Title :
Experimental Analysis of Partial-SET State Stability in Phase-Change Memories
Author :
Braga, Stefania ; Cabrini, Alessandro ; Torelli, Guido
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electron., Univ. of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
Abstract :
A key issue in nonvolatile storage is long-term data retention. This aspect is even more important in innovative storage technologies such as phase-change memory (PCM), which promises better performance and easier scalability with respect to traditional Flash memory and potential for multilevel storage. In this respect, we experimentally investigated the stability of intermediate states obtained by means of partial-SET programming. To this end, we analyzed the effects of the width and the amplitude of the programming pulses on the degradation of intermediate programmed resistance levels over time in PCM cells. Our study was carried out by considering the average behavior of an array of PCM cells, showing that data-retention properties degrade as the programming thermal stress increases.
Keywords :
flash memories; phase change memories; stability; data retention properties; flash memory; intermediate programmed resistance; multilevel storage; nonvolatile storage; partial SET programming; partial SET state stability; phase change memories; thermal stress; Crystallization; Phase change materials; Phase change memory; Programming; Resistance; Stability analysis; Voltage control; Data retention; drift; mutilevel storage; partial-SET programming; phase change memories;
Journal_Title :
Electron Devices, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TED.2010.2090157