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

该项目详细介绍了美日联合合作伙伴关系，重点是通过组合材料勘探（CME）开发和纳米级理解半导体器件应用中的非晶/结晶相变。两类材料的非晶-结晶过渡的控制是相关的新的器件结构进行检查。本征空位硫属化物，其电阻在非晶态和晶态之间的巨大变化被提出作为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级电子器件均匀响应的限制因素，是该团队日本部分的重点。 在这两种情况下，优化相关的设备性能需要仔细考虑的化学计量和结构之间的纳米级的相互作用，在控制动力学和能量的非晶-结晶过渡。 在这个项目中，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，将与国家材料科学研究所的研究人员密切合作（NIMS，日本）开发：（1）与未来半导体器件技术相关的非晶-晶体稳定和过渡的基本框架;（2）组合材料勘探的新设计，改变单个样品的组成和处理，以及（3）一个组合信息学协议，以建立不同机构之间共享数据的有效机制。该合作将促进与半导体器件技术相关的材料信息交流，并为高年级本科生和研究生提供材料探索的新范式。CME方法的进步将建立在当前网络基础设施能力的基础上，并扩展这些能力，例如远程使用仪器，数据库创建和实用程序，可视化以及虚拟网络和实验，预计将在广泛的科学和工程学科中取得进展，并对半导体行业以外的社会产生巨大影响。参加这项研究的学生将接触到这些新的方法，也将体验多个研究环境学术界（华盛顿大学），工业（美光科技）和美国和日本的国家实验室（PNNL和NIMS）。 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.