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Memristive device with highly continuous conduction modulation and its underlying physical mechanism for electronic synapse application

具有高度连续传导调制的记忆器件及其在电子突触应用中的基本物理机制

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Abstract

Emerging memristors can be used as artificial synapses for emulating memory and computational functions. In this work, inspired by the memristive properties of tantalum dioxide, we designed a memristor with a structure of TiN/Ta2O5−x/HfxZr1−xO2 (x=0.5)/Pt (TTHZOP). The device conductance can be continuously tuned by adjusting the voltage pulse parameters (i.e., amplitude, width, and number) of voltage sweeps. Furthermore, for both of negative and positive parts, the current-voltage curves of the sweep cycle appear to better adjust the gradual distribution in successive twenty cycles. According to the fine fitting results of twenty positive and negative current-voltage (I–V) curves, the probability of an electron jumping over an energy barrier and the width of the energy barrier were analyzed in detail. It is found that the electron tunneling mechanism at the interface is responsible for gradual conduction change under successive external electrical stimulation consisting of both bulk and interface effects. The proposed TTHZOP memristor is a promising candidate in potential applications that mimic artificial biosynaptic adaptation and analog brain computation.

摘要

新兴的忆阻器可以用作模拟记忆和计算功能的人工突触. 在这项工作中, 受钽氧化物记忆特性的启发, 我们设计了一种结构为TiN/Ta2O5−x/HfxZr1−xO2 (x=0.5)/Pt (TTHZOP)的忆阻器. 通过调整电压扫描的电压脉冲参数(即振幅、 脉宽和数量), 可以连续调节器件的电导. 此外, 对于正负两部分, 扫描周期的电流-电压(I-V)曲线在连续20个周期内似乎更好地调整了渐进分布. 根据20条正、 负IV曲线的精细拟合结果, 详细分析了电子跃迁势垒的概率和势垒宽度. 结果表明, 在连续的体效应和界面效应共同作用下, 界面处的电子隧穿机制导致导电性逐渐变化. 本文所提出的TTHZOP忆阻器在模拟人工生物突触适应和模拟脑计算方面具有潜在的应用价值.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (61674050 and 61874158), the Outstanding Youth Funding of Hebei University (A2018201231), the Support Program for the Top Young Talents of Hebei Province (70280011807), the Hundred Persons Plan of Hebei Province (E2018050004 and E2018050003) and the Supporting Plan for 100 Excellent Innovative Talents in Colleges and Universities of Hebei Province (SLRC2019018).

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  1. These authors contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Brain-Like Neuromorphic Devices and Systems of Hebei Province, College of Electron and Information Engineering, Hebei University, Baoding, 071002, China

    Jing Zhang  (张晶), Tao Yang  (杨涛), Jingjuan Wang  (王静娟), Jianhui Zhao  (赵建辉) & Xiaobing Yan  (闫小兵)

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Jing Zhang  (张晶) & Tao Yang  (杨涛)

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  1. Jing Zhang  (张晶)
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  3. Jingjuan Wang  (王静娟)
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  4. Jianhui Zhao  (赵建辉)
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Contributions

Author contributions Zhang J developed the concept and conceived the experiments; Yang T drafted the manuscript; Wang J added the experimental data and revised the manuscript; Yan X drafted and revised the manuscript. All authors discussed and revised the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xiaobing Yan  (闫小兵).

Additional information

Jing Zhang received her BSc degree from the School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Hebei University in 2018. She is currently a ME student in the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. Her research interest is focused on the field of memristors

Tao Yang received his BSc degree from the School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Hebei University in 2017. He is currently a ME student in the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. His research interests are focused on the fields of memristors and 3D-NAND flash memory

Jingjuan Wang received her BSc degree in communication engineering from the Department of Electronic Information Engineering, Tangshan University, China in 2016. She is currently a DE student at Hebei University Her current research interest is focused on the field of memristors

Xiaobing Yan is currently a professor at the School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Hebei University He received his PhD degree from Nanjing University in 2011. From 2014 to 2016, he held the Research Fellow position at the National University of Singapore. His current research interest is in the field of memristors.

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Memristive device with highly continuous conduction modulation and its underlying physical mechanism for electronic synapse application

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Zhang, J., Yang, T., Wang, J. et al. Memristive device with highly continuous conduction modulation and its underlying physical mechanism for electronic synapse application. Sci. China Mater. 64, 179–188 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-020-1367-x

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