Non-volatile memory characteristics of epitaxially grown PVDF-TrFE thin films and their printed micropattern application

Highly ordered poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) (PVDF-TrFE) ultrathin films epitaxially grown on friction-transferred polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) surface were incorporated in the Metal-Ferroelectric-Metal (MFM) and Metal-Ferroelectric-Insulator-Semiconductor (MFIS) memory structure. The non-volatile memory properties in epitaxially ordered ferroelectric films were characterized with polarization and capacitance hysteresis curves at low voltage sweep of ±12 V and ±5 V in each stacking structure of MFM and MFIS, respectively. Furthermore, we present the facile micro- and nano-patterning method of fabricating MFM arrays including highly ordered PVDF-TrFE films by microimprinting. Ultrathin ferroelectric polymer films grown by epitaxy were microimprinted with a silver coated polydimethylesiloxane (PDMS) mold at 170 °C with excellent quality and the simultaneous transfer of silver electrodes on the imprinted PVDF-TrFE enabled us to fabricate the arrays of MFM capacitors in which ferroelectricity in imprinted region was well-maintained after patterning process at high temperature above 170 °C with good thermal stability.