title: Solid-state memories based on ferroelectric tunnel junctions.
abstract: Ferroic-order parameters are useful as state variables in non-volatile information storage media because they show a hysteretic dependence on their electric or magnetic field. Coupling ferroics with quantum-mechanical tunnelling allows a simple and fast readout of the stored information through the influence of ferroic orders on the tunnel current. For example, data in magnetic random-access memories are stored in the relative alignment of two ferromagnetic electrodes separated by a non-magnetic tunnel barrier, and data readout is accomplished by a tunnel current measurement. However, such devices based on tunnel magnetoresistance typically exhibit OFF/ON ratios of less than 4, and require high powers for write operations (>1 × 10(6) A cm(-2)). Here, we report non-volatile memories with OFF/ON ratios as high as 100 and write powers as low as ∼1 × 10(4) A cm(-2) at room temperature by storing data in the electric polarization direction of a ferroelectric tunnel barrier. The junctions show large, stable, reproducible and reliable tunnel electroresistance, with resistance switching occurring at the coercive voltage of ferroelectric switching. These ferroelectric devices emerge as an alternative to other resistive memories, and have the advantage of not being based on voltage-induced migration of matter at the nanoscale, but on a purely electronic mechanism.
authors.affiliation: Unité Mixte de Physique CNRS/Thales, 1 Av. A. Fresnel, Campus de l'Ecole Polytechnique, 91767 Palaiseau and Université                 Paris-Sud, 91405                 Orsay, France.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chanthbouala
authors.forename: Arnaud
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Crassous
authors.forename: Vincent
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: Karim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bouzehouane
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fusil
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Moya
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Allibe
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dlubak
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Grollier
authors.forename: Stéphane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Xavier
authors.forename: Cyrile
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Deranlot
authors.forename: Amir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moshar
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Proksch
authors.forename: Neil D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Mathur
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bibes
authors.forename: Agnès
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Barthélémy
mesh_terms: D004574:Electromagnetic Fields; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval; D059346:Magnets / Q000737:chemistry*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D016249:Optical Storage Devices