Mapping and statistical analysis of filaments locations in amorphous HfO₂ ReRAM cells

Two optical inspection techniques, Photon Emission Microscopy (PEM) and Optical Beam Induced Resistance Change (OBIRCH) laser stimulation, are used to study the forming and to map the locations of filaments in amorphous HfO2 Resistive Random-Access Memory (ReRAM) cells. The low voltage sensitivity of OBIRCH is used to investigate filament pre-forming while the high frame rate of a Silicon Intensified Charge-Coupled Device (SI-CCD) is used to dynamically study the filament after the initial forming. A Spatial Clustering Model (SCM) is developed to explain the non-Poisson spatial distribution of individual filaments measured from multiple cells of the same size.