MEMRIOX
Helmholtz Virtual Institute MEMRIOX (10/2011 - 12/2016)
The Virtual Institute 'Memriox' of Memory Effects in Resistive Ion-beam Modified Oxides establishes a joint research initiative in the field of ion-tailored oxide-based memristive elements. It is pursued within a novel and unique combination of core competences from the Helmholtz centers Dresden-Rossendorf and Jülich and their university partners in Dresden, Freiberg, Jena, San Diego, and Zurich. A nanoscale memristive switch may prove the concept of the ultimate future non-volatile memory cell with a resistance set directly by electric currents. Thus, the nanoscale memristor has matured to a key player in strategies combining the virtues of the 'More Moore' and 'More than Moore' concepts to drive the development of both miniaturized and functionalized electronic components for a resource-efficient 'green' computing.
Scientifically, the Virtual Institute aims at stepping beyond the established layer-by-layer control of intrinsic defects during the synthesis of memristive homojunctions. For that purpose, the Virtual Institute will employ the broad range of ion-beam techniques (Helmholtz-Zentrum Dreden-Rossendorf competence) to induce defective one- and two-dimensionally extended nanoregions with a high spatial precision. Nano-scale electronic and optical properties and functionalities will be investigated at the partner institutions at the Forschungszentrum Jülich and the universities in Freiberg, Jena, San Diego, and Zürich. Applicability will be assessed at the NaMLab gGmbH facility of the TU Dresden.
This combination of the partners' profound, long-term expertise in complementary high-level synthesis, characterization and analysis techniques is unique in the German research area. It provides the ideal framework to explore the spatial limits of memristive elements and their environment hence the Virtual Institute faces the challenges of the 'More Than Moore' concept, which is still less prominent in basic memristor research. The project will thus make a significant, qualitatively and quantitatively new contribution to cutting-edge science, towards quantifying defect-related effects on memristive behavior.
The project was financed by the Impuls- und Vernetzungsfonds of the Helmholtz Association (project VH-VI-442) and was concluded successfully at the end of 2016.