Demonstration of 10 nm Ferroelectric AlScN-Based Capacitors for Enabling Selector-Free Memory Array.
Li Chen, Chen Liu, Hock Koon Lee, Binni Varghese, Ronald Wing Fai Ip, Minghua Li, Zhan Jiang Quek, Yan Hong, Weijie Wang, Wendong Song, Huamao Lin, Yao Zhu
Author Information
Li Chen: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Chen Liu: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Hock Koon Lee: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Binni Varghese: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Ronald Wing Fai Ip: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Minghua Li: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Zhan Jiang Quek: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Yan Hong: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Weijie Wang: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Wendong Song: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Huamao Lin: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
Yao Zhu: Institute of Microelectronics, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore 138634, Singapore.
In this work, 10 nm scandium-doped aluminum nitride (AlScN) capacitors are demonstrated for the construction of the selector-free memory array application. The 10 nm AlScN film deposited on an 8-inch silicon wafer with sputtering technology exhibits a large remnant polarization exceeding 100 µC/cm and a tight distribution of the coercive field, which is characterized by the positive-up-negative-down (PUND) method. As a result, the devices with lateral dimension of only 1.5 μm show a large memory window of over 250% and a low power consumption of ~40 pJ while maintaining a low disturbance rate of <2%. Additionally, the devices demonstrate stable multistate memory characteristics with a dedicated operation scheme. The back-end-of-line (BEOL)-compatible fabrication process, along with all these device performances, shows the potential of AlScN-based capacitors for the implementation of the high-density selector-free memory array.
