As mass-produced silicon transistors have reached the nano-scale, their behavior and performances are increasingly affected, and often deteriorated, by quantum mechanical effects such as tunneling through single dopants, scattering via interface defects, and discrete trap charge states. However, progress in silicon technology has shown that these phenomena can be harnessed and exploited for a new class of quantumbased electronics. Among others, multi-layer-gated silicon metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) technology can be used to control single charge or spin confined in electrostatically-defined quantum dots (QD). These QD-based devices are an excellent platform for quantum computing applications and, recently, it has been demonstrated that they can also be used as single-electron pumps, which are accurate sources of quantized current for metrological purposes. Here, we discuss in detail the fabrication protocol for silicon MOS QDs which is relevant to both quantum computing and quantum metrology applications. Moreover, we describe characterization methods to test the integrity of the devices after fabrication. Finally, we give a brief description of the measurement set-up used for charge pumping experiments and show representative results of electric current quantization.

This Letter studies the effect of the nitrogen capture ability of quantum dots on resistive switching characteristics of AlN-based resistive random access memory. We prepared a single layer AlN device and four types of AlN/PbS quantum dot stacked structure devices with different concentrations. Compared with the single layer AlN device, the AlN/PbS quantum dot stacked structure devices exhibit excellent resistive switching characteristics, such as forming-free, low power consumption, and excellent stability. We propose that the resistive switching process is determined by the migration of nitrogen ions and the lead sulfide (PbS) quantum dot layer as a natural nitrogen ion reservoir, which can improve the resistive switching characteristics. Moreover, the size of the natural nitrogen ion reservoir can be modulated by changing the concentration of quantum dots.

This Letter investigates the effect of non-inert electrode thickness on the performance of complementary resistive switching (CRS). Five devices with different Ta electrode thicknesses (0, 2, 5, 10, and 20-nm) are fabricated. For devices with 2, 5, and 10-nm electrode thicknesses, CRS behavior can be obtained through an evolution process, while devices with 0 and 20-nm Ta electrode thicknesses always maintain stable bipolar resistive switching behavior. By analyzing the evolution process and current conduction mechanisms, the influence of non-inert electrode thickness on the performance of CRS is studied, and different oxidation degrees of a non-inert electrode are used to explain the different resistive switching performance in these devices. Aside from that, the model is verified by applying an asymmetric voltage sweeping method. This paper further clarifies the physical mechanism of CRS behavior in non-inert electrode resistive random access memory and provides a way to optimize the performance of CRS behavior.

At present, the physical mechanism of complementary resistive switching (CRS) devices remains controversial. In this Letter, stable CRS can be achieved in Pt/AlOxNy/Ta resistive random access memory (RRAM). A dynamic evolution from bipolar resistive switching to CRS can be evidently observed in non-inert electrodes RRAM. The causes of CRS behavior are analyzed in detail, and these phenomena are attributed to the different oxidation degrees of the top electrode and propose that the transition state can be used as a signal for the emergence of CRS behavior. Moreover, the model is partially supported by measured switching behavior of the Pt/AlOxNy/TaOx device. This research contributes to the understanding of the CRS behavior physical mechanism in non-inert electrodes RRAM devices.

This Letter studies the effect of crystallinity on the performance of AlN-based resistive random access memory using rapid thermal annealing. We compared I–V characters of devices fabricated at different annealing temperatures. By increasing the crystallinity of an AlN film, switching voltages and the memory window increase. Meanwhile, the reliability of the device improves. It is found that the electron conduction mechanism fits in with the space-charge-limited conduction model. Based on the above phenomena, we purpose that the crystallization leads to a decrease in vacancies within the AlN film, while it enhances local effects of grain boundaries on the electron transport. Both of these conclusions can result in an increase in switching voltages and the memory window. This paper can provide a platform for further studies on improving the performance of AlN-based devices.