Phase Change Memory: Device scaling and challenges for material engineering in the GeSbTe compound system

The Phase Change Memory (PCM) relies on the peculiar properties of a chalcogenide material, able to be reversibly switched between two stable states, namely an amorphous phase, characterized by high electrical resistivity, and a poly-crystalline one, featuring low resistivity. The former is associated to the RESET state of the memory and the latter represents the SET state, thus enabling the storage of digital data. On one hand PCM device scaling is an important step in order to enable denser and low power applications, thanks to the shrink of dimensions and to the reduction of the operating power. On the other hand material engineering may represent a breakthrough in terms of reliability and performance enhancement, owing to the exploitation of the physical and chemical features of different phase change compounds. A smart combination of scaling and material engineering may result into wider application spectrum for PCM. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.