Recessed cell structure for high performance phase change memory

A novel phase change memory with recessed cell structure has been successfully fabricated based on 40 nm Complementary-Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor technology. Etching back (EB) process and deposition-etching-deposition (DED) process are used for the formation of recessed hole and the gap filling of the recessed hole with Ge2Sb2Te5, respectively. With the combination of EB and DED processes, the recessed cell structure can be easily manufactured based on the current planar structure. The RESET current is reduced by 33.3% to 0.8 mA and the distribution tail of RESET resistance is solved. Moreover, about 107 cycles endurance with more than 300x resistance ratio have been obtained.