What if your smartphone shipped with 1TB of memory, which would be not only be able to store all the digital content you want to carry with you at all times, but would also be faster and more reliable? Researchers from Rice University are already working on such technology, MIT’s Technology Review reports, having discovered a more practical way to mass-produce it.
Called resistive random access memory (RRAM), the memory is already being developed by some companies, but it’s not an easy or affordable process. However, Rice scientists have figured out how to make RRAM at room temperature and using far lower voltages.
The key idea behind RRAM is the use of a dielectric material (one that won’t normally conduct electricity) which is inserted between two wires. When a sufficiently high voltage is applied across the wires, a narrow path forms through the dielectric material. This means the cell can be either “on” or “off” just like a switch, or in computer terms it can be a 1 or a 0.
According to Rice University, RRAM is expected to replace current flash memory technologies within a few years. RRAM specialist Crossbar has announced plans for RRAM prototype chips that store about one terabyte on a chip the size of a postage stamp. That is more than 50 times the current data density found in today’s flash memory.
Rice’s new RRAM uses silicon oxide as its dielectric component. Silicon is the most abundant element on Earth, and probably the most studied. It is the most basic ingredient in conventional microchips. In 2010 a research team, led by chemist James Tour, discovered how to create conductive filament pathways in silicon oxide. This then opened the door for the material to be used for RRAM.
If the chemists are to be believed RRAM is the future. “It can be manufactured at room temperature, has an extremely low forming voltage, high on-off ratio, low power consumption, nine-bit capacity per cell, exceptional switching speeds and excellent cycling endurance,” said James Tour.
The new fabrication technique has already got the attention of a several manufacturers who are interested in licensing the technology. Hopefully this means that in the next couple of years we can say good-bye to flash memory and say hello to 1TB of RRAM!
