Remote vapor-phase dual alkali halide salts assisted quasi-van der Waals epitaxy of m-phase ZrO₂ thin films with high dielectric constant and stable flexible properties.

This article focuses on the development of a quasi-van der Waals epitaxy method for synthesizing compact monoclinic-phase zirconium dioxide (m-ZrO₂) thin films using remote vapor-phase dual alkali halide salts assistance. This chemical vapor deposition technique enables stable zirconium source supply and promotes strong interfacial chemical bonding, resulting in high-quality films with uniform dielectric properties and enhanced adhesion on various substrates, including flexible metals like tungsten, molybdenum, and stainless steel. The fabricated metal–insulator–metal capacitors based on these m-ZrO₂ films exhibit a high dielectric constant (23–26), low leakage current density (~10⁻⁴ A/cm²), and excellent mechanical flexibility with minimal capacitance degradation after repeated bending. These findings suggest significant potential for m-ZrO₂ thin films in flexible electronic device applications.