Arrangement and method to perform scanning readout of ferroelectric bit charges

US8264941B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Intel Corporation · US

Inventors

• Quan Tran · Fremont, US
• Byong-man Kim · Seojong-myeon, KR
• Robert Stark · Bad Windsheim, DE
• Nathan Franklin · San Mateo, US
• Qing Ma · Saratoga, US
• Valluri Rao · Saratoga, US
• Donald Adams · Pleasanton, US
• Li-Peng Wang · Santa Clara, US
• Yevgeny V. Anoikin · Fremont, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 26, 2007
• Grant date: Sep 11, 2012
• Expiry date: Jul 11, 2031

Classification

• Technology area (CPC B): Performing Operations; Transporting
• CPC primary: B82Y10/00
• WIPO field: Audio-visual technology
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

An arrangement, a method and a system to read information stored in a layer of ferroelectric media. The arrangement includes a layer including a ferroelectric media having one or more ferroelectric domains holding bit charges, a domain corresponding to information; a probe having a tip, wherein the media and the tip are adapted to move relative to one another such that the tip scans the ferroelectric domains of the media while applying a contact force to the domains to generate a direct piezoelectric effect within the domains; and circuitry coupled to the tip and adapted to generate a signal in response to an electrical coupling between the tip and the domains while scanning the tip in contact with the domains, the signal corresponding to a readout signal for ferroelectric bit charges stored in the media.