Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-995ml Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-28T20:35:06.371Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Programmable Conductance Switching and Negative Differential Resistance in Nanoscale Organic Films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

J.C. Sturm
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical EngineeringPrinceton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials Princeton University Princeton, NJ 08544, U.S.A.
Get access

Abstract

Thin (12-nm) self-assembled films of the insulating molecule 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) were contacted by gold electrodes in a sandwich structure. Current-voltage scans of the resulting devices revealed symmetric negative differential resistance (NDR) with peaks at ±3 V and large peak current densities of up to 104 A/cm2. Devices could be programmed reversibly into nonvolatile high- and low-conductance states by applying 1-ms voltage pulses of 4 V and 10 V, respectively; this conductance could be probed non-destructively with voltages below 2.5 V. A conductance ratio of 103 between the high- and low-conductance states was measured. The NDR is attributed to the dynamic alteration of the device conductivity as the voltage is scanned. Devices fabricated with one gold and one aluminum electrode displayed NDR only for positive bias on the gold electrode, which supports a model in which the observed programming and NDR is due to the movement of gold in the film leading to the formation and destruction of conductive pathways through the insulating layer.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Pinnow, C.-U. and Mikoajick, T., J. Electrochem. Soc. 151, K13 (2004).Google Scholar
2 Hutchby, J. A., Bourianoff, G.I., Zhirnov, V. V., and Brewer, J. E., IEEE Circuits and Devices Magazine, 28 (March 2002).Google Scholar
3 Yang, Y., Ma, L. P., and Wu, J., MRS Bull. 29, 833 (2004).Google Scholar
4 Evans, S. D., Ulman, A., Goppert-Berarducci, K. E., and Gerenser, L. J., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 113, 5866 (1991).Google Scholar
5 Graves-Abe, T., Bao, Z., and Sturm, J.C., Nano Lett. 4, 2489 (2004).Google Scholar
6 Sanche, L., Nuc. Inst. Meth. Phys. Res. B 208, 4 (2003).Google Scholar
7 Simmons, J.G. and Verderber, R. R., Proc. Roy. Soc. London Ser. A, Math. Phys. Sci. 301, 77 (1967).Google Scholar
8 Dearnaley, G., Stoneham, A. M., and Morgan, D. V., Rep. Prog. Phys. 33, 1129 (1970).Google Scholar
9 Ray, A. K. and Hogarth, C. A., Int. J. Electronics 57, 1 (1984).Google Scholar
10 Bolzano, L. D., Kean, B. W., Deline, V. R., Salem, J. R., and Scott, J. C., App. Phys. Lett. 84, 607 (2004).Google Scholar
11 Gravano, S., Amir, E., Gould, R. D., and Samra, M. Abu, Thin Solid Films 433, 321 (2003).Google Scholar
12 Ray, A. K. and Hogarth, C. A., Int. J. Electronics 69, 97 (1990).Google Scholar
13 Thurstans, R. E. and Oxley, D. P., J. Phys. D 35, 802 (2002).Google Scholar