Toshiba has developed a new technology based on a
silicon oxide nitride oxide semiconductor (SONOS) type
memory structure having the potential for application to
future 10 nm node flash memories, making it possible to
realize the world’s smallest(*) flash memory cell node.
The technology also has the potential for even smaller
nodes.
Toshiba achieved this by successfully fabricating an
ultrathin, 1.1 nm silicon nanocrystal layer inside tunnel
oxide films, using the advantageous characteristic that
control of gate voltage can be employed to achieve large
changes in tunnel resistance. This structure achieves the
required levels of performance and reliability; namely,
10 years’ data retention plus high-speed data writing and
deletion. The most notable characteristic of the technology
is that the smaller the silicon nanocrystals become, the
higher the expectable memory performance. Since there
is still room for miniaturizing silicon nanocrystals, this
technology has prospects for applications below 10 nm;
that is, at a single-digit nanometer node.
(*) As of December 2008 (as researched by Toshiba)
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