ELECTRON | Enabling spatially-resolved mapping of electric activity in operational devices at atomic-resolution

Summary
"Advanced materials are at the core of innovation in the 21st century for a wide range of industries, including semiconductors, consumer electronics, automotive, and aerospace. Demands for products with increased functionality, performance, and reduced power consumption are driving the need for new device structures and materials. Designing, characterizing, and testing of two-terminal devices such as MIM (metal-insulator-metal) capacitors for high performance DRAM capacitors or MSM (metal-semiconductor-metal) select elements for advanced non-volatile memory are key for improved materials stack design and integration. In ELECTRON, I will develop a technique that allows to directly image ""brain-like"" functions in operational e.g. RRAM devices. I aim to achieve operando electron beam-induced current imaging (EBIC) inside a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) by using amplifiers to measure electrical currents in a contacted working device exposed to a microscope ́s electron beam, and thus, for the first time map electrical activity of a real device, like neuroscientists use for example, fMRI to track blood flow within the brain: the parts that are being used will light up in the map. This technique will enable a unique and previously non-existent way to visualize electric activity in working devices while being sensitive to electric potential, electric field, work function, conductivity and temperature under simultaneous external stimuli (i.e. heating, biasing, gas). I propose this project based upon the internationally recognized expertise of my group in the development of situ/operando TEM, specifically, the ability to operate and electrically contact stack devices inside an electron microscope and my experience in MEMS-based chip platform design (Nature Communications, 4445(2018)). The goal is to push the spatial resolution of STEM-(SE)EBIC to reach atomic-resolution dimensions while probing industry relevant electronic devices under realistic conditions."
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101088712
Start date: 01-11-2023
End date: 28-02-2029
Total budget - Public funding: 2 082 500,00 Euro - 2 082 500,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

"Advanced materials are at the core of innovation in the 21st century for a wide range of industries, including semiconductors, consumer electronics, automotive, and aerospace. Demands for products with increased functionality, performance, and reduced power consumption are driving the need for new device structures and materials. Designing, characterizing, and testing of two-terminal devices such as MIM (metal-insulator-metal) capacitors for high performance DRAM capacitors or MSM (metal-semiconductor-metal) select elements for advanced non-volatile memory are key for improved materials stack design and integration. In ELECTRON, I will develop a technique that allows to directly image ""brain-like"" functions in operational e.g. RRAM devices. I aim to achieve operando electron beam-induced current imaging (EBIC) inside a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) by using amplifiers to measure electrical currents in a contacted working device exposed to a microscope ́s electron beam, and thus, for the first time map electrical activity of a real device, like neuroscientists use for example, fMRI to track blood flow within the brain: the parts that are being used will light up in the map. This technique will enable a unique and previously non-existent way to visualize electric activity in working devices while being sensitive to electric potential, electric field, work function, conductivity and temperature under simultaneous external stimuli (i.e. heating, biasing, gas). I propose this project based upon the internationally recognized expertise of my group in the development of situ/operando TEM, specifically, the ability to operate and electrically contact stack devices inside an electron microscope and my experience in MEMS-based chip platform design (Nature Communications, 4445(2018)). The goal is to push the spatial resolution of STEM-(SE)EBIC to reach atomic-resolution dimensions while probing industry relevant electronic devices under realistic conditions."

Status

SIGNED

Call topic

ERC-2022-COG

Update Date

31-07-2023
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Horizon Europe
HORIZON.1 Excellent Science
HORIZON.1.1 European Research Council (ERC)
HORIZON.1.1.0 Cross-cutting call topics
ERC-2022-COG ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS
HORIZON.1.1.1 Frontier science
ERC-2022-COG ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS