A chalcogenide-based device with potential for multi-state storage

We have investigated electrical properties of a chalcogenide-based device with naturally oxidized Al electrodes. Intermediate-resistance (IR) states exhibited by current-voltage (I-V) characteristics, dynamic resistance change as a function of pulse height and decay behavior from a low-resistance state of such a device make multi-state storage feasible. These IR states could be induced by electrical pulses and stable in a period. Device resistances of such a series of states might be related to the number of dendrite filaments across the chalcogenide channel.

[1]  Noboru Yamada,et al.  Structure of laser-crystallized Ge2Sb2+xTe5 sputtered thin films for use in optical memory , 2000 .

[2]  Sumio Hosaka,et al.  Electrical Properties of Phase Change and Channel Current Control in Ultrathin Phase-Change Channel Transistor Memory by Annealing , 2006 .

[3]  J. Corish,et al.  The growth and dissolution of silver whiskers , 1972 .

[4]  Sumio Hosaka,et al.  Dependences of Electrical Properties of Thin GeSbTe and AgInSbTe Films on Annealing , 2005 .

[5]  Y. Hirose,et al.  Polarity‐dependent memory switching and behavior of Ag dendrite in Ag‐photodoped amorphous As2S3 films , 1976 .

[6]  Matthias Wuttig,et al.  Crystallization kinetics of sputter-deposited amorphous AgInSbTe films , 2001 .

[7]  S. R. Ovshinsky,et al.  Reversible structural transformations in amorphous semiconductors for memory and logic , 1971 .

[8]  Masakazu Aono,et al.  Formation and disappearance of a nanoscale silver cluster realized by solid electrochemical reaction , 2002 .

[9]  S. Ovshinsky Reversible Electrical Switching Phenomena in Disordered Structures , 1968 .

[10]  Matthias Wuttig,et al.  Calorimetric measurements of phase transformations in thin films of amorphous Te alloys used for optical data storage , 2003 .

[11]  S. Ovshinsky Optical Cognitive Information Processing – A New Field , 2004 .

[12]  Andrea L. Lacaita,et al.  Phase change memories: State-of-the-art, challenges and perspectives , 2005 .

[13]  Young-Tae Kim,et al.  Ge2Sb2Te5 Confined Structures and Integration of 64 Mb Phase-Change Random Access Memory , 2005 .