CAREER: Melting-free Photonic Memory with Layered Chalcogenide Materials

职业：采用层状硫族化物材料的免熔化光子存储器

• 批准号: 2338546
• 负责人: TINGYI GU
• 金额: $ 55万
• 依托单位: University of Delaware
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2024-03-01 至 2029-02-28
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2338546&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Melting; free; Photonic; Memory

Nonvolatile memories, which retain their device status (resistance or refractive index change) after removing the external drive (such as heat, electric field, current, or illumination), are indispensable components in many stand-alone systems. Nonvolatile electronic memories have a rich history, and they can be broadly categorized into three primary groups: phase change material (PCM), memristor, and ferroelectric memory, operating through thermal-induced atomic restructuring, current-driven ionic dynamics, and electric field-oriented polarization, respectively. Over the past half-century, electronic memory technologies have witnessed significant growth, achieving a high level of maturity in terms of scalability, endurance, and CMOS integration. Being able to perform uniform phase transitions over a subwavelength scale makes PCMs particularly suitable for photonic applications. For switching between amorphous and crystalline states, the chalcogenide PCMs are brought to a melting temperature to break the covalent bonds. The cooling rate determines the final state. The high melting temperature sets the upper limit of clock rate, integration density, and the device lifetime. The proposed works will explore alternative optical reversible tuning mechanisms, address a few myths and challenges in the new material platform, and locate proper photonic memory device schematics. The CAREER project will be carried out by graduates, with the involvement of undergraduates and high school interns. Through local society-organized summer camps, our undergraduate and high school interns will share their initiatives and motivations for choosing STEM with the younger generations, especially the females and minorities. The proposed projects bridge the fields of layered material physics, semiconductor manufacturing, and photonic technologies, and strengthen multidisciplinary education among quantum mechanics, nanofabrication, optoelectronics, and photonic system engineering.The proposed work explores melting-free mechanisms in layered chalcogenide materials for nonvolatile tuning and switching in integrated photonics, enabled by the unique atomic structures in these materials. The small energy barrier facilitates low temperature reversible phase transitions, which reduces the chance of element segregation-associated device failure. This material search started with In2Se3. Its layered structures are convertible and stable at room temperature. In addition, loss-invariant large refractive index tuning in layered chalcogenide through photochemistry will be explored in ambient conditions. Through in-situ probing of the material and device responses, a physical framework will be developed for describing the complex interplay between the thermal and mechanical processes in the phase transition process, understand the details of transient dynamics at atomic scale, and optimize device geometric design and fabrication steps towards selected photonic applications, from high contrast coherent optical modulator, phase array to integrated multi-layer metasurface system for photonic computing.This project is jointly funded by the Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems division(ECCS), and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

在删除外部驱动器（例如热，电场，电流或照明）后，保留其设备状态（电阻或折射率变化）的非易失性记忆是许多独立系统中必不可少的组件。非挥发性电子记忆具有丰富的历史历史，可以将它们大致分为三个主要组：相变材料（PCM），Memristor和铁电记忆，通过热诱导的原子重组，电流驱动的离子动力学和电场的极性分别运行。在过去的半个世纪中，电子记忆技术见证了显着的增长，在可扩展性，耐力和CMOS集成方面达到了高度的成熟度。能够在亚波长度上进行均匀的相变，使PCM特别适合光子应用。为了在非晶状态和结晶状态之间切换，将硫元化的PCM带到熔化的温度下，以打破共价键。冷却速率决定了最终状态。高熔化温度设置了时钟速率，集成密度和设备寿命的上限。拟议的作品将探索替代性光学可逆调整机制，解决新材料平台中的一些神话和挑战，并找到适当的光子内存设备示意图。职业项目将由毕业生进行，并参与本科生和高中实习生。通过当地社会组织的夏令营，我们的本科和高中实习生将与年轻一代，尤其是女性和少数群体分享他们选择STEM的举措和动机。 The proposed projects bridge the fields of layered material physics, semiconductor manufacturing, and photonic technologies, and strengthen multidisciplinary education among quantum mechanics, nanofabrication, optoelectronics, and photonic system engineering.The proposed work explores melting-free mechanisms in layered chalcogenide materials for nonvolatile tuning and switching in integrated photonics, enabled by the unique atomic structures in these 材料。小型能屏障有助于低温可逆相变，从而减少了元素分离相关的设备故障的机会。该材料搜索始于In2Se3。其分层结构在室温下可转换和稳定。此外，将在环境条件下通过光化学探索分层葡萄球菌中的大型折射率调整。 Through in-situ probing of the material and device responses, a physical framework will be developed for describing the complex interplay between the thermal and mechanical processes in the phase transition process, understand the details of transient dynamics at atomic scale, and optimize device geometric design and fabrication steps towards selected photonic applications, from high contrast coherent optical modulator, phase array to integrated multi-layer metasurface system for photonic computing.This project is由电气，通信和网络系统部（ECCS）共同资助，以及启发竞争研究的既定计划（EPSCOR）。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛影响的审查标准通过评估来进行评估的。