Theoretical study of SET operation in carbon nanotube memory cell

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We present results of self-consistent electronic structure calculations for an electromechanical memory cell consisting of a carbon nanotube (CNT) fabric between titanium leads to elucidate the mechanism whereby the applied bias works to close the current gaps in the CNT fabric. We demonstrate that the asymmetry in the bias conditions required to achieve the “SET” operation of the cell (changing it from a high resistivity to low resistivity) results from the nature of a voltage drop in a compensated semiconducting material and depends sensitively on the background charge as well as on the position of the layer where the conducting gaps occur. The calculations provide insight into the behavior of the material and suggest possible fabrication strategies to modify the functionality.