John D. Stricklin

Thermal-Assisted Spin Transfer Torque Memory (STT-RAM) Cell Design Exploration

Thermal-assisted spin-transfer torque random access memory (STT-RAM) has been considered as a promising candidate of next-generation nonvolatile memory technology. We conducted finite element simulation on thermal dynamics in the programming process of thermal-assisted STT-RAM. Special attentions have been paid to the scalability and design space of the thermal-assist programming scheme by varying the memory element dimension and resistance-area product. We also provide systematic analysis and comparison between the thermal-assisted STT-RAM and standard STT-RAM. Discussions on the writeability and scalability of thermal-assisted STT-RAM are also conducted.

Spin Transfer Torque Memory With Thermal Assist Mechanism: A Case Study

We have investigated spin transfer torque random access memory (STT-RAM) with a thermal-assist programming scheme using finite-element thermal simulation. We conducted the study on a specific memory element design to analyze the thermal dynamics and thermal programming mechanism. We paid particular attention to the scalability and design potential of the thermal-assist programming scheme by varying the memory element dimension and resistance-area product. In addition we systematically analyzed and compared thermal-assisted STT-RAM and standard STT-RAM based on these results. Finally, we provide a summary of the programming scheme and some recommendations for improving writeability and scalability of this technology.