Resistive Switching in Mott materials

Marie-Paule Besland, Pierre-Yves Jouan, Cédric Mannequin [2022-->] Collaboration PMN team : Laurent Cario, Etienne Janod, Benoit Corraze, Post-doctoral researchers PMN : Julien Tranchant, Engineer : Thomas le Pape [2023-2025],PhD student : Tatiana Mbouja Signé [2022-2025]

PhD: Michael Rodriguez Fano (2022), Madec Querré (2016)

Since the IMN’s discovery highlighting the existence of a resistive switching induced by electric pulse in a wide range of materials, i.e. the Mott insulators, we investigate thin layers of Mott materials [Patents 2007, 2012).
The switching properties have been retrieve in crystallized thin layers obtained by Magnetron Sputtering (MS) of two materials GaV₄S₈ et V₂O₃:Cr (thickness range: 25-500 nm) [Patent 2009]. Following our works, these materials are considered as an emergent technology for memory [Adv. Func. Mat., 2015] and neuromorphic applications [Adv. Func. Mat., 2017] : the Mott-RAM technology.

 To know more                                            Review on IMN works on Mott materials      
                                    Mott materials for neuromorphism                        Properties of V₂0₃:Cr thin layers

Keywords               Thin layers, magnetron sputtering, Buffer annealing
Collaborations       PNF2 Platform Toulouse, CIRIMAT

Resistive memories or RRAMs are devices based on materials exhibiting two resistance states varies between two high and low states allowing the logic 0 and 1 of the memory to be coded. Our work has evidenced two levels of resistance (Rbas and Rhaut) in Mott materials deposited in a thin layer, these states are non-volatile, i.e. stable, and allow to consider information storage applications.
Thus, Mott-RAM memory technology is based on resistive switching between two stable states involving an electronic mechanism confined at the nanoscale. Such mechanism stands a huge advantage over competing technologies (PCRAM or OxRAM).
The generation of a resistive transition induced by electric field has been confirmed in (V_1-xCr_x)₂O₃ thin-film, with an oxygen stoichiometry accurately controlled (M. Querré PhD [2016], RWTH collaboration). In the framework of maturation projects supported by SATT Grand Ouest, the performances have been validated on advanced prototypes after integration into an industrial process (IMN-PMN / CEA-Leti collaboration). A comparison of their performances with those of other memory technologies are under progress in the framework of the European Project Nano2022 (collaboration IMN-PMN and STMicroelectronics)