Abstract
Phase-change electrical probe memory has recently attained considerable attention owing to its profound potential for next-generation mass and archival storage devices. To encourage more talented researchers to enter this field and thereby advance this technology, this paper first introduces approaches to induce the phase transformation of chalcogenide alloy by probe tip, considered as the root of phase-change electrical probe memory. Subsequently the design rule of an optimized architecture of phase-change electrical probe memory is proposed based on a previously developed electrothermal and phase kinetic model, followed by a summary of the state-of-the-art phase-change electrical probe memory and an outlook for its future prospects.
Highlights
“Memory” is familiar to everyone owing to its data storage function in the long history of human life, evolving from its earliest forms such as cave wall, bone, and clay tablets, through its transitional forms including paper, punch card, and floppy disk, towards its present forms represented by hard disk, optical disc, and a portable Universal serial bus (USB) stick
Conventional digital data memories designed for mass/archival storage such as hard disks, tape, and optical discs cannot satisfy the aforementioned storage requirements because of their respective physical limits [1,2,3], leading to the debut of some emerging memories including, resistive random access memory (RRAM) [4], DNA memory [5], holographic memory [6], and probe memory [7,8,9,10,11]
Among the reported forms of probe memory, phase-change electrical probe memory has gained much more attention than its compatriots such as thermomechanical probe memory and magnetic probe memory owing to the advantageous traits of its storage medium: phase-change materials (PCMs)
Summary
“Memory” is familiar to everyone owing to its data storage function in the long history of human life, evolving from its earliest forms such as cave wall, bone, and clay tablets, through its transitional forms including paper, punch card, and floppy disk, towards its present forms represented by hard disk, optical disc, and a portable Universal serial bus (USB) stick. In contrast to the first two infant technologies, probe memory that uses a nanoscale probe to change either the topography or physical properties of a storage medium has been subjected to intensive research during the last two decades owing to its technological maturity and fairly simple manufacturing process. The storage functions of phase-change electrical probe memory mainly rely on Nanomaterials 2018, 8, 772; doi:10.3390/nano8100772 www.mdpi.com/journal/nanomaterials. Soinuftbarsopedqhuuacseeend-tc,lhybaatnshegedeaeorlcnehcwittreihccitaculhrpetrhoaebnedcomdneecemsipgotnroyrfuisaleppsrhooapfsoetsh-ceehdap. nhSgauesbese-elceqhcuatnreingcteallyeplterhcoetbraeicracmhl eiptmercootbrueyremisaenpmdroodpreyossiaegrdne. erSuluulbecsideoqaftuetehdne,tlpfyohltalhosewe-acerhdcahnbigtyeectaeulerbcertiraeincfadlindpterroosibdgeuncmtriueomlnesooroyff astreheveeeprluahlcaisdaela-rtceehadad,nyfgoelelsoetwlaebceltdirsihbcaeyldapbdroreibveeifciemntesrmotadocukrycstiaobrnye woeflousrcelivddewartaiedldea,lrrefeosaeldlaoyrwcehesdtgarbobluiysphsaedabsdrweievefilclieansstrttaohcdekuisrcbrtieyosnwpeoocrtflidvsweevwidereriatrele/sraeelaarredcaohdugytrpoeeusrptfaosbralmissawhneecdlelsad.seTtvhhieeceiwr reseatsakpcnkeecsstsivbeyes wowfroitrthelde/wrpeiahddaeoserue-tcshpeaaerncfgohergmeraloenuccptersisc.aaTsl hwperewollbeaeaskmtnheeesmisreorsreyospftethhcatetivpneheawesdrei-tcteoh/raebnaegdeaodeuldtercpetersirscfeaodlrmpirnaonbcceoenmsj.ueTnmhceotirowynetahwkanittenhsesieetdss ftouoftbutehreeadppdrhoraesspese-eccdthsiananrgceoefninejulaenlclcyttriidocinaslcwupisrtsohebdiet.s mfuetmuroerpyrothspatecntseeadretfionbalelyadidsrceusssseedd.in conjunction with its future prospects are discussed
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