Colossal modulation of the phase transition dynamics via solid-state gating - Communications Materials

Controlling material phases using gate voltage offers a promising alternative to traditional temperature and pressure-based methods. However, despite the widespread use of ionic liquid gates, they suffer from slow and complex response, limiting speed and accuracy that were originally expected from voltage control. In this study, we evaluate the speed of the VO phase transition by exploiting a solid-state three-terminal device with an ultra-high-k gate dielectric, leading to the construction of Time-Temperature-Transformation diagram in metal-insulator transition systems. Remarkably, the transition speed is modulated by three orders of magnitude through gate voltage although the transition temperature is affected by only 0.6 K. This effect on transition speed is 1000 times larger than thermodynamic predictions, revealing the collectivity that underlies the energy barrier during phase transition. The results indicate such collective behavior could enable high speed with minimal external stimuli overcoming the power-speed trade-off in conventional electronics.