Memory Properties of Nickel Silicide Nanocrystal Layer for Possible Application to Nonvolatile Memory Devices

초록

The memory properties of nickel silicide ( NiSi) nanocrystal (NC) layers, which were directly grown in silicon dioxide by thermal annealing of a simple sandwich structure composed of an ultrathin Ni film sandwiched between two silicon-rich oxide (SiOx) layers, have been investigated for possible nonvolatile memory (NVM) applications. Capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements on MOS capacitors with a floating gate based on a NiSi NC layer of average diameter of 2.9 nm and areal density of 1.3 x 10(12) cm(-2) are shown to have a memory window of similar to 10 V, a retention time > 10(8) s, and an endurance > 10(6) program/erase cycles. These C-V characteristics demonstrate that the NiSi NC layer has high potential for NVM applications.

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