Glossary comparison
MRAM vs ReRAM: what is the difference?
The difference
ReRAM also stores bits as resistance, but it changes the resistance of an oxide by moving atoms, not by flipping a magnetic layer. Industry comment often casts ReRAM as the lower-cost embedded option and MRAM as the higher-performance one.
MRAM also reads a resistance, but stores the bit in the direction of a magnetic layer. Industry comment typically casts MRAM as the faster, more costly embedded option and ReRAM as the lower-cost one.
The two terms
MRAM
Non-volatile memory that stores bits in the relative magnetisation of two ferromagnetic layers separated by a thin tunnel barrier, read as a resistance difference.
ReRAM
Non-volatile memory that switches a metal oxide between high and low resistance by forming and rupturing a conductive filament. It is simple and crossbar friendly, but cell-to-cell variability has limited adoption.
Side by side
| Field | MRAM | ReRAM |
|---|---|---|
| Stands for | Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory | Resistive Random Access Memory |
| Type | Acronym | Acronym |
| Domain | Memory & Storage | Memory & Storage |
| Group | Emerging memory | Emerging memory |