Abstract
 Recently, a dual-mechanism Flash memory cell that utilizes both charge trapping and polarization switching as the memory mechanism was proposed. In this work, the data retention characteristics of the dual-mechanism memory are extensively studied. Lifetime and activation energy analyses show that the remanent polarization in the blocking layer of the dual-mechanism memory suppresses the de-trapping of electrons in the charge trap layer. A quantitative analysis of the trapped charge and remanent polarization revealed that the electrons can be stored in a potential well created by the remanent polarization, which effectively improves the retention characteristics.