Kyungmin Kim
Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology · 工学
研究室紹介
Professor Kyungmin Kim's research lab specializes in resistive switching mechanisms in transition metal oxide thin films, with a focus on memristive devices for next-generation neuromorphic computing and low-power electronics. The lab investigates fundamental switching behaviors—particularly in materials like TiO₂, HfO₂, and NbOₓ—exploring mechanisms such as filament formation, electrochemical metallization, and trap-mediated conduction. Key research directions include developing self-rectifying, forming-free memristors with ultra-low programming currents, and mimicking biological neural functions such as nociception using electronic receptors. The lab also pioneers innovative device architectures and control strategies, such as self-limited switching and asymmetric voltage schemes, to enhance reliability and scalability for real-world applications.
Research Overview
Research Output Trend
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
Selected Papers
15This review article summarized the recent understanding of resistance switching (RS) behavior in several binary oxide thin film systems. Among the various RS materials and mechanisms, TiO(2) and NiO thin films in unipolar thermo-chemical switching mode are primarily dealt with. To facilitate the discussions, the RS was divided into three parts; electroforming, set and reset steps. After short discussions on the electrochemistry of 'electrolytic' oxide materials, the general and peculiar aspects
A Pt/NbO x /TiO y /NbO x /TiN stack integrated on a 30 nm contact via shows a programming current as low as 10 nA and 1 pA for the set and reset switching, respectively, and a self-rectifying ratio as high as ∼10 5, which are suitable characteristics for low-power memristor applications. It also shows a forming-free characteristic. A charge-trap-associated switching model is proposed to account for this self-rectifying memrisive behavior. In addition, an asymmetric voltage scheme (AVS) to decrea
Abstract The biomimetic characteristics of the memristor as an electronic synapse and neuron have inspired the advent of new information technology in the neuromorphic computing. The application of the memristors can be extended to the artificial nerves on condition of the presence of electronic receptors which can transfer the external stimuli to the internal nerve system. In this work, nociceptor behaviors are demonstrated from the Pt/HfO 2 /TiN memristor for the electronic receptors. The devi
The detailed mechanism of electronic bipolar resistance switching (BRS) in the Pt/TiO(2)/Pt structure was examined. The conduction mechanism analysis showed that the trap-free and trap-mediated space-charge-limited conduction (SCLC) governs the low and high resistance state of BRS, respectively. The SCLC was confirmed by fitting the current-voltage characteristics of low and high resistance states at various temperatures. The BRS behavior originated from the asymmetric potential barrier for elec
This study examined the effects of electrical forming methods on the bipolar resistance switching (BRS) behavior in Pt/TiO(2)/Pt sandwich structures. The BRS is confined to a region near the ruptured end of conducting nanofilaments, which are composed of a Ti(n)O(2n-1) Magnéli phase formed by electroforming. The intermediate phase with an oxygen vacancy concentration between the insulating TiO(2) and the residual conducting filament that formed at the interface region was considered to be the sw
To facilitate the development of memristive devices, it is essential to resolve the problem of non‐uniformity in switching, which is caused by the random nature of the filamentary switching mechanism in many resistance switching memories based on transition metal oxide. In addition, device parameters such as low‐ and high‐state resistance should be regulated as desired. These issues can be overcome if memristive devices have switching limits for both the low‐ and high‐resistance states and if th
The impact of a series resistor (R(S)) on the variability and endurance performance of memristor was studied in the TaO(x) memristive system. A dynamic voltage divider between the R(S) and memristor during both the set and the reset switching cycles can suppress the inherent irregularity of the voltage dropped on the memristor, resulting in a greatly reduced switching variability. By selecting the proper resistance value of R(S) for the set and reset cycles respectively, we observed a dramatical
Abstract The intrinsic stochasticity of the memristor can be used to generate true random numbers, essential for non-decryptable hardware-based security devices. Here, we propose a novel and advanced method to generate true random numbers utilizing the stochastic oscillation behavior of a NbO x mott memristor, exhibiting self-clocking, fast and variation tolerant characteristics. The random number generation rate of the device can be at least 40 kb s −1 , which is the fastest record compared wit
Abstract Filamentary resistance switching (RS) is one of the more obvious and useful phenomena in the family of RS mechanisms. In filamentary RS, the long reset switching time and substantially large power consumption are the critical obstacles for microelectronic applications. In this study, an innovative solution to overcome this reset problem is suggested by stacking n‐type TiO 2 and p‐type NiO films. Interestingly, in this stacked structure, the region where filament rupture and rejuvenation
The conditional switching of memristors to execute stateful implication logic is an example of in-memory computation to potentially provide high energy efficiency and improved computation speed by avoiding the movement of data back and forth between a processing chip and memory and/or storage. Since the first demonstration of memristor implication logic, a significant goal has been to improve the logic cascading to make it more practical. Here, we describe and experimentally demonstrate nine sym
Abstract A memristive crossbar array (MCA) is an ideal platform for emerging memory and neuromorphic hardware due to its high bitwise density capability. A charge trap memristor (CTM) is an attractive candidate for the memristor cell of the MCA, because the embodied rectifying characteristic frees it from the sneak current issue. Although the potential of the CTM devices has been suggested, their practical viability needs to be further proved. Here, a Pt/Ta 2 O 5 /Nb 2 O 5‐ x /Al 2 O 3‐ y /Ti CT
The thin-film growth conditions in a plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition for the (3.0-4.5) nm thick HfO<sub>2</sub> film were optimized to use the film as the resistive switching element in a neuromorphic circuit. The film was intended to be used as a feasible synapse with analog-type conductance-tuning capability. The 4.5 nm thick HfO<sub>2</sub> films on both conventional TiN and a new RuO<sub>2</sub> bottom electrode required the electroforming process for them to operate as a feasible re
We report a physical model for multilevel switching in oxide-based bipolar resistive memory (ReRAM). To confirm the validity of the model, we conduct experiments with tantalum-oxide-based ReRAM of which multi-resistance levels are obtained by reset voltage modifications. It is also noticeable that, in addition to multilevel switching capability, the ReRAM exhibits extremely different switching timescales, i.e. of the order of 10(-7) s to 10(0) s, with regard to reset voltages of only a few volts
The resetting behaviors of Pt/TiO2/Pt resistive switching (RS) cell in unipolar RS operations were studied in detail through an experiment and by modeling. The experiment showed that the apparently highly arbitrary resetting current-voltage (I-V) curves could be grouped into three types: normal, delayed, and abnormal behaviors. A dual conical conducting filament (CF) model was conceived, and their electrothermal behaviors were analytically described from the heat-balance and charge-transport equ
Stateful logic enables highly energy‐efficient computation because the time and energy consumption for data transfer between the memory and the processing units in the traditional computation system can significantly be saved due to the combined functionalities of logic operation and nonvolatile memory. The logic primitive circuit, usually composed of resistive switching memory or memristor units, is the fundamental and kernel element to build a stateful logic family. However, the current statef