artificial intelligence applications.