A non-volatile cryogenic random-access memory based on the quantum anomalous Hall effect

Abstract

Abstract The interplay between ferromagnetism and topological properties of electronic band structures leads to a precise quantization of Hall resistance without any external magnetic field. This so-called quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) is born out of topological correlations, and is oblivious of low-sample quality. It was envisioned to lead towards dissipation-less and topologically protected electronics. However, no clear framework of how to design such an electronic device out of it exists. Here we construct an ultra-low power, non-volatile, cryogenic memory architecture leveraging the QAHE phenomenon. Our design promises orders of magnitude lower cell area compared with the state-of-the-art cryogenic memory technologies. We harness the fundamentally quantized Hall resistance levels in moiré graphene heterostructures to store non-volatile binary bits (1, 0). We perform the memory write operation through controlled hysteretic switching between the quantized Hall states, using nano-ampere level currents with opposite polarities. The non-destructive read operation is performed by sensing the polarity of the transverse Hall voltage using a separate pair of terminals. We custom design the memory architecture with a novel sensing mechanism to avoid accidental data corruption, ensure highest memory density and minimize array leakage power. Our design provides a pathway towards realizing topologically protected memory devices.