Multibit Ferroelectric Memcapacitor for Non-volatile Analogue Memory and Reconfigurable Filtering

TL;DR

This paper introduces a voltage-programmable ferroelectric memcapacitor with multiple stable states, enabling non-volatile analogue memory and reconfigurable filtering, suitable for adaptive electronics and neuromorphic systems.

Contribution

It demonstrates a CMOS-compatible ferroelectric memcapacitor with 3-bit reprogrammability, long retention, high endurance, and circuit-level functionality.

Findings

Achieved over eight stable, reprogrammable capacitance states.

Demonstrated long retention of 10^5 seconds and high endurance of 10^6 cycles.

Successfully integrated into a high-pass filter, shifting cutoff frequency by over 5 kHz.

Abstract

Tuneable capacitors are vital for adaptive and reconfigurable electronics, yet existing approaches require continuous bias or mechanical actuation. Here we demonstrate a voltage-programmable ferroelectric memcapacitor based on HfZrO that achieves more than eight stable, reprogrammable capacitance states (3-bit encoding) within a non-volatile window of 24~pF. The device switches at low voltages (3~V), with each state exhibiting long retention (10^5~s) and high endurance (10^6 cycles), ensuring reliable multi-level operation. At the nanoscale, multistate charge retention was directly visualised using atomic force microscopy, confirming the robustness of individual states beyond macroscopic measurements. As a proof of concept, the capacitor was integrated into a high-pass filter, where the programmed capacitive states shift the cutoff frequency over 5~kHz, establishing circuit-level viability. This work demonstrates the feasibility of CMOS-compatible, non-volatile, analogue memory based on ferroelectric HfZrO, paving the way for adaptive RF filters, reconfigurable analogue front-ends, and neuromorphic electronics.