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AssigneesAxon Technologies Corporation, Arizona Board of Regents
InventorsMichael N. Kozicki, William C. West
Estimating the term…
A programmable metallization cell ("PMC") comprises a fast ion conductor such as a chalcogenide-metal ion and a plurality of electrodes (e.g., an anode and a cathode) disposed at the surface of the fast ion conductor and spaced a set distance apart from each other. Preferably, the fast ion conductor comprises a chalcogenide with Group IB or Group IIB metals, the anode comprises silver, and the cathode comprises aluminum or other conductor. When a voltage is applied to the anode and the cathode, a non-volatile metal dendrite grows from the cathode along the surface of the fast ion conductor towards the anode. The growth rate of the dendrite is a function of the applied voltage and time. The growth of the dendrite may be stopped by removing the voltage and the dendrite may be retracted by reversing the voltage polarity at the anode and cathode. Changes in the length of the dendrite affect the resistance and capacitance of the PMC. The PMC may be incorporated into a variety of technologies such as memory devices, programmable resistor/capacitor devices, optical devices, sensors, and the like. Electrodes additional to the cathode and anode can be provided to serve as outputs or additional outputs of the devices in sensing electrical characteristics which are dependent upon the extent of the dendrite.
A programmable metallization cell comprising a body formed of a fast ion conductor material having metallic ions disposed therein, a plurality of conducting electrodes deposited on said body of material, said electrodes adapted to have a first voltage applied between two of said electrodes to program the cell by growing a metallic dendrite from the negative of the two electrodes toward the positive of the two electrodes while the first voltage is applied thereto.
A method of forming a programmable metallization cell comprising the steps of providing a body formed of a fast ion conductor material having metallic ions disposed therein, and providing a plurality of metallic electrodes deposited on said body of material.
A cell having programmable electrical characteristics comprising:
A method of forming a programmable cell comprising the steps of:
A programmable metallization cell comprising a body formed of a fast ion conductor material having metallic ions disposed therein, a cathode and an anode deposited on said body of material, said cathode and anode adapted to have a first voltage applied between them to program the cell by growing a metallic dendrite from the cathode toward the anode while the first voltage is applied thereto, and further comprising at least one additional electrode provided in the body with an isolating material isolating said at least one additional electrode from the metallic dendrite and fast ion conductor, whereby electrical characteristics measured between any two of the cathode, anode, and at least one additional electrode, vary in accordance with the growth of the metallic dendrite.
A programmable metallization cell comprising a body formed of a fast ion conductor material formed of a chalcogenide material selected from the group consisting of sulfur, selenium and tellurium, and having metallic ions selected from the group consisting of silver, copper and zinc disposed therein, a cathode and an anode deposited on said body of material, said cathode and anode adapted to have a first voltage applied between them to program the cell by growing a metallic dendrite from the cathode toward the anode while the first voltage is applied thereto, and further comprising at least two additional electrodes in the body with a material isolating said two additional electrodes from the metallic dendrite and fast ion conductor, whereby electrical characteristics measured between any two of the cathode, anode, and two additional electrodes, vary in accordance with the growth of the metallic dendrite.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.