Nanoscale CuO solid-electrolyte-based conductive-bridging-random-access-memory cell operating multi-level-cell and 1selector1resistor

Abstract

Nanoscale (∼28 nm) non-volatile multi-level conductive-bridging-random-access-memory (CBRAM) cells are developed by using a CuO solid-electrolyte, providing a V_set of ∼0.96 V, a V_reset of ∼−1.5 V, a ∼1 × 10² memory margin, ∼3 × 10⁶ write/erase endurance cycles with 100 μs AC pulse, ∼6.63 years retention time at 85 °C, ∼100 ns writing speed, and multi-level (four-level) cell operation. Their non-volatile memory cell performance characteristics are intensively determined by studying material properties such as crystallinity and poly grain size of the CuO solid-electrolyte and are found to be independent of nanoscale memory cell size. In particular, the CuO solid-electrolyte-based CBRAM cell vertically connecting with p/n/p-type oxide (CuO/IGZO/CuO) selector shows the operation of 1S(selector)1R(resistor), demonstrating a possibility of cross-bar memory-cell array for realizing terabit-integration non-volatile memory cells.