RRAM: Resistive Random Access

Memory (Memristor)

Md. Rezaul Kabir

mrkabir@kth.se

Markus Soldemo
soldemo@kth.se

IM2654 Smart Electronic Materials

2008 – 11 – 07
 Agenda
Memristor / RRAM

History

Applications

Physics

Conclusions
Memristor, HP labs
Memristor / RRAM

Memristor symbol Memristor, HP labs

 History

1971: The theory of the Memristor 2008: HP has a working memristor prototype

1960s: Resistance switching End of 1990s: Research on resistance switching

 Applications
RRAM, successor to:
Memristor

DRAM

Mass storage devices

Memristor, HP labs
 Physics
Schematic view of RRAM cell

Materials/structures used
 Perovskite oxides
 Transition metal oxides

 Molecular materials

Reasons for resistance switching

Schematic view of RRAM cell

Al / TiOx / Al ”Sandwich”
Materials/structures used
Perovskite oxides
SrTiO3 (STO), SrZrO3 (SZO)

SZO

Perovskite oxide structure

SrZrO3 (SZO) – Voltage – Current diagram
Materials/structures used
Transition metal oxides
TiO2, Co-O

Al / TiOx / Al ”Sandwich”

TMO – Voltage – Current diagram

Memristor, HP labs
Materials/structures used
Molecular materials
 Conductive filaments Conductive filaments

 Interfacial effects

 Trapped charges
Interfacial effects

Trapped charges
Reasons for resistance switching
”...so far the reasons for the
resistive switching induced by
voltage pulse or bias voltage are
not clear.”
- Chih-Yi Liu, Pei-Hsun Wu, Arthur Wang, Wen-Yueh Jang,
Jien-Chen Young, Kuang-Yi Chiu, and Tseung-Yuen Tseng,
”Bistable Resistive Switching of a Sputter-Deposited Cr-
doped SrZrO3 Memory Film”, IEEE ELECTRON DEVICE
LETTERS, VOL. 26, NO. 6, JUNE 2005
”The microscopic nature of
resistance switching and charge
transport in such devices is till
under debate, but one proposal
is that the hysteresis requires
some sort of atomic
rearrangement that modulates
the electronic current.”
- Dmitri B. Strukov, Gregory S. Snider, Duncan R. Stewart &
R. Stanley Williams, ”The missing memristor found”, Nature,
Vol 453, 1 May 2008, doi:10.1038/nature06932
 Conclusions
 The reason for resistance switching is unknown

 RRAMs can be build by different kinds of materials

 The RRAM has advantages on today's memories

 The memristor is found and may have other applications

than RRAM
 Sources

H. Shima, Y. Tamai, Oxide nanolayer improving RRAM operational performance, Microelectron. J (2008),
doi:10.1016/j.mejo.2008.06.096

Chih-Yang Lin, Chih-Yi Liu, Chun-Chieh Lin, T.Y, Tseng, ”Current status of resistive nonvolatile memories”, J Electroceram, DOI
10.1007/s10832-007-9081-y, 2007

Dmitri B. Strukov, Gregory S. Snider, Duncan R. Stewart & R. Stanley Williams, ”The missing memristor found”, Nature, Vol 453, 1
May 2008, doi:10.1038/nature06932

Chih-Yang Lin, Meng-Han Lin, Ming-Chi Wu, Chen-Hsi Lin, Tseung.Yuen Tseng, ”Improvement of Resistive Switching
Characteristics in SrZrO3 Thin Films With Embedded Cr Layer”, IEEE ELECTRON DEVICE LETTERS, VOL. 29, NO. 10, OCTOBER
2008

Chih-Yi Liu, Pei-Hsun Wu, Arthur Wang, Wen-Yueh Jang, Jien-Chen Young, Kuang-Yi Chiu, and Tseung-Yuen Tseng, ”Bistable
Resistive Switching of a Sputter-Deposited Cr-doped SrZrO3 Memory Film”, IEEE ELECTRON DEVICE LETTERS, VOL. 26, NO. 6,
JUNE 2005

Picture references
Slide 2, 3, 5, 9 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9f/Memristor.jpg (accessed: 2008-11-04)
Slide 3 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Memristor-Symbol.svg (accessed 2008-11-04)
Slide 5 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Open_HDD_and_SSD.JPG (accessed 2008-11-05)
Slide 5 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/5f/Edoram.jpg (accessed 2008-11-05)
Slide 7, 9 Lee-Eun Yu, Sungho Kim, Min-Ki Ryu, Sung-Yool Choi and Yang-Kyu Choi, ”Structure Effects on Resistive Switching
of Al/TiOx/Al Devices for RRAM Applications”, IEEE ELECTRON DEVICE LETTER, VOL. 29, NO. 4, APRIL 2008
Slide 8 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/Perovskite.jpg (accessed 2008-11-04)
Slide 8 Chih-Yang Lin, Chih-Yi Liu, Chun-Chieh Lin, T.Y, Tseng, ”Current status of resistive nonvolatile memories”, J
Electroceram, DOI 10.1007/s10832-007-9081-y, 2007.
Slide 9 Chih-Yang Lin, Chih-Yi Liu, Chun-Chieh Lin, T.Y, Tseng, ”Current status of resistive nonvolatile memories”, J
Electroceram, DOI 10.1007/s10832-007-9081-y, 2007.
Questions