Phase Change Materials for Nanoelectronics: A Combinatorial Approach to Mechanistic Understanding

该项目详细介绍了美国和日本的合作伙伴关系，重点是通过组合材料探索(CME)开发和了解半导体器件应用中的非晶态/晶态相变。研究了两类材料，其中非晶态-晶态转变的控制与新的器件结构有关。本征空位硫化物，其在非晶态和晶态之间的巨大电阻变化被认为是高密度非易失性存储器的基础，是美国团队的重点。金属合金栅极材料，其功函数随晶面的变化是纳米电子设备均匀响应的限制因素，是该团队驻日本部分的重点。在这两种情况下，相关器件性能的优化都需要仔细考虑化学计量比和结构之间的纳米级相互作用，以控制非晶态-晶体转变的动力学和能量学。在该项目中，由来自华盛顿大学、太平洋西北国家实验室(PNNL)和美光科技公司的科学家组成的美国团队将与日本国家材料科学研究所(NIMS)的研究人员密切合作，开发：(1)与未来半导体器件技术相关的非晶态稳定和转变的基本框架；(2)针对组合材料探索的新设计，其对单个样品的组成和处理都不同；以及(3)组合信息学协议，以建立不同机构之间富有成效的数据共享机制。合作将促进半导体器件技术相关材料的信息交流，并为高年级本科生和研究生提供材料探索的新范例。CME方法的进步将建立和扩大目前的网络基础设施能力，如远程使用仪器、数据库创建和实用、可视化以及虚拟网络和实验，预计在广泛的科学和工程学科中取得进展，对半导体行业以外的社会产生巨大影响。参与这项研究的学生将接触到这些新的方法，还将体验到学术界(华盛顿大学)、工业界(美光科技)以及美国和日本国家实验室(PNNL和NIMS)的多种研究环境。这一丰富的学习经验将与他们未来的职业生涯高度相关。该奖项由材料研究部和国际科学与工程办公室共同支持。

This project details a joint US-Japan partnership focused on development and nanoscale understanding of amorphous-/crystalline phase transitions for semiconductor device applications through combinatorial materials exploration (CME). Two classes of materials where control of the amorphous-crystalline transition is relevant for new device structures are examined. Intrinsic vacancy chalcogenides, whose dramatic change in resistance between the amorphous and crystalline state is proposed as a basis for high-density non-volatile memory, is be the focus of the US-based team. Metal alloy gate materials, whose variation in work function with crystal face is a limiting factor in uniform response of nanoscale electronics, is be the focus of the Japan-based part of the team. In both cases, optimization of relevant device properties requires careful consideration of the nanoscale interplay between stoichiometry and structure in controlling the dynamics and energetics of the amorphous-crystalline transition. In this project, the US-Team, consisting of scientists from the University of Washington, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Micron Technology Inc., will work in close cooperation with researchers at the National Institute of Materials Science (NIMS, Japan) to develop: (1) a fundamental framework for amorphous-crystalline stabilization and transition relevant to future semiconductor device technologies; (2) new designs for combinatorial materials exploration that vary both composition and processing on single samples, and (3) a combinatorial informatics protocol to establish fruitful mechanisms for data sharing among different institutions. The collaboration will facilitate information exchange on materials relevant to semiconductor device technologies and provide a new paradigm of materials exploration as an educational program for both senior undergraduate and graduate students. Advancement of CME methodology will build upon and expand current cyber infrastructure capabilities, such as remote use of instrumentation, database creation and utility, visualization, and virtual networking and experimentation, anticipating progress across a broad range of scientific and engineering disciplines with dramatic impacts on the society beyond the semiconductor industries. Students participating in this research will gain exposure to these new methodologies and also will experience multiple research environments academia (University of Washington), industry (Micron Technologies) and both US and Japanese national laboratories (PNNL and NIMS). This rich learning experience will be highly relevant to their future careers.This award is co-supported by the Division of Materials Research and the Office of International Science and Engineering.