The invention provides a non-volatile storage element and non-volatile storage device employing a ferroelectric material with low power consumption, excellent high reliability, and especially write/erase endurance, which can be mixed with advanced CMOS logic. The non-volatile storage element has at least a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer, and a ferroelectric layer composed of a metal oxide between both conductive layers, with a buffer layer having oxygen ion conductivity situated between the ferroelectric layer and the first conductive layer and/or second conductive layer. An interface layer composed of a single-layer film or a multilayer film may be also provided between the first conductive layer and the ferroelectric layer, the interface layer as a whole having higher dielectric constant than silicon oxide, and when the buffer layer is present between the first conductive layer and the ferroelectric layer, the interface layer is situated between the first conductive layer and the buffer layer. The non-volatile storage device comprises at least a memory cell array comprising low-power-consumption ferroelectric memory elements formed in a two-dimensional or three-dimensional configuration, and a control circuit. The ferroelectric layer is scalable to 10 nm or smaller and is fabricated at a low temperature of ≤400° C., and is subjected to low temperature thermal annealing treatment at ≤400° C. after the buffer layer has been formed, to provide high reliability.

A non-volatile memory (NVM) is formed of memory cells each having multiple ferroelectric memory elements (FMEs). Each FME stores data in relation to an electrical polarity of a recording layer formed of ferroelectric or anti-ferroelectric material. Each multi-FME memory cell is coupled to a set of external control lines activated by a control circuit in a selected order to perform program and/or read operations upon the FMEs. The FMEs may share a nominally identical construction or may have different constructions. Data are programmed and written responsive to the respective program/read responses of the FMEs. Constructions can include ferroelectric tunneling junctions (FTJs), ferroelectric random access memory (FeRAM), and ferroelectric field effect transistors (FeFETs). The NVM may form a portion of a data storage device, such as a solid-state drive (SSD).

A method includes forming a first transistor, a second transistor, a third transistor, and a fourth transistor over a substrate, wherein at least the second and third transistors include ferroelectric materials; forming an interlayer dielectric (ILD) layer over the first to fourth transistors; forming a first metal line over the ILD layer to interconnect drains of the second and third transistors and a gate of the fourth transistor; forming a second metal line over the ILD layer to interconnect a drain of the first transistor and gates of the second and third transistors; forming a write word line over the ILD layer and electrically connected to a gate of the first transistor but electrically isolated from the fourth transistor; forming a word line over the ILD layer and electrically connected to a source of the first transistor; and forming a bit line electrically connected to the fourth transistor.

A memory circuit includes a memory cell and a source line transistor. The memory cell includes a first transistor, a second transistor, a third transistor, and a fourth transistor. The second transistor and the third transistor form an inverter electrically connected to a drain of the first transistor. The inverter is configured to store two states with different applied voltages. The fourth transistor is electrically connected to a node of the inverter. The source line transistor is electrically connected to the fourth transistor.

A memory device including a static random-access memory that includes two cross-coupled inverters and an access transistor having a gate connected to a word line. The memory device further includes one or more logic gates electrically coupled to the static random-access memory, and a non-volatile memory electrically coupled to the static random-access memory and configured to store data and be read using the static random-access memory, wherein the non-volatile memory is connected on one side to the access transistor and on another side to the two cross-coupled inverters.

A semiconductor device including a memory which can perform a pipeline operation is provided. The semiconductor device includes a processor core, a bus, and a memory section. The memory section includes a first memory. The first memory includes a plurality of local arrays. The local array includes a sense amplifier array and a local cell array stacked thereover. The local cell array is provided a memory cell including one transistor and one capacitor. The transistor is preferably an oxide semiconductor transistor. The first memory is configured to generate a wait signal. The wait signal is generated when a request for writing data to the same local array is received over two successive clock cycles from the processor core. The wait signal is sent to the processor core via the bus. The processor core stands by for a request for the memory section on the basis of the wait signal.

A ferroelectric static random access memory (FeSRAM) cell includes (a) first and second cross-coupled inverters connected between a power supply voltage signal and a ground reference voltage signal and holding a data signal represented in a complementary manner in first and second common data terminals; (b) first and second select transistors coupled respectively to the first and second common data terminals of the cross-coupled inverters; and (c) first, second, third and fourth ferroelectric capacitors, wherein the first and second ferroelectric capacitors couple the first common data terminal to the power supply voltage signal and the ground reference voltage signal, respectively, and wherein the third and the fourth ferroelectric capacitors couple the second common data terminal to the power supply voltage signal and the ground reference voltage signal, respectively.

Proposed as a configuration, a controlling method, and a testing method for a ferroelectric shadow memory are (1) a bit line non-precharge method, in which no precharging of a bit line is performed during a read/write operation; (2) a plate line charge share method, in which electric charge is shared between plate lines that are driven sequentially during store/recall operation; (3) a word line boost method, in which the potential on a word line is raised during a write operation; (4) a plate line driver boost method, in which the driving capacity of a plate line driver is raised during a store/recall operation; and (5) a testing method for detecting a defect in a ferroelectric capacitor by arbitrarily setting a potential on a bit line from outside a chip.

The present disclosure relates to a structure including a latch circuit, a first non-volatile field effect transistor (FET) connecting to a first side of the latch circuit and a bit line, and a second non-volatile field effect transistor (FET) connecting to a second side of the latch circuit and a complementary bit line.

A depletion-mode FeFET (“FeDFET”) is programmable to a first programmed state, under a first set of voltage biasing conditions, and to a second programmed state, under a second set of voltage biasing conditions. In both the first and second programmed states, the storage transistor has a threshold voltage that is not greater than 0 volts. A memory circuit may be organized as memory cells, with each memory cell including select transistors, transistor switches and FeDFETs in a static random-access memory (SRAM) cell configuration.