Enhanced Switching Characteristics of an Ovonic Threshold Switching Device With an Ultra-Thin MgO Interfacial Layer

In this study, the effect of a MgO interfacial layer on the electrical characteristics of an ovonic threshold switching (OTS) device was investigated. Compared to the control OTS device, the device with the MgO interfacial layer showed excellent switching uniformity and ultralow off-state leakage current (
$\sim 440$
pA) without noticeable changes in the electrical forming process. By extracting the activation energy before and after the forming process, we confirmed that the enhanced switching characteristics were obtained by reducing the interaction between the OTS film and electrodes. Furthermore, the 1S-1R operation with TaO
_x
-based resistive random access memory (ReRAM) showed successful suppression of the leakage current, which is suitable for a cross-point memory array application.