Dr Firas Hatem

School of Engineering

R&D Career Summary:
• Strong electrical characterisation and testing skills for semiconductor device reliability and failure analysis.
• Solid understanding of semiconductor device physics and experience in device compact modelling.
• Strong programming languages and statistical analysis skills to interpret experimental data.
• Collaborated with Imec, Belgium on semiconductor device reliability project resulted in a breakthrough: significantly Improved the endurance of GeSe OTS memory selector by five orders.
• My work at Imec on semiconductor device reliability has been accepted for the 2019 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM), San Francisco, USA, the world’s preeminent forum for reporting breakthroughs in semiconductor and electronic devices.
• Received the “Outstanding Research” award from Institute of Physics (IOP) in the UK for my research on non-volatile memory (RRAM) device compact modelling (SPICE).
• First author of IEDM, IEEE Transactions, IOP and co-authored TED, EDL and flagship conferences (VLSI).
• Authored a full chapter in the book: “Nanoscale Devices: Physics, Modelling, and Their Application” published in CRC Press, Taylor & Francis.
• My PhD thesis selected for presentation at DATE (Design, Automation & Test in Europe) in Switzerland.

Technical Reviewer:
• IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices.
• IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I: Regular Papers.
• IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology.
• Nanotechnology (IOP).
• Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics (IOP).


Management and Supervision Experience:
• Site Engineer and Site Supervisor at Alcatel-Lucent North Africa/Europe (3 years: 2008-2011).

Degrees

2017, The University of Nottingham, United Kingdom, Ph.D, Electronics Engineering
2012, The University of Nottingham, United kingdom, MS.c in Electronic Communications and Computer Engineering with Distinction

Academic appointments

Research Fellow (Invited) - 3 Months, Memory Device Design (MDD) Group, Imec, 2019 - 2019
Postdoctoral Research Associate in Nanoelectronics, Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Liverpool John Morres University, 2017 - present
Doctoral Researcher, Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, The University Nottingham, 2012 - 2016
Teaching Assistant, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, The University of Nottingham, 2012 - 2015

Journal article

Chai Z, Freitas P, Zhang WD, Hatem F, Degraeve R, Clima S, Zhang J, Marsland J, Fantini A, Garbin D, Goux L, Kar G. 2020. Stochastic computing based on volatile GeSe ovonic threshold switching selectors IEEE Electron Device Letters, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Chai Z, Wei S, Zhang WD, Brown J, Degraeve R, Salim F, Clima S, Hatem F, Zhang JF, Freitas P, Marsland J, Fantini A, Garbin D, Goux L, Kar G. 2019. GeSe-based Ovonic Threshold Switching Volatile True Random Number Generator IEEE Electron Device Letters, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Chai Z, Zhang WD, Degraeve R, Clima S, Hatem F, Zhang JF, Freitas P, Marsland J, Fantini A, Garbin D, Goux L, Kar GS. 2019. Dependence of switching probability on operation conditions in GexSe1-x ovonic threshold switching selectors IEEE Electron Device Letters, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Chai Z, Freitas P, Zhang WD, Hatem F, Zhang JF, Marsland J, Govoreanu B, Goux L, Kar GS. 2018. Impact of RTN on Pattern Recognition Accuracy of RRAM-based Synaptic Neural Network IEEE Electron Device Letters, DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Chai Z, Zhang WD, Freitas P, Hatem F, Zhang JF, Marsland J, Govoreanu B, Goux L, Kar GS, Hall S, Chalker P, Robertson J. 2018. The over-reset phenomenon in Ta2O5 RRAM device investigated by the RTN-based defect probing technique IEEE Electron Device Letters, 39 :955-958 DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Hatem FO, Kumar TN, Almurib HAF. 2016. A SPICE Model of the Ta2O5/TaOx Bi-Layered RRAM IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I: Regular Papers, 63 :1487-1498 DOI Publisher Url

Ho PWC, Hatem FO, Almurib HAF, Kumar TN. 2016. Comparison between Pt/TiO2/Pt and Pt/TaOX/TaOY/Pt based bipolar resistive switching devices Journal of Semiconductors, 37 :064001-064001 DOI Publisher Url

Hatem FO, Ho PWC, Kumar TN, Almurib HAF. 2015. Modeling of bipolar resistive switching of a nonlinear MISM memristor Semiconductor Science and Technology, 30 :115009-115009 DOI Publisher Url

Chapters

Hatem F. 2018. RRAM Devices: Underlying Physics, SPICE Modeling, and Circuit Applications Nanoscale Devices Physics, Modeling, and Their Application CRC Press 9781351670210 DOI Publisher Url

Poster

Hatem FO, Kumar TN, Almurib HAF. 2017. Ph.D Thesis: Bipolar Resistive Switching of Bi-Layered Pt/Ta2O5/TaOx/Pt RRAM–Physics-based Modelling, Circuit Design and Testing Design, Automation &Test in Europe Conference & Exhibition (DATE 2017), Switzerland Author Url

Thesis/Dissertation

Hatem FO. Bipolar resistive switching of bi-layered Pt/Ta2O5/TaOx/Pt RRAM : physics-based modelling, circuit design and testing Kumar TN, Almurib HAM.

Conference publication

Hatem FO, Kumar TN, Almurib HAF. A SPICE Model of the Ta2O5/TaOx Bi-Layered RRAM IEEE International Symposium on Circuits & Systems, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Ho PWC, Hatem FO, Almurib HAF, Kumar TN. Enhanced SPICE memristor model with dynamic ground 2015 IEEE International Circuits and Systems Symposium (ICSyS) DOI Publisher Url

Hatem FO, Ho PWC, Almurib HAF, Kumar TN. Comparison on TiO2 and TaO2 based bipolar resistive switching devices 2014 2nd International Conference on Electronic Design (ICED), DOI Publisher Url

Yee CJ, Hatem FO, Kumar TN, Almurib HAF. Compact SPICE modeling of STT-MTJ device DOI Publisher Url

Hatem FO, Kumar TN. A low-area asynchronous router for clock-less network-on-chip on a FPGA DOI Publisher Url

Chai Z, Zhang W, Degraeve R, Clima S, Hatem F, Zhang JF, Freitas P, Marsland J, Fantini A, Garbin D, Goux L, Kar G. Evidence of filamentary switching and relaxation mechanisms in GexSe1-x OTS selectors 2019 Symposia on VLSI Technology and Circuits DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Hatem F, Chai Z, Zhang WD, Fantini A, Degraeve R, Clima S, Garbin D, Robertson J, Guo Y, Zhang JF, Marsland J, Freitas P, Goux L, Kar G. Endurance improvement of more than five orders in GexSe1-x OTS selectors by using a novel refreshing program scheme IEEE International Electron Device Meeting (IEDM) DOI Author Url Publisher Url Public Url

Award:

Research Highlights of 2015, Semiconductor Science and Technology, Institute of Physics (IOP), United kingdom, http://iopscience.iop.org/journal/0268-1242/page/Highlights-of-2015. 2015

Membership of professional bodies:

Member, IEEE, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), https://www.ieee.org/.

MIET, Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), http://www.theiet.org/.

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