High-resolution X-ray imaging of conductive filaments in VO2 nano-gaps

ORAL

Abstract

Electrically driven metal-insulator transition in vanadium dioxide (VO2) is of interest in novel memory devices, neural computation, and high-speed electronics. Resistive switching behavior of such devices is driven by the formation of Joule heating conductive nano-filaments between the contacts in the switched state and highly depends on the confinement and morphology of the nano-gap. We applied X-ray nano-diffraction to image the structure of 800x300 nm gap made of 100 nm VO2 film in operando conditions. High-resolution images of the several identical gaps in the switched state show tiny filaments of the metallic phase connecting the corners of the terminals. Interestingly, these filaments always appear at the same location which evidences a direct connection with the film morphology.

–

Presenters

  • Anatoly Shabalin

    Department of Physics, Univ of California - San Diego, University of California San Diego

Authors

  • Anatoly Shabalin

    Department of Physics, Univ of California - San Diego, University of California San Diego

  • Javier Del Valle Granda

    Department of Physics, Univ of California - San Diego, Department of Physics and Center for Advanced Nanoscience, Univ of California - San Diego, Department of Physics and Center for Advance Nanoscience, University of California San Diego, Physics Department and Center for Advanced Nanoscience, University of California San Diego

  • Martin Holt

    Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory

  • Ivan Schuller

    Department of Physics, Univ of California - San Diego, University of California, San Diego, Department of Physics and Center for Advanced Nanoscience, Univ of California - San Diego, UC San Diego, Department of Physics and Center for Advance Nanoscience, University of California San Diego, Physics Department and Center for Advanced Nanoscience, University of California San Diego, Univ of California - San Diego, Physics, University of California, San Diego

  • Oleg Shpyrko

    Department of Physics, Univ of California - San Diego, University of California, San Diego, University of California San Diego