Effect of $\hbox{Ge}_{2}\hbox{Sb}_{2}\hbox{Te}_{5}$ Thermal Barrier on Reset Operations in Filament-Type Resistive Memory

We have investigated the effect of a
$\hbox{Ge}_{2}\hbox{Sb}_{2} \hbox{Te}_{5}$
(GST) thermal barrier on the reset operations in TiN/Cu/SiC/Pt devices. When the GST film was introduced as a thermal barrier, the device showed a lower reset voltage and a lower reset current than a device without the GST layer. In particular, the reset speed of the device with the GST layer was significantly faster at room temperature compared to the device without the GST layer. We attribute the improved resistive switching to the GST thermal barrier, which induces thermally assisted electrochemical reduction of the Cu filament.