FERROELECTRIC NONVOLATILE MEMORY TECHNOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATIONS

Nonvolatile memory utilizing ferroelectric material is expected to be the ultimate memory due to its theoretical low power operation and fas t access. We integrated a ferroelectric thin film using a standard com plementary metaloxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process and evaluated its b asic characteristics and reliability including endurance and imprint e ffect. The film was prepared using a spin-on sol-gel method. A ferroel ectric thin film formed using Liquid source misted chemical deposition (LSMCD) was found to have almost the same characteristics as those of the film formed by the sol-gel method. No effects of the ferroelectri c process on the CMOS transistors were observed. Design of ferroelectr ic memory cells and applications of the ferroelectric nonvolatile memo ry have been reviewed.