A Thesis Entitled Investigation of Semitransparent Cu2o/Zno Based
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A Thesis entitled Investigation of Semitransparent Cu2O/ZnO Based Heterostructure Diodes for Memory and Related Applications by Ammaarah Haleemah El-Amin Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering _________________________________________ Dr. Rashmi Jha, Committee Chair _________________________________________ Dr. David Strickler, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Srinivasa Vemuru, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Richard Molyet, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Patricia R. Komuniecki, Dean College of Graduate Studies The University of Toledo May 2014 Copyright 2014, Ammaarah Haleemah El-Amin This document is copyrighted material. Under copyright law, no parts of this document may be reproduced without the expressed permission of the author. An Abstract of Investigation of Semitransparent Cu2O/ZnO Based Heterostructure Diodes for Memory and Related Applications by Ammaarah Haleemah El-Amin Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering The University of Toledo May 2014 The purpose of this study is twofold: (1) to investigate the diode properties of semitransparent Cu2O/ZnO based heterostructures and to (2) demonstrate the memory applications of these properties. This structure is included in a Ru/Zn/ZnO/Cu2O/Cu stack and characterized as a pn heterojunction diode for crossbar array (CBA) implementation. CBA architecture is the most favorable architecture for many novel memory devices. The basic diode parameters are extracted and discussed in relation to their functional relevance. For example if the diode were used in a diode tile for use in Boolean logic mosaics (composites of device tiles) or other diode applications (using CBA architecture). The diode is also characterized for use in conjunction with RRAM (two terminal digital memristive) devices. In that capacity it is used to prevent crosstalk (sneak current between devices leading to false readings). Several diode parameters are studied, in addition the reverse saturation current is modulated by varying the thickness of the Cu2O layer. The Cu2O/ZnO heterojunction is also used to form an FTO/ZnO/Cu2O/Cu memdiode. This is a novel memelement, displaying a combination of rectification and hysteretic behavior in the IV. FTO and ZnO are both transparent, while Cu2O is partially iii so. The Cu is less important to memdiode operation and could theoretically be replaced with a transparent material. All of these materials are deposited at temperatures less than 100 °C which is a safe range for fabrication on plastic substrates. The basic parameters for this memdiode are extracted and a comprehensive device physics model is presented to explain the experimental results. Dielectric relaxation and spontaneous polarization effects are seen in ZnO/Cu2O, while the FTO is expected to contribute to the defect movement through the device. This Cu2O/ZnO heterojunction is very favorable for memory applications due to its unique analog behavior in the FTO/ZnO/Cu2O/Cu stack. Its characterization as a RRAM access device also provides a helpful model for the experimental methods required for this type of characterization. iv For my parents, whose belief in me has never wavered… Acknowledgements Over the past two and a-half years I have received support and encouragement from a great number of individuals. In particular, I am profoundly indebted to my research advisor Dr. Rashmi Jha, who was very generous with her time and knowledge. Her guidance has made this a thoughtful and rewarding journey. I would like to thank my thesis committee members Dr. David Strickler, Dr. Richard Molyet and Dr. Srinivasa Vemuru for their time and input. I am grateful to the College of Engineering for not only providing some financial support but also creating a warm and welcoming environment. I would be remiss to not thank my all of group mates both current and former. Without their friendship this would have been a very long and lonely couple of years, their help and support - whether academic or personal- has been invaluable. I would like to specifically thank Saptarshi Mandal and Dr. Branden Long. Finally but not least, thanks goes to my friends and family, who have been an important and indispensable source of spiritual support. Special thanks goes to my brother for innumerable rides to and from the lab, no matter the unpredictable and unreasonable hours. It goes without saying that I’m grateful to God for all the people and opportunities that I have been blessed to have in my life. v Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgements ..............................................................................................................v Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... vi List of Tables ................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures ......................................................................................................................x 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1 2. Background and Literature Review ........................................................................ 7 2.1 Novel memory schemes and devices ........................................................ 7 2.1.1 Memcomputation ................................................................................ 9 2.1.2 Memristive devices ........................................................................... 11 2.1.2.1 RRAM switching types and mechanisms................................... 12 2.1.2.2 Analog memristive device types and mechanisms ..................... 15 2.1.3 Logic Implementations ...................................................................... 17 2.2 Architecture for the implementation of memristive devices ................... 19 2.2.1 Crossbar Array (CBA) Architecture ................................................. 20 2.2.1.1 Role of Access device ................................................................ 22 2.3 Material considerations ........................................................................... 25 vi 2.3.1 Zinc Oxide ......................................................................................... 26 2.3.2 Cuprous Oxide................................................................................... 26 2.4 Overview of diode operation ................................................................... 27 2.5 Memdiode (Memory-diode) .................................................................... 32 3. Reconfigurable Memdiode Characteristics in Cu/Cu2O/ZnO/FTO Heterostructures ............................................................................................................. 35 3.1 Abstract of Chapter ................................................................................. 35 3.2 Fabrication and characterization setup .................................................... 35 3.3 Diode Response ....................................................................................... 36 3.4 Memdiode Characteristics ....................................................................... 40 3.5 Device Model .......................................................................................... 43 4. Characterization and Modulation of Relevant Cu2O/ZnO Diode Parameters for CBA Implementation ...................................................................................................... 56 4.1 Abstract of Chapter ................................................................................. 56 4.2 Introduction ............................................................................................. 56 4.3 Fabrication and characterization setup .................................................... 61 4.4 Data and Analysis.................................................................................... 62 5. Conclusions and Future Work ............................................................................... 77 References ........................................................................................................................ 79 vii A. Supplementary Information for Chapter(s) 3 and 4 ........................................... 89 A.1 Fabrication process flows........................................................................... 89 B. FTO and ZnO thin film characterization ............................................................. 96 B.1 Summary of samples, data obtained etc. .................................................... 97 B.2 Test Setup and Measurement Detail......................................................... 979 B.1 Planar (Horizontal) Electrical Characteristics. ......................................... 102 B.1 Summary of samples, data obtained etc. .................................................. 103 viii List of Tables Table 3-1 Ideality factors for regions in Figure 3.3 ......................................................... 38 Table 3-2: Parameters extracted from the fitting in figure 3-9 using equation 3.3. .......