BRUSSELS, Belgium — The Industrial Technology Research Institute (Hsinchu, Taiwan) has begun investigating Resistive-RAM (RRAM) as a universal non-volatile memory and plans to end its work phase-change memory, according to a report in MacWorld.

ITRI, which is funded by the Taiwan government, has been working on phase-change memory for sometime but has found memory chips based on the technology difficult to manufacture, according to the report. The research group plans to finish off some phase-change related research projects during the rest of 2008 and then phase the topic out, the report said.

ITRI defines RRAM as a nonvolatile memory based on resistance switching caused by internal stoichiometry changes in compound materials. The researchers state they have successfully operated low-power RRAM, based on transition metal oxide and compatible electrode metals, at less than less than 3-volts. ITRI has quoted endurance of ten years at 85 degrees C and more than a milliom. ITRI also claims to have demonstrated multilevel cell programming of four distinct states reflecting two bits per cell.

Related links and articles:

www.itri.org.tw

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