Realizing forming-free characteristic by doping Ag into HfO2-based RRAM

Abstract In this work, Ag-doped HfO 2 -based resistive random access memory (RRAM) with high on-off ratio, low-power consumption and forming-free properties was investigated. We propose the fabrication flow of the RRAM with via-hole structure. After doping Ag into HfO 2 as the switching layer, the devices could execute resistive switching without a high-voltage forming process. The conduction mechanism was subsequently validated by a current fitting analysis. Electric field simulation was also utilized to observe the electric field distribution and finally a physical model was proposed to provide an explanation for the formation and dissolution of the filament.