Formation of stacked oxide/ Y2 Ti O5 /oxide layers for flash memory application

In this letter, the authors propose the formation of stacked oxide/ Y2 Ti O5 /oxide layers for flash memory application. The quality of a high- k Y2 Ti O5 memory was examined by x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopic, atomic force microscopy, capacitance-voltage curves, and data retention. When using Fowler-Nordheim for charging and discharging, the Y2 Ti O5 memory annealed at 900 °C for 30 s exhibited large flatband-voltage shifting (memory window of 4.2 V) and superior data retention (charge loss of 6% at room temperature) because of the higher probability for trapping the charge carriers and they trapped in the deep trap level of Y2 Ti O5 due to the formation of a well-crystallized Y2 Ti O5 structure and the reduction of Y-silicate layer.