Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-17T14:49:56.940Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Simulation and Design of a Silicon Nanowire based Phase Change Memory Cell

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2012

Ramin Banan Sadeghian ,
Yusuf Leblebici  and
Ali Shakouri
Ramin Banan Sadeghian
Affiliation:
Baskin School of Engineering, University of California at Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, U.S.A.
Yusuf Leblebici
Affiliation:
Microelectronic Systems Laboratory, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), ELD 340, Station 11,CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Ali Shakouri
Affiliation:
Baskin School of Engineering, University of California at Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, U.S.A. School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University, 465 Northwestern Ave., West Lafayette, IN 47907, U.S.A.
Get access

Abstract

In this work we present preliminary calculations and simulations to demonstrate feasibility of programming a nanoscale Phase Change Random Access Memory (PCRAM) cell by means of a silicon nanowire ballistic transistor (SNWBT). Memory cells based on ballistic transistors bear the advantage of having a small size and high-speed operation with low power requirements. A one-dimensional MOSFET model (FETToy) was used to estimate the output current of the nanowire as a function of its diameter. The gate oxide thickness was 1.5 nm, and the Fermi level at source was set to -0.32 eV. For the case of VDS = VGS = 1 V, when the nanowire diameter was increased from 1 to 60 nm, the output power density dropped from 109 to 106 W cm-2 , while the current increased from 20 to 90 μA. Finite element electro-thermal analysis were carried out on a segmented cylindrical phase-change memory cell made of Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) chalcogenide, connected in series to the SNWBT. The diameter of the combined device, d, and the aspect ratio of the GST region were selected so as to achieve optimum heating of the GST. With the assumption that the bulk thermal conductivity of GST does not change significantly at the nanoscale, it was shown that for d = 24 nm, a ‘reset’ programming current of ID = 80 μA can heat the GST up to its melting point. The results presented herein can help in the design of low cost, high speed, and radiation tolerant nanoscale PCRAM devices.

Keywords

electronic materialmemorynanoscale
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1431: Symposium F – Phase-Change Materials for Memory and Reconfigurable Electronics Applications , 2012 , mrss12-1431-f11-03
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

1. Liu, J., Yu, B., and Anantram, M. P., IEEE Electron Device Lett. 32 (10), 1340–1342 (2011).Google Scholar
2. Chen, I-R. and Pop, E., IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices 56 (7), 1523–1528 (2009).Google Scholar
3. Reifenberg, J. P., Kencke, D. L., and Goodson, K. E., IEEE Electron Device Lett. 29 (10), 1112–1114 (2008).Google Scholar
4. Rahman, A., Guo, J., Datta, S., and Lundstrom, M. S., IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices 50 (9), 1853–1864 (2003).Google Scholar
5. FETToy Detailed Description, available at http://nanohub.org/content/article/70 as of 3/28/2012 (nanoHUB.org, 2009).1 Google Scholar
6. Natori, K., J. Appl. Phys. 76 (8), 4879–4890 (1994).Google Scholar
7. Reifenberg, J., Pop, E., Gibby, A., Wong, S., and Goodson, K., in Proc. 10th Intersociety Conference on Thermal and Thermomechanical Phenomena in Electronics Systems, San Diego, CA, 30 May - 2 June 2006 (IEEE Cat. No. 06CH37733C).Google Scholar
8. Kim, D.-H., Merget, F., Forst, M., and Kurz, H., J. Appl. Phys. 101 (6), 064512 (2007).Google Scholar
9. Warren, R., Reifenberg, J. and Goodson, K., in Proc. 11th Intersociety Conference on Thermal and Thermomechanical Phenomena in Electronic Systems (ITHERM ‘08), 1018–1045 (2008).Google Scholar