Patent ID: 7884430

Claim:
An electromechanical memory cell having nanotube crossbar elements, the memory cell comprising: a semiconductor substrate having transistor formed thereon with an insulative layer formed over the transistor and an electrical contact that extends through the insulative layer to electrically contact the transistor; a first support layer formed over the substrate with a top surface and an opening that defines a bottom chamber above the electrical contact; a crossbar element that spans the lower chamber wherein the crossbar element includes a nanotube or a nanotube ribbon; a second support layer formed over the substrate with an opening that defines a top chamber above the bottom chamber, the top chamber including an extension region that extends beyond an edge of the lower chamber to expose a portion of the top surface of the first support layer; a roof layer that covers the top of the top chamber and includes an one aperture that exposes a portion of the extension region of the top chamber; a conductive plug that extends into the aperture in the roof layer to seal the top and bottom chambers; and an electrode that overlies the crossbar element such that electrical signals can activate the electrode to attract or repel the crossbar element to set a memory state for the transistor.