Patent ID: 8861257

Claim:
A nonvolatile memory element comprising: a first electrode and a second electrode that are formed above a semiconductor substrate; and a variable resistance layer located between the first electrode and the second electrode and having a resistance value that reversibly changes based on an electric signal applied between the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein the variable resistance layer comprises at least two layers including a first variable resistance layer and a second variable resistance layer, the first variable resistance layer has a first face connected to the first electrode, the first variable resistance layer has a second face connected to a first face of the second variable resistance layer, the first variable resistance layer comprises a first transition metal oxide, the second variable resistance layer comprises a second transition metal oxide and a first transition metal compound, the second transition metal oxide has an oxygen content atomic percentage lower than an oxygen content atomic percentage of the first transition metal oxide, the first transition metal compound contains either oxygen and nitrogen or oxygen and fluorine and is in contact with at least part of the second face of the first variable resistance layer, and the second transition metal oxide is in contact with a remaining part of the second face of the first variable resistance layer.