# US 10,483,462 B1 · Formation of structurally robust nanoscale Ag-based conductive structure

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- Number: US 10,483,462 B1
- Document ID: US10483462B1
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B1
- Application number: 15/185,256
- Filed: 2016-06-17
- Granted: 2019-11-19
- Earliest claimed: 2015-06-17
- Assignees: Crossbar, Inc.
- Applicants: Crossbar, Inc.
- Inventors: Sung Hyun Jo; Xianliang Liu; Fnu Atiquzzaman
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10483462B1

## CPC

- H10N 70/841: {Electrodes}
- H10N 70/011: {Manufacture or treatment of multistable switching devices}
- H10N 70/245: {the species being metal cations, e.g. programmable metallization cells}
- H10N 70/826: {adapted for essentially vertical current flow, e.g. sandwich or pillar type devices}
- H10N 70/8416: {adapted for supplying ionic species}
- H10N 70/881: {Switching materials}
- H10N 70/883: {Oxides or nitrides}
- H10N 70/884: {based on at least one element of group IIIA, IVA or VA, e.g. elemental or compound semiconductors (compounds of sulfur, selenium or tellurium, e.g. chalcogenides H10N70/882; oxides or nitrides H10N70/883)}
- G11C 11/5614: {using conductive bridging RAM [CBRAM] or programming metallization cells [PMC]}
- G11C 13/0007: {comprising metal oxide memory material, e.g. perovskites}
- G11C 2213/52: Structure characterized by the electrode material, shape, etc.
- H10N: ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G11C: STATIC STORES (semiconductor memory devices H10B)

## Abstract

Providing for improved manufacturing of silver-based electrodes to facilitate formation of a robust metallic filament for a resistive switching device is disclosed herein. By way of example, a silver electrode can be embedded with a non-silver material to reduce surface energy of silver atoms of a silver-based conductive filament, increasing structural strength of the conductive filament within a resistive switching medium. In other embodiments, an electrode formed of a base material can include silver material to provide mobile particles for an adjacent resistive switching material. The silver material can drift or diffuse into the resistive switching material to form a structurally robust conductive filament therein.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A selector device, comprising:
a first metal containing layer wherein the first metal containing layer is configured to provide a first plurality of metal particles;
a second metal containing layer wherein the second metal containing layer is configured to provide a second plurality of metal particles; and
a selector material layer disposed between and in contact to the first metal containing layer and the second metal containing layer, wherein the selector material layer comprises a plurality of defect regions configured to receive the first plurality of metal particles and form a first conductive filament through the selector material layer in response to a first polarity stimulus applied to the selector device, and to receive the second plurality of metal particles and form a second conductive filament through the selector material layer in response to a second polarity stimulus applied to the selector device, wherein the first metal containing layer includes an alloy of silver.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The selector device of claim 1, wherein the alloy of silver comprises about 90% to about 99.9% silver by atomic weight.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The selector device of claim 2, wherein the alloy of silver also comprises a material selected from a group consisting of: Si, Ge, Ga, As, Ti, Al, Cu, Pt, Pd, W, TiN, WN, AlN, a non-stoichiometric metal oxide (MOx), AlOx, TiOx, and CuOx.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The selector device of claim 1, wherein the alloy of silver comprises about 1% to about 50% silver by atomic weight.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The selector device of claim 4, wherein the alloy of silver also comprises a material selected from a group consisting of: Si, Ge, Ga, As, Ti, Al, Cu, Pt, Pd, W, TiN, WN, AlN, a non-stoichiometric metal oxide (MOx), AlOx, TiOx, and CuOx.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The selector device of claim 1 wherein the second metal containing layer includes a second alloy of silver.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The selector device of claim 1 wherein the selector material layer comprises a non-stoichiometric oxide.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The selector device of claim 7 wherein the non-stoichiometric oxide comprises oxygen and a material selected from a group consisting of: silicon, titanium aluminum, hafnium, tungsten, titanium, tantalum, copper, and niobium.

### Claim 9 (depends on 6)

The selector device of claim 6, wherein the second alloy of silver comprises about 90% to about 99.9% Ag by atomic weight.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The selector device of claim 9, wherein the second alloy of silver comprises about 0.1% to about 10% of a base material.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The selector device of claim 10, wherein the base material is selected from a group consisting of: Si, Ge, Ga, As, Ti, Al, Cu, Pt, Pd, W, TiN, WN, AlN, a non-stoichiometric metal oxide (MOx), AlOx, TiOx, and CuOx.

### Claim 12 (depends on 6)

The selector device of claim 6, wherein the second alloy of silver comprises about 1% to about 50% Ag by atomic weight.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The selector device of claim 12, wherein the second alloy of silver comprises about 50% to about 99% of a second material by atomic weight.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The selector device of claim 13, wherein the second material is selected from a group consisting of: Si, Ge, Ga, As, Ti, Al, Cu, Pt, Pd, W, TiN, WN, AlN, a non-stoichiometric metal oxide (MOx), AlOx, TiOx, and CuOx.

### Claim 15 (depends on 13)

The selector device of claim 13, wherein the second material is nitrogen and the second alloy of silver is about 1% to about 50% Ag by atomic weight and about 99% to about 50% N by atomic weight.

### Claim 16 (depends on 13)

The selector device of claim 13, wherein the selector material layer comprises an electrically resistive material selected from a group consisting of: Si, amorphous Si, SiGe, amorphous SiGe, a non-stoichiometric oxide, a non-stoichiometric nitride, a metal oxide and a metal nitride.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The selector device of claim 16, wherein the electrically resistive material is the non-stoichiometric oxide comprising oxygen and a material selected from a group consisting of: silicon, titanium aluminum, hafnium, tungsten, titanium, tantalum, copper, and niobium.

### Claim 18 (depends on 11)

The selector device of claim 11, wherein the base material is nitrogen.

### Claim 19 (depends on 11)

The selector device of claim 11, wherein the selector material comprises an electrically resistive material selected from a group consisting of: Si, amorphous Si, SiGe, amorphous SiGe, a non-stoichiometric oxide, a non-stoichiometric nitride, a metal oxide and a metal nitride.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The selector device of claim 19, wherein the electrically resistive material is the non-stoichiometric oxide comprising oxygen and a material selected from a group consisting of: silicon, titanium aluminum, hafnium, tungsten, titanium, tantalum, copper, and niobium.