High Density, High Speed STT-MRAM N7 Macros: Material and DTCO Exploration
As SRAM density stalls and process costs rise, Spin Transfer Torque (STT)-MRAM offers a compelling embedded alternative, though hampered by slow writes and limited bitcell gain owing to high write currents. To address this challenge, we present a novel synthetic antiferromagnet (SAF)-based magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) capable of 1 ppm error-free operation at 5 ns write and 150 uA on 45 nm eCD devices. We further demonstrate reliable switching at 30 nm CD for Iwrite of approximately 30 uA. The DTCO optimizes N7 process and bitcell design, enabling 5 ns, 0.8 p.J/bit macro writes. With a 0.013 um2 bitcell - iso A14/A10 nodes SRAM area, this approach bridges the density and performance gap in advanced technology nodes.
Authors
- Siddharth Rao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6161-3052)
- Maxwel Gama Monteiro (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5515-458X)
- N. Jossart
- Jyotirmoy Chatterjee (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4059-8743)
- Alvaro Palomino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0313-0110)
- Daniele Narducci (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3432-9149)
- Lynn Verschueren (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2941-769X)
- Fernando Garćıa-Redondo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7090-8821)
- Geert Hellings (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5376-2119)
- M. Garcia Bardon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5772-5406)
- Gouri Sankar Kar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3122-4237)
- Xiaoyu Piao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2204-9636)
- Kurt Wostyn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3995-0292)
- R. Carpenter (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0101-5952)
Institutions
- IMEC (BE)
Publication Details
- Published
- 2025-06-08
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.23919/vlsitechnologyandcir65189.2025.11075013
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Magnetic properties of thin films
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.25