As a potential alternative to flash memory, HfO₂/Al₂O₃ stacks appear to be a viable option as charge capture layers in charge trapping memories. The paper undertakes a review of HfO₂/Al₂O₃ stacks as charge trapping layers, with a focus on comparing the number, thickness, and post-deposition heat treatment and γ-ray and white x-ray treatment of such stacks. Compared to a single HfO₂ layer, the memory window of the 5-layered stack increased by 152.4% after O₂ annealing at ±12 V. The memory window enlarged with the increase in number of layers in the stack and the increase in the Al/Hf content in the stack. Furthermore, our comparison of the treatment of HfO₂/Al₂O₃ stacks with varying annealing temperatures revealed that an increased annealing temperature resulted in a wider storage window. The samples treated with O₂ and subjected to various γ radiation intensities displayed superior resistance. and the memory window increased to 12.6 V at ±16 V for 100 kGy radiation intensity compared to the untreated samples. It has also been established that increasing doses of white x-rays induced a greater number of deep defects. The optimization of stacking layers along with post-deposition treatment condition can play significant role in extending the memory window.

Non-volatile memory is approaching its fundamental limits with the Si3N4 storage layer, necessitating the use of alternative materials to achieve a higher programming/erasing speed, larger storage window, and better data retention at lower operating voltage. This limitation has restricted the development of the charge-trap memory, but can be addressed by using high-k dielectrics. The paper reviews the doping of nitrogen, titanium, and yttrium on high-k dielectrics as a storage layer by comparing MONOS devices with different storage layers. The results show that nitrogen doping increases the storage window of the Gd₂O₃ storage layer and improves its charge retention. Titanium doping can increase the charge capture rate of HfO₂ storage layer. Yttrium doping increases the storage window of the BaTiO₃ storage layer and improves its fatigue characteristics. Parameters such as the dielectric constant, leakage current, and speed of the memory device can be controlled by maintaining a suitable amount of external impurities in the device.