Project description DEENESFRITPL Ferroelectric Schottky barrier transistors as artificial synapses for neuromorphic computing There are an estimated 100 billion neurons in an adult human brain. Each makes some 7 000 synapses on other neurons, forming a highly energy efficient data processing network. Neuromorphic computing aims to harness this efficiency by using brain-inspired neurons, synapses and circuits to reduce the skyrocketing energy requirement of the explosion in data processing. Ferroelectric field-effect transistors (FETs) are among the most promising options for solid-state synapses. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the EASIFeT project will focus on a novel ferroelectric FET, specifically a ferroelectric Schottky barrier FET. The team will employ a well-known design tool and simulators to explore behaviours and implement them in a circuit model. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective The exponential growth of demand for data processing requires increasingly large computational resources and, consequently, prohibitively high energy consumption. To sustain this evolution, a paradigm switch from conventional computing architectures to data-centric platforms is needed. Neuromorphic computing aims at reaching this goal by realizing brain-inspired circuits based on artificial neurons and synapses, which are extremely energy efficient. The objective of this project is to explore a novel type of artificial synapse to be employed in neuromorphic chips. Among the technological options for solid state synapses, memories based on ferroelectric field-effect transistors (FeFET) are considered very promising due to their energy efficiency and to their compatibility with a Back-End-Of-Line implementation and thus a 3D integration. A FeFET is a field-effect transistors that employs a ferroelectric (FE) material as gate oxide. FE materials have a spontaneous electric polarization that can be reversed by the application of an electric field, and in conventional FeFETs this is used to modulate the threshold voltage and thus resistance in the channel region. This project will address an alternative physical mechanism to obtain a synaptic behavior in FeFET, namely a polarization-induced tuning of the resistance at source/drain Schottky contacts. In the Ferroelectric Schottky barrier FETs (Fe-SBFETs), the FE material overlaps the Schottky contact region, hence in this region the FE material is placed between two metals resulting in an effective and low voltage ferroelectric switching. For this reason, Fe-SBFETs are expected to operate as low energy synaptic devices. In this project, Fe-SBFETs will be extensively studied and modeled, by means of TCAD simulations. A design-space for optimal synaptic operation will be derived. Finally, a compact model for SPICE simulations of neuromorphic circuits based on Fe-SBFETs will be developed. Fields of science engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringanalogue electronicsengineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringcomputer hardwareengineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectrical engineeringnatural sciencescomputer and information sciencesdata sciencedata processing Keywords Electron devices modeling TCAD simulation ferroelectric field-effect transistor Schottky barrier field-effect transistor non-volatile memory memristor artificial synapse neuromorphic hardware Programme(s) HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme Topic(s) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01-01 - MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2022 Call for proposal HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships Coordinator UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI UDINE Net EU contribution € 172 750,08 Address VIA PALLADIO 8 33100 Udine Italy See on map Region Nord-Est Friuli-Venezia Giulia Udine Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Total cost No data
