Improving HfO 2-Based Resistive Switching Devices by Inserting a TaO x Thin Film via Engineered In Situ Oxidation

Tao Wang; Stefano Brivio; Elena Cianci; Claudia Wiemer; Michele Perego; Sabina Spiga; Mario Lanza

doi:10.1021/acsami.2c03364

Improving HfO 2-Based Resistive Switching Devices by Inserting a TaO x Thin Film via Engineered In Situ Oxidation

Tao Wang, Stefano Brivio, Elena Cianci, Claudia Wiemer, Michele Perego, Sabina Spiga, Mario Lanza

Physical Sciences and Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Resistive switching (RS) devices with binary and analogue operation are expected to play a key role in the hardware implementation of artificial neural networks. However, state of the art RS devices based on binary oxides (e.g., HfO2) still do not exhibit enough competitive performance. In particular, variability and yield still need to be improved to fit industrial requirements. In this study, we fabricate RS devices based on a TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack, using a novel methodology that consists of the in situ oxidation of a Ta film inside the atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber in which the HfO2 film is deposited. By means of X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), we realized that the TaOx film shows a substoichiometric structure, and that the TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack holds a well-layered structure. An exhaustive electrical characterization of the TaOx/HfO2-based RS devices shows improved switching performance compared to the single-layer HfO2 counterparts. The main advantages are higher forming yield, self-compliant switching, lower switching variability, enhanced reliability, and better synaptic plasticity.

Original language	English (US)
Journal	ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.2c03364
State	Published - May 18 2022

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2022-05-23
Acknowledgements: This work has been supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (grants 2018YFE0100800 and 2019YFE0124200), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 61874075), the Suzhou Science and Technology Bureau, the Ministry of Finance of China (grant SX21400213), the 111 Project from the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs of China, the Collaborative Innovation Centre of Suzhou Nano Science & Technology, the Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, and the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions. The authors acknowledge Mario Alia of CNR-IMM–Unit of Agrate Brianza for help in the sputtering deposition of metal electrodes and for the support in the optical lithography steps.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General Materials Science

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10.1021/acsami.2c03364

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title = "Improving HfO 2-Based Resistive Switching Devices by Inserting a TaO x Thin Film via Engineered In Situ Oxidation",

abstract = "Resistive switching (RS) devices with binary and analogue operation are expected to play a key role in the hardware implementation of artificial neural networks. However, state of the art RS devices based on binary oxides (e.g., HfO2) still do not exhibit enough competitive performance. In particular, variability and yield still need to be improved to fit industrial requirements. In this study, we fabricate RS devices based on a TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack, using a novel methodology that consists of the in situ oxidation of a Ta film inside the atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber in which the HfO2 film is deposited. By means of X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), we realized that the TaOx film shows a substoichiometric structure, and that the TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack holds a well-layered structure. An exhaustive electrical characterization of the TaOx/HfO2-based RS devices shows improved switching performance compared to the single-layer HfO2 counterparts. The main advantages are higher forming yield, self-compliant switching, lower switching variability, enhanced reliability, and better synaptic plasticity.",

author = "Tao Wang and Stefano Brivio and Elena Cianci and Claudia Wiemer and Michele Perego and Sabina Spiga and Mario Lanza",

note = "KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2022-05-23 Acknowledgements: This work has been supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (grants 2018YFE0100800 and 2019YFE0124200), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 61874075), the Suzhou Science and Technology Bureau, the Ministry of Finance of China (grant SX21400213), the 111 Project from the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs of China, the Collaborative Innovation Centre of Suzhou Nano Science & Technology, the Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, and the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions. The authors acknowledge Mario Alia of CNR-IMM–Unit of Agrate Brianza for help in the sputtering deposition of metal electrodes and for the support in the optical lithography steps.",

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doi = "10.1021/acsami.2c03364",

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journal = "ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces",

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AU - Wang, Tao

AU - Brivio, Stefano

AU - Cianci, Elena

AU - Wiemer, Claudia

AU - Perego, Michele

AU - Spiga, Sabina

AU - Lanza, Mario

N1 - KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2022-05-23 Acknowledgements: This work has been supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (grants 2018YFE0100800 and 2019YFE0124200), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 61874075), the Suzhou Science and Technology Bureau, the Ministry of Finance of China (grant SX21400213), the 111 Project from the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs of China, the Collaborative Innovation Centre of Suzhou Nano Science & Technology, the Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, and the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions. The authors acknowledge Mario Alia of CNR-IMM–Unit of Agrate Brianza for help in the sputtering deposition of metal electrodes and for the support in the optical lithography steps.

PY - 2022/5/18

Y1 - 2022/5/18

N2 - Resistive switching (RS) devices with binary and analogue operation are expected to play a key role in the hardware implementation of artificial neural networks. However, state of the art RS devices based on binary oxides (e.g., HfO2) still do not exhibit enough competitive performance. In particular, variability and yield still need to be improved to fit industrial requirements. In this study, we fabricate RS devices based on a TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack, using a novel methodology that consists of the in situ oxidation of a Ta film inside the atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber in which the HfO2 film is deposited. By means of X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), we realized that the TaOx film shows a substoichiometric structure, and that the TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack holds a well-layered structure. An exhaustive electrical characterization of the TaOx/HfO2-based RS devices shows improved switching performance compared to the single-layer HfO2 counterparts. The main advantages are higher forming yield, self-compliant switching, lower switching variability, enhanced reliability, and better synaptic plasticity.

AB - Resistive switching (RS) devices with binary and analogue operation are expected to play a key role in the hardware implementation of artificial neural networks. However, state of the art RS devices based on binary oxides (e.g., HfO2) still do not exhibit enough competitive performance. In particular, variability and yield still need to be improved to fit industrial requirements. In this study, we fabricate RS devices based on a TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack, using a novel methodology that consists of the in situ oxidation of a Ta film inside the atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber in which the HfO2 film is deposited. By means of X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), we realized that the TaOx film shows a substoichiometric structure, and that the TaOx/HfO2 bilayer stack holds a well-layered structure. An exhaustive electrical characterization of the TaOx/HfO2-based RS devices shows improved switching performance compared to the single-layer HfO2 counterparts. The main advantages are higher forming yield, self-compliant switching, lower switching variability, enhanced reliability, and better synaptic plasticity.

UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10754/678138

UR - https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsami.2c03364

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DO - 10.1021/acsami.2c03364

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SN - 1944-8244

JO - ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces

JF - ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces

ER -

Improving HfO 2-Based Resistive Switching Devices by Inserting a TaO x Thin Film via Engineered In Situ Oxidation

Abstract

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