Nano-polycrystalline Ag-doped ZnO layer for steep-slope threshold switching selectors

In this work, a nano-polycrystalline Ag-doped ZnO-based threshold switching (TS) selector via a facile co-sputtering technique is investigated without using an Ag active metal layer. The effects of the Ag concentration with respect to OFF-state leakage current (Ioff) were studied, and the results demonstrate that by regulating the Ag doping concentration in the switching layer (SL), an electroforming-free switching with an Ion/Ioff ratio of ∼108 could be achieved, having an extremely low Ioff value of ∼10−13 A. Furthermore, cycling endurance can also be improved as the formation of a laterally thick and stable filament does not happen promptly with consequent measurements when there is a limited amount of Ag in the SL. The selector device performance enhancement is attributed to the doping-based polycrystalline structure that facilitates enhanced control on filament formation due to the restricted availability and anisotropic diffusion of Ag ions in the polycrystalline ZnO SL, thereby trimming down the overall stochasticity during metallic filament growth. The present study demonstrates that a doping-based polycrystalline SL structure can be implemented in a selector device to augment TS characteristics, i.e., device variances and cycling endurance for adoption in ultra-high density memory applications.