Optimization of the Forming Process and Regulation of the Conductive Filament for HfO2 -based RRAM devices with Nb2O5 TEL insertion layers

Advancements in science and technology have enabled increasingly widespread applications of resistive random access memory (RRAM) in non-volatile memory. In this study, based on the oxygen vacancy conduction mechanism, an electro-thermal coupling model of Pt/Nb ₂ O ₅ /HfO ₂ /HfO _x /Ti has been established. By solving the partial differential equations of the coefficients, the processes of RRAM forming, set and reset were simulated, and the distributions of temperature, electric field, and oxygen vacancy concentration in the dielectric layers were obtained. Through comparison with Pt/HfO ₂ /HfO _x /Ti, the introduction of the Nb ₂ O ₅ layer as a thermal enhancement layer (TEL) result in significant improvement of the switching performance, with the switching voltage, power consumption being reduced and device stability being increased. Furthermore, by modulating the thickness of Nb ₂ O ₅ insertion layer, the rupture position of conductive filament (CF) during reset process can be precisely controlled, which provide a guideline for the design and optimization of HfO ₂ -based RRAM.