Extremely High Contrast Multi-Level Resistance States of In3SbTe2 Device for High Density Non-Volatile Memory Applications

Current-controlled promotion of crystallization offers stable multi-level resistances after threshold switching process which are being exploited for multi-bit phase change memory applications. In this paper, ultra-high contrast multi-level resistance characteristics of In3SbTe2 device is demonstrated by the means of systematically varying the current-controlled crystallization process for a wide range of currents starting from few mu A to 40 mu A and the corresponding resistance levels ranging from 10 M Omega to 10 k Omega, respectively. Also, the conduction process in the amorphous phase and the stability of multiple resistance levels have been analyzed using trap-limited sub-threshold electrical transport models, and the effective crystalline thicknesses of various resistance states were estimated. Furthermore, a systematic increment of programming current unfolds more than eight discrete stable resistive states with a remarkably larger programming margin (similar to 570 times) between amorphous and crystalline (set) state revealing the extraordinary multi-bit programming capabilities of In3SbTe2 device for high-density data storage applications.