Controllable SET process in O-Ti-Sb-Te based phase change memory for synaptic application

The nonlinear resistance change and small bit resolution of phase change memory (PCM) under identical operation pulses will limit its performance as a synaptic device. The octahedral Ti-Te units in Ti-Sb-Te, regarded as nucleation seeds, are degenerated when Ti is bonded with O, causing a slower crystallization and a controllable SET process in PCM cells. A linear resistance change under identical pulses, a resolution of ∼8 bits, and an ON/OFF ratio of ∼102 has been achieved in O-Ti-Sb-Te based PCM, showing its potential application as a synaptic device to improve recognition performance of the neural network.