Impact of the W etching process on the resistive switching properties of TiN/Ti/HfO2/W memristors

• Published in: Solid-state electronics Vol. 207; p. 108718
• Main Authors: Saludes-Tapia, M., Campabadal, F., Miranda, E., González, M.B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01-09-2023
• Subjects: Breakdown voltage; Dry etching; HfO2; Memristor; Resistive switching; W electrode; Wet etching; Breakdown voltage; Wet etching; HfO2; Dry etching; W electrode; Resistive switching; Memristor
• ISSN: 0038-1101; 1879-2405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.sse.2023.108718

•The impact of the etching process on the resistive switching phenomenon is analyzed.•Dry etch  (anisotropic) and wet etch (isotropic) processes are evaluated.•Physical inspections reveal damaged regions in electrically stressed devices.•Gradual/abrupt reset transitions are observed for wet/dry etched devices.•The experimental I-V curves are modeled using the Dynamic Memdiode Model.
In this work, we investigate the effects related to the etching process of the W bottom electrode (BE) on the breakdown voltages and the resistive switching (RS) characteristics of TiN/Ti/HfO2/W memristors. Two different W-BE etching processes are compared: anisotropic dry etching and isotropic wet etching. In order to complete the analysis, scanning electron microscope inspections are used to investigate the profile of the patterned BE. Finally, the hysteretic current–voltage (I-V) characteristics are simulated using the Dynamic Memdiode Model (DMM).