All oxide semiconductor-based bidirectional vertical p-n-p selectors for 3D stackable crossbar-array electronics.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrical Engineering
• Solid-State Physics

Background:

• Three-dimensional (3D) stackable memory devices with nano-scaled crossbar arrays are crucial for high-density non-volatile memory.
• Sneak path currents in crossbar arrays present a significant challenge, hindering device performance and scalability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate novel bidirectional selectors for 3D crossbar memory arrays.
• To address the critical bottleneck of sneak path currents in high-density memory devices.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of all-oxide p-/n-type semiconductor-based p-n-p open-based bipolar junction transistors.
• Characterization of bidirectional nonlinear electrical characteristics of the oxide p-n-p junctions.
• Integration and testing of selectors with bipolar resistive switching memory elements.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated excellent selectivity using oxide p-n-p bipolar junction transistors as selectors.
• Achieved highly enhanced bidirectional nonlinear characteristics by manipulating oxide semiconductor properties.
• Proposed a Zener tunneling mechanism to explain the selector's unique behavior.

Conclusions:

• Oxide p-n-p selectors effectively mitigate sneak path issues in 3D crossbar memory arrays.
• The developed selectors show profound functionality when integrated with resistive switching memory elements.
• This breakthrough facilitates the realization of high-density, high-performance non-volatile memory electronics.