Forming mechanism of the bipolar resistance switching in double-layer memristive nanodevices

S. B. Lee, H. K. Yoo, K. Kim, J. S. Lee, Y. S. Kim, S. Sinn, D. Lee, B. S. Kang, B. Kahng, T. W. Noh

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Scopus citations

Abstract

To initiate resistance switching phenomena, it is usually necessary to apply a strong electric field to a sample. This forming process poses very serious obstacles in real nanodevice applications. In unipolar resistance switching (URS), it is well known that the forming originates from soft dielectric breakdown. However, the forming in bipolar resistance switching (BRS) is poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the forming processes in Pt/Ta 2O 5/TaO x/Pt and Pt/TaO x/Pt nanodevices, which showed BRS and URS, respectively. By comparing the double- and single-layer systems, we were able to observe differences in the BRS and URS forming processes. Using computer simulations based on an interface-modified random circuit breaker network model, we could explain most of our experimental observations. This success suggests that the BRS forming in our Pt/Ta 2O 5/TaO x/Pt double-layer system can occur via two processes, i.e.,polarity-dependent resistance switching in the Ta 2O 5 layer and soft dielectric breakdown in the TaO x layer. This forming mechanism can be used to improve the performance of BRS devices. For example, we could improve the endurance properties of Pt/Ta 2O 5/TaO x/Pt cells by using a small forming voltage.

Original languageEnglish
Article number315202
JournalNanotechnology
Volume23
Issue number31
DOIs
StatePublished - 10 Aug 2012

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