Memristors using solution-based IGZO nanoparticles

Solution-based indium-gallium-zinc oldde (IGZO) nanoparticles deposited by spin coating have been investigated as a resistive switching layer in metal-insulator-metal structures for nonvolatile memory applications. Optimized devices show a bipolar resistive switching behavior, low programming voltages of +/- 1 V, on/off ratios higher than 10, high endurance, and a retention time of up to 104 s. The better performing devices were achieved with annealing temperatures of 200 degrees C and using asymmetric electrode materials of titanium and silver. The physics behind the improved switching properties of the devices is discussed in terms of the oxygen deficiency of IGZO. Temperature analysis of the conductance states revealed a nonmetallic filamentary conduction. The presented devices are potential candidates for the integration of memory functionality into low-cost System-on-Panel technology.National Funds through FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology [UID/CTM/50025/2013, SFRH/BDP/99136/2013]; FEDER [POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007688]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Microscopic origin of bipolar resistive switching of nanoscale titanium oxide thin films

We report a direct observation of the microscopic origin of the bipolar resistive switching behavior in nanoscale titanium oxide films. Through a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, an analytical TEM technique using energy-filtering transmission electron microscopy and an in situ x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we demonstrated that the oxygen ions piled up at top interface by an oxidation-reduction reaction between the titanium oxide layer and the top Al metal electrode. We also found that the drift of oxygen ions during the on/off switching induced the bipolar resistive switching in the titanium oxide thin films.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Nanoscale all-oxide-heterostructured bio-inspired optoresponsive nociceptor

Retina nociceptor, as a key sensory receptor, not only enables the transport of warning signals to the human central nervous system upon its exposure to noxious stimuli, but also triggers the motor response that minimizes potential sensitization. In this study, the capability of two-dimensional all-oxide-heterostructured artificial nociceptor as a single device with tunable properties was confirmed. Newly designed nociceptors utilize ultra-thin sub-stoichiometric TiO2-Ga2O3 heterostructures, where the thermally annealed Ga2O3 films play the role of charge transfer controlling component. It is discovered that the phase transformation in Ga2O3 is accompanied by substantial jump in conductivity, induced by thermally assisted internal redox reaction of Ga2O3 nanostructure during annealing. It is also experimentally confirmed that the charge transfer in all-oxide heterostructures can be tuned and controlled by the heterointerfaces manipulation. Results demonstrate that the engineering of heterointerfaces of two-dimensional (2D) films enables the fabrication of either high-sensitive TiO2-Ga2O3 (Ar) or high-threshold TiO2-Ga2O3 (N-2) nociceptors. The hypersensitive nociceptor mimics the functionalities of corneal nociceptors of human eye, whereas the delayed reaction of nociceptor is similar to high-threshold nociceptive characteristics of human sensory system. The long-term stability of 2D nociceptors demonstrates the capability of heterointerfaces engineering for effective control of charge transfer at 2D heterostructured devices

Oxide Memristive Devices

Resistive switching in metal oxide materials has recently renewed the interest of many researchers due to the many application in non-volatile memory and neuromorphic computing. A memristor or a memristive device in general, is a device behaving as nonlinear resistor with memory which depends on the amount of charges that passes through it. A novel idea of combining the physical resistive switching phenomenon and the circuit-theoretic formalism of memristors was proposed in 2008. The physical mechanism on how resistive switching occurs is still under debate. A physical understanding of the switching phenomenon is of much importance in order to tailor specific properties for memory applications. To investigate the resistive switching in oxide materials, memristive devices were fabricated starting from materials processing: low-pressure chemical vapor deposition of ZnO nanowires (NWs), low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD) of TiO2 thin films and micro-pulse ALD of Fe2O3 thin films. The distinct geometry of ZnO NWs makes it possible to investigate the effect of the electrode material, surface states and compliance to the memristive properties. A simpler method of fabricating TiO2-based devices was explored using low-temperature atomic layer deposition. This approach is very promising for device application using photoresist and polymeric substrates without thermal degradation during and after device fabrication. ALD of pure phase Fe2O3 thin films was demonstrated using cyclic micro-pulses. Based on the performance of the fabricated devices, the oxide materials under this study have promising properties for the next-generation memory devices

Memristive Anodic Oxides: Production, Properties and Applications in Neuromorphic Computing

Memristive devices generally consist of metal oxide elements with specific structure and chemical composition, which are crucial to obtain the required variability in resistance. This makes the control of oxide properties vital. While CMOS compatible production technologies for metal oxides deposition generally involve physical or chemical deposition pathways, we here describe the possibility of using an electrochemical technique, anodic oxidation, as an alternative route to produce memristive oxides. In fact, anodization allows to form a very large range of oxides on the surface of valve metals, such as titanium, hafnium, niobium and tantalum, whose thickness, structure and functional properties depend on process parameters imposed. These oxides may be of interest to build neural networks based on memristive elements produced by anodic oxidation

Solution-based IGZO nanoparticles memristor

This work aims to characterize Indium-Gallium-Zinc-Oxide nanoparticles (IGZOnp) as a resistive switching matrix in metal-insulator-metal (MIM) structures for memristor application. IGZOnp was produced by low cost solution-based process and deposited by spin-coating technique. Several top and bottom electrodes combinations, including IZO, Pt, Au, Ti, Ag were investigated to evaluate memory performance, yield and switching properties. The effect of ambient and annealing temperature using 350 ºC and 200 ºC was also analysed in order to get more insight into resistive switching mechanism. The Ag/IGZOnp/Ti memristor structure annealed at 200 ºC exhibits the best results with a large yield. The device shows a self-compliant bipolar resistive switching behavior. The switching event is achieved by the set/reset voltages of -1 V/+1 V respectively with an operating window of 10, and it can be programmed for more than 100 endurance cycles. The retention time of on and off-states is up to 104 s. The obtained results suggest that Ag/IGZOnp/Ti structure could be applied in system on a panel (SoP) as a viable device

Controlled inter-state switching between quantized conductance states in resistive devices for multilevel memory

A detailed understanding of quantization conductance (QC), their correlation with resistive switching phenomena and controlled manipulation of quantized states is crucial for realizing atomic-scale multilevel memory elements. Here, we demonstrate highly stable and reproducible quantized conductance states (QC-states) in Al/Niobium oxide/Pt resistive switching devices. Three levels of control over the QC-states, required for multilevel quantized state memories, like, switching ON to different quantized states, switching OFF from quantized states, and controlled inter-state switching among one QC states to another has been demonstrated by imposing limiting conditions of stop-voltage and current compliance. The well defined multiple QC-states along with a working principle for switching among various states show promise for implementation of multilevel memory devices