Improved Intrinsic Nonlinear Characteristics of Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-Based Resistive Random-Access Memory for High-Density Memory Applications

oleh: Ji-Ho Ryu, Sungjun Kim

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2020-09-01

Deskripsi

The major hindrance for high-density application of two-terminal resistive random-access memory (RRAM) array design is unintentional sneak path leakage through adjacent cells. Herein, we propose a bilayer structure of Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-based bipolar type RRAM by evaluating the intrinsic nonlinear characteristics without integration with an additional transistor and selector device. We conducted X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis with different etching times to verify Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> layers deposited on the TiN bottom electrode. The optimized nonlinear properties with current suppression are obtained by varying Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> thickness. The maximum nonlinearity (~71) is achieved in a Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> (3 nm) sample. Furthermore, we estimated the comparative read margin based on the I-V characteristics with different thicknesses of Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> film for the crossbar array applications. We expect that this study about the effect of the Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> tunnel barrier thickness on Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub>-based memristors could provide a guideline for developing a selector-less RRAM application.