Emulation of Biological Synapse Characteristics from Cu/AlN/TiN Conductive Bridge Random Access Memory

Here, we present the synaptic characteristics of AlN-based conductive bridge random access memory (CBRAM) as a synaptic device for neuromorphic systems. Both non-volatile and volatile memory are observed by simply controlling the strength of the Cu filament inside the AlN film. For non-volatile switching induced by high compliance current (CC), good retention with a strong Cu metallic filament is verified. Low-resistance state (LRS) and high-resistance state (HRS) conduction follow metallic Ohmic and trap-assisted tunneling (TAT), respectively, which are supported by I–V fitting and temperature dependence. The transition from long-term plasticity (LTP) to short-term plasticity (STP) is demonstrated by increasing the pulse interval time for synaptic device application. Also, paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) in the nervous system is mimicked by sending two identical pulses to the CBRAM device to induce STP. Finally, potentiation and depression are achieved by gradually increasing the set and reset voltage in pulse transient mode.