Le Zhong

Nonpolar resistive switching in Cu/SiC/Au non-volatile resistive memory devices

Amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC) based resistive memory (RM) Cu/a-SiC/Au devices were fabricated and their resistive switching characteristics investigated. All four possible modes of nonpolar resistive switching were achieved with ON/OFF ratio in the range 106–108. Detailed current-voltage I-V characteristics analysis suggests that the conduction mechanism in low resistance state is due to the formation of metallic filaments. Schottky emission is proven to be the dominant conduction mechanism in high resistance state which results from the Schottky contacts between the metal electrodes and SiC. ON/OFF ratios exceeding 107 over 10 years were also predicted from state retention characterizations. These results suggest promising application potentials for Cu/a-SiC/Au RMs.

Switching kinetics of SiC resistive memory for harsh environments

Cu/a-SiC/Au resistive memory cells are measured using voltage pulses and exhibit the highest ROFF/RON ratio recorded for any resistive memory. The switching kinetics are investigated and fitted to a numerical model, using thermal conductivity and resistivity properties of the dielectric. The SET mechanism of the Cu/a-SiC/Au memory cells is found to be due to ionic motion without joule heating contributions, whereas the RESET mechanism is found to be due to thermally assisted ionic motion. The conductive filament diameter is extracted to be around 4nm. The high thermal conductivity and resistivity for the Cu/a-SiC/Au memory cells result in slow switching but with high thermal reliability and stability, showing potential for use in harsh environments. Radiation properties of SiC memory cells are investigated. No change was seen in DC sweep or pulsed switching nor in conductive mechanisms, up to 2Mrad(Si) using 60Co gamma irradiation.

Dataset for Active Counter Electrode in a-SiC Electrochemical Metallization Memory

Dataset for figures in: Morgan, K. et al (2017). Active Counter Electrode in a-SiC Electrochemical Metallization Memory. Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics.Funded by EPSRC

Dataset for Switching kinetics of SiC resistive memory for harsh environments

Dataset for figures in: Morgan, K. et al (2015). Switching kinetics of SiC resistive memory for harsh environments. AIP Advances.Funded by EPSRC