Oxide-based Resistive RAM: How defects can be useful for non-volatile memories
Prof. Regina Dittmann (Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH)

The prospect of achieving reversible changes in resistivity in oxide thin films by applying an electrical stimulus, i.e., memristive behavior, is of great importance for energy efficient computing applications such as non-volatile memories (ReRAM) and neuromorphic circuits. Low power consumption Ta_xO_y-based ReRAM storage devices with medium integration density have been available commercially since 2013.
This talk will give an overview over the current status of knowledge of the basic physical mechanism of oxide based resistive switching which are mainly based on field-induced local redox-processes. In contrast to CMOS technology, in which leakage and failure rates are caused by defects and ionic motion, the presence of such features is a prerequisite for the operation of oxide based RRAM, since oxygen vacancy migration and/or phase transformations are required for the desired switching operations. The presence of extended defects can significantly improve the switching performance and reliability and it will be show that for the resistive switching model system of epitaxially SrTiO₃ thin films resistive switching occurs preferentially at defect sites introduced during the thin film deposition.