Review on Physically Flexible Nonvolatile Memory for Internet of Everything Electronics

A non-invasive approach to the resistive switching physical model of ultra-thin organic-inorganic dielectric-based ReRAMs

The race to next-generation non-volatile memory is on, and ultra-thin (<5 nm) organic-inorganic hybrid dielectric-based ReRAMs are a top contender. However, their extremely small thickness hinders their processability through material characterization techniques, leaving gaps in our understanding of the resistive switching (RS) dynamics in the hybrid dielectric layer. Furthermore, the poor uniformity of key switching parameters remains a persistent issue in ReRAMs, which impedes any trends to be clearly defined through electrical characterization. This work uses electrical manipulation through a ramped-pulse series (RPS) method to improve the voltage and resistance fluctuations in the reset process of ultra-thin Al/Hf-hybrid/Ni devices. By analyzing their electrical behavior under different pulse and temperature conditions, we propose a comprehensive physical model that describes the operating mechanism of the device. Our results confirm the coexistence in the conductive filament (CF) of a hybrid metallic portion composed of Al and Hf3Al2 and an oxygen vacancy portion. The vacancies are found to play a significant role in RS, with most of them generated during the CF forming process and participating to different degrees in the filament rupture of the RPS-processed and non-RPS-processed devices via Joule heating, drift, and Fick forces. Additionally, we identify the cause of switching failure events to be based on the presence of an Al2O3 interlayer in the Al/Hf-hybrid interface.

Interconnection Technologies for Flexible Electronics: Materials, Fabrications, and Applications

Flexible electronic devices require metal interconnects to facilitate the flow of electrical signals among the device components, ensuring its proper functionality. There are multiple factors to consider when designing metal interconnects for flexible electronics, including their conductivity, flexibility, reliability, and cost. This article provides an overview of recent endeavors to create flexible electronic devices through different metal interconnect approaches, with a focus on materials and structural aspects. Additionally, the article discusses emerging flexible applications, such as e-textiles and flexible batteries, as essential considerations.

Simultaneous emulation of synaptic and intrinsic plasticity using a memristive synapse

Neuromorphic computing targets the hardware embodiment of neural network, and device implementation of individual neuron and synapse has attracted considerable attention. The emulation of synaptic plasticity has shown promising results after the advent of memristors. However, neuronal intrinsic plasticity, which involves in learning process through interactions with synaptic plasticity, has been rarely demonstrated. Synaptic and intrinsic plasticity occur concomitantly in learning process, suggesting the need of the simultaneous implementation. Here, we report a neurosynaptic device that mimics synaptic and intrinsic plasticity concomitantly in a single cell. Threshold switch and phase change memory are merged in threshold switch-phase change memory device. Neuronal intrinsic plasticity is demonstrated based on bottom threshold switch layer, which resembles the modulation of firing frequency in biological neuron. Synaptic plasticity is also introduced through the nonvolatile switching of top phase change layer. Intrinsic and synaptic plasticity are simultaneously emulated in a single cell to establish the positive feedback between them. A positive feedback learning loop which mimics the retraining process in biological system is implemented in threshold switch-phase change memory array for accelerated training.

Synaptic plasticity and neuronal intrinsic plasticity are both involved in the learning process of hardware artificial neural network. Here, Lee et al. integrate a threshold switch and a phase change memory in a single device, which emulates biological synaptic and intrinsic plasticity simultaneously.

A purely ionic voltage effect soft triode

We report on the construction and characterization of an ionic soft triode intended to be based on interfacial ion adsorption and redox oxidizer depletion. The soft triode was built in a simple manner with no need for sophisticated or expensive materials. It does not utilize the control of a semiconducting channel, but an electrolyte. In different electrical circuit configurations, it can show amplification or memory effects. The device had an electrical current amplification reaching 52 and memory effects in the electrical resistance lasting for up to 6 h. These values were achieved by tuning the electrode interface, the electrolyte and diffusion properties. They are promising for neuromorphic applications.

Solution-Processed Organic Photodetectors with Renewable Materials

An organic photodetector prepared by a simple solution method based on renewable citrus pectin with an optimized concentration of aluminum nitrate (AlC05) is introduced herein. The effects of different concentrations of aluminum nitrate on the morphology and optical properties were investigated through various characterization methods. An AlC concentration of 0.5 mg/mL was found to provide the highest on/off ratio and acceptable rise and decay times. Also, the optimized device (Al/AlC0.5/ITO) exhibited good stability and repeatability at a 0.1 V bias under 440 nm visible light. Based on these results, citrus pectin materials were successfully used to fabricate an organic photodetector with a simple and cost-efficient fabrication process, while taking into account environmental commitments.

Mechanically Durable Memristor Arrays Based on a Discrete Structure Design

Memristors constitute a promising functional component for information storage and in-memory computing in flexible and stretchable electronics including wearable devices, prosthetics, and soft robotics. Despite tremendous efforts made to adapt conventional rigid memristors to flexible and stretchable scenarios, stretchable and mechanical-damage-endurable memristors, which are critical for maintaining reliable functions under unexpected mechanical attack, have never been achieved. Here, the development of stretchable memristors with mechanical damage endurance based on a discrete structure design is reported. The memristors possess large stretchability (40%) and excellent deformability (half-fold), and retain stable performances under dynamic stretching and releasing. It is shown that the memristors maintain reliable functions and preserve information after extreme mechanical damage, including puncture (up to 100 times) and serious tearing situations (fully diagonally cut). The structural strategy offers new opportunities for next-generation stretchable memristors with mechanical damage endurance, which is vital to achieve reliable functions for flexible and stretchable electronics even in extreme and highly dynamic environments.

High Temperature CsPbBrxI3-x Memristors Based on Hybrid Electrical and Optical Resistive Switching Effects

The emergence of perovskite-based memristors associated with the migration of ions has attracted attention for use in overcoming the limitations of the von Neumann computing architecture and removing the bottleneck of storage density. However, systematic research on the temperature dependence of halide perovskite-based memristors is still required due to the unavoidable thermal stability limits. In this work, mixed halide CsPbBr_xI_3-x-based (X = 0, 1, 2) memristors with unique electrical and optical resistive switching properties in an ambient atmosphere from room temperature to a 240 °C maximum have been successfully achieved. At room temperature, the CsPbBr_xI_3-x-based memristors exhibit outstanding resistive switching behaviors such as ultralow operating voltage (∼0.81, ∼0.64, and ∼0.54 V for different devices, respectively), moderate ON/OFF ratio (∼10²), stable endurance (10³ cycles), and long retention time (10⁴ s). The CsPbBr_xI_3-x-based memristors maintain excellent repeatability and stability at high temperature. Endurance failures of CsPbI₃, CsPbBrI₂, and CsPbBr₂I memristors occur at 90, 150, and 270 °C, respectively. Finally, nonvolatile imaging employing CsPbBr₂I-based memristor arrays based on the electrical-write and optical-erase operation at 100 °C has been demonstrated. This study provides utilization potentiality in the high temperature scenarios for perovskite wearable and large-scale information devices.

Zinc phthalocyanine conjugated cellulose nanocrystals for memory device applications

We present the electrical properties of zinc phthalocyanine covalently conjugated to cellulose nanocrystals (CNC@ZnPc). Thin films of CNC@ZnPc sandwiched between two gold electrodes showed pronounced hysteresis in their current-voltage characteristics. The layered metal-organic-metal sandwich devices exhibit distinct high and low conductive states when bias is applied, which can be used to store information. Density functional theory results confirmed wave function overlap between CNC and ZnPc in CNC@ZnPc, and helped visualize the lowest (lowest unoccupied molecular orbital) and highest molecular orbitals (highest occupied molecular orbital) in CNC@ZnPc. These results pave the way forward for all-organic electronic devices based on low cost, earth abundant CNCs and metallophthalocyanines.

Ultralow-switching current density multilevel phase-change memory on a flexible substrate

[Figure: see text].

Recent Progress in Solution-Based Metal Oxide Resistive Switching Devices

Metal oxide resistive switching memories have been a crucial component for the requirements of the Internet of Things, which demands ultra-low power and high-density devices with new computing principles, exploiting low cost green products and technologies. Most of the reported resistive switching devices use conventional methods (physical and chemical vapor deposition), which are quite expensive due to their up-scale production. Solution-processing methods have been improved, being now a reliable technology that offers many advantages for resistive random-access memory (RRAM) such as high versatility, large area uniformity, transparency, low-cost and a simple fabrication of two-terminal structures. Solution-based metal oxide RRAM devices are emergent and promising non-volatile memories for future electronics. In this review, a brief history of non-volatile memories is highlighted as well as the present status of solution-based metal oxide resistive random-access memory (S-RRAM). Then, a focus on describing the solution synthesis parameters of S-RRAMs which induce a massive influence in the overall performance of these devices is discussed. Next, a precise analysis is performed on the metal oxide thin film and electrode interface and the recent advances on S-RRAM that will allow their large-area manufacturing. Finally, the figures of merit and the main challenges in S-RRAMs are discussed and future trends are proposed.

Sustainable resistance switching performance from composite-type ReRAM device based on carbon Nanotube@Titania core-shell wires

A novel nanocomposite-based non-volatile resistance switching random access memory device introducing single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT)@TiO₂ core–shell wires was proposed for flexible electronics. The SWCNT was de-bundled by ultrasonication with sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS), and then the TiO₂ skin layer on the SWCNT surface was successfully introduced by adding benzyl alcohol as a weak surfactant. The nanocomposite resistance switching layer was composed of the SWCNT@TiO₂ core–shell wires and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrix by a simple spin-coating method. The device exhibited reproducible resistance switching performance with a remarkably narrow distribution of operating parameters (V_SET and V_RESET were 2.63 ± 0.16 and 0.95 ± 0.11 V, respectively) with a large R_ON/R_OFF ratio of 10⁵ for 200 consecutive switching cycles. Furthermore, the excellent resistance switching behavior in our device was maintained against mechanical stress up to 10⁵ bending test. We believe that the nanocomposite memory device with SWCNT@TiO₂ core–shell wires would be a critical asset to realize practical application for a flexible non-volatile memory field.

Devising Materials Manufacturing Toward Lab-to-Fab Translation of Flexible Electronics

Flexible electronics have witnessed exciting progress in academia over the past decade, but most of the research outcomes have yet to be translated into products or gain much market share. For mass production and commercialization, industrial adoption of newly developed functional materials and fabrication techniques is a prerequisite. However, due to the disparate features of academic laboratories and industrial plants, translating materials and manufacturing technologies from labs to fabs is notoriously difficult. Therefore, herein, key challenges in the materials manufacturing of flexible electronics are identified and discussed for its lab-to-fab translation, along the four stages in product manufacturing: design, materials supply, processing, and integration. Perspectives on industry-oriented strategies to overcome some of these obstacles are also proposed. Priorities for action are outlined, including standardization, iteration between basic and applied research, and adoption of smart manufacturing. With concerted efforts from academia and industry, flexible electronics will bring a bigger impact to society as promised.

A comprehensive investigation of MoO3 based resistive random access memory

The bipolar resistive switching of molybdenum oxide is deliberated while molybdenum and nickel are used as bottom and top electrodes, respectively, to present a device with resistive random access memory (RRAM) characteristics. For the trilayered structure, the SET voltage lies around 3.3 V and RESET voltage is observed to be in the −2.3 V to −2.7 V range. The conduction mechanism has been observed and revealed for the Metal–Insulator–Metal (MIM) structure which is a space-charge-limited current mechanism that follows both ohmic conduction and Child's law. Furthermore, a theoretical study has been performed by using density functional theory (DFT) to evaluate the resistance switching role of molybdenum oxide (MoO₃). The structure has been studied with oxygen vacancy sites induced into the system which shows the reduction in bandgap, whereas an indirect bandgap of 1.9 eV and a direct bandgap of 3.1 eV are calculated for molybdenum oxide. Conclusively, the formation of a conduction filament which is fundamental for resistive switching has been explained through band structure and density of states per eV for oxygen vacancy structures of molybdenum oxide. The current work presents an in-depth understanding of the resistive switching mechanism involved in MoO₃ based resistive random access memory devices for future data storage applications.

The bipolar resistive switching of molybdenum oxide is deliberated while molybdenum and nickel are used as bottom and top electrodes, respectively, to present a device with resistive random access memory (RRAM) characteristics.

Nonvolatile Control of the Electronic Properties of In2-xCrxO3 Semiconductor Films by Ferroelectric Polarization Charge

A series of Cr-doped In_2-xCr_xO₃ (ICO) semiconductor thin films were epitaxially grown on (111)-oriented 0.71Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-0.29PbTiO₃ (PMN-0.29PT) single-crystal substrates by the pulsed laser deposition. Upon the application of an electric field to the PMN-0.29PT substrate along the thickness direction, we realized in situ, reversible, and nonvolatile control of the electronic properties and Fermi level of the films, which are manifested by abundant physical phenomena such as the n-type to p-type transformation, metal-semiconductor transition, metal-insulator transition, crossover of the magnetoresistance (MR) from negative to positive, and a large nonvolatile on-and-off ratio of 5.5 × 10⁴% at room temperature. We also strictly disclose that both the sign and the magnitude of MR are determined by the electron carrier density of ICO films, which could modify the s-d exchange interaction and weak localization effect. Our results demonstrate that the ferroelectric gating approach using PMN-PT can be utilized to gain deeper insight into the carrier-density-related electronic properties of In₂O₃-based semiconductors and provide a simple and energy efficient way to construct multifunctional devices which can utilize the unique properties of composite materials.

Recent Progress in Electrochemical pH-Sensing Materials and Configurations for Biomedical Applications

pH-sensing materials and configurations are rapidly evolving toward exciting new applications, especially those in biomedical applications. In this review, we highlight rapid progress in electrochemical pH sensors over the past decade (2008-2018) with an emphasis on key considerations, such as materials selection, system configurations, and testing protocols. In addition to recent progress in optical pH sensors, our main focus in this review is on electromechanical pH sensors due to their significant advances, especially in biomedical applications. We summarize developments of electrochemical pH sensors that by virtue of their optimized material chemistries (from metal oxides to polymers) and geometrical features (from thin films to quantum dots) enable their adoption in biomedical applications. We further present an overview of necessary sensing standards and protocols. Standards ensure the establishment of consistent protocols, facilitating collective understanding of results and building on the current state. Furthermore, they enable objective benchmarking of various pH-sensing reports, materials, and systems, which is critical for the overall progression and development of the field. Additionally, we list critical issues in recent literary reporting and suggest various methods for objective benchmarking. pH regulation in the human body and state-of-the-art pH sensors (from ex vivo to in vivo) are compared for suitability in biomedical applications. We conclude our review by (i) identifying challenges that need to be overcome in electrochemical pH sensing and (ii) providing an outlook on future research along with insights, in which the integration of various pH sensors with advanced electronics can provide a new platform for the development of novel technologies for disease diagnostics and prevention.

Organic and hybrid resistive switching materials and devices

This review presents a timely and comprehensive summary of organic and hybrid materials for nonvolatile resistive switching memory applications in the “More than Moore” era, with particular attention on their designing principles for electronic property tuning and flexible memory performance.

A Centimeter-Scale Inorganic Nanoparticle Superlattice Monolayer with Non-Close-Packing and its High Performance in Memory Devices

Due to the near-field coupling effect, non-close-packed nanoparticle (NP) assemblies with tunable interparticle distance (d) attract great attention and show huge potential applications in various functional devices, e.g., organic nano-floating-gate memory (NFGM) devices. Unfortunately, the fabrication of device-scale non-close-packed 2D NPs material still remains a challenge, limiting its practical applications. Here, a facile yet robust "rapid liquid-liquid interface assembly" strategy is reported to generate a non-close-packed AuNP superlattice monolayer (SM) on a centimeter scale for high-performance pentacene-based NFGM. The d and hence the surface plasmon resonance spectra of SM can be tailored by adjusting the molecular weight of tethered polymers. Precise control over the d value allows the successful fabrication of photosensitive NFGM devices with highly tunable performances from short-term memory to nonvolatile data storage. The best performing nonvolatile memory device shows remarkable 8-level (3-bit) storage and a memory ratio over 10⁵ even after 10 years compared with traditional devices with a AuNP amorphous monolayer. This work provides a new opportunity to obtain large area 2D NPs materials with non-close-packed structure, which is significantly meaningful to microelectronic, photovoltaics devices, and biochemical sensors.

Solution-processed resistive switching memory devices based on hybrid organic–inorganic materials and composites

We review emerging low-cost solution-processed resistive random-access memory (ReRAM) made of either hybrid nanocomposites or hybrid organo-lead halide perovskites.

Laser-Material Interactions for Flexible Applications

The use of lasers for industrial, scientific, and medical applications has received an enormous amount of attention due to the advantageous ability of precise parameter control for heat transfer. Laser-beam-induced photothermal heating and reactions can modify nanomaterials such as nanoparticles, nanowires, and two-dimensional materials including graphene, in a controlled manner. There have been numerous efforts to incorporate lasers into advanced electronic processing, especially for inorganic-based flexible electronics. In order to resolve temperature issues with plastic substrates, laser-material processing has been adopted for various applications in flexible electronics including energy devices, processors, displays, and other peripheral electronic components. Here, recent advances in laser-material interactions for inorganic-based flexible applications with regard to both materials and processes are presented.

Flexible ferroelectric element based on van der Waals heteroepitaxy

We present a promising technology for nonvolatile flexible electronic devices: A direct fabrication of epitaxial lead zirconium titanate (PZT) on flexible mica substrate via van der Waals epitaxy. These single-crystalline flexible ferroelectric PZT films not only retain their performance, reliability, and thermal stability comparable to those on rigid counterparts in tests of nonvolatile memory elements but also exhibit remarkable mechanical properties with robust operation in bent states (bending radii down to 2.5 mm) and cycling tests (1000 times). This study marks the technological advancement toward realizing much-awaited flexible yet single-crystalline nonvolatile electronic devices for the design and development of flexible, lightweight, and next-generation smart devices with potential applications in electronics, robotics, automotive, health care, industrial, and military systems.

Highly Manufacturable Deep (Sub-Millimeter) Etching Enabled High Aspect Ratio Complex Geometry Lego-Like Silicon Electronics

A highly manufacturable deep reactive ion etching based process involving a hybrid soft/hard mask process technology shows high aspect ratio complex geometry Lego-like silicon electronics formation enabling free-form (physically flexible, stretchable, and reconfigurable) electronic systems.

High Speed Epitaxial Perovskite Memory on Flexible Substrates

Single-crystal perovskite ferroelectric material is integrated at room temperature on a flexible substrate by the layer transfer technique. Two terminal memory devices fabricated with these materials exhibit faster switching speed, lower operating voltage, and superior endurance than other existing flexible counterparts. The research provides an avenue toward combining the rich functionality of charge and spin states, offered by the general class of complex oxides, onto a flexible platform.

Methods for preparing polymer-decorated single exchange-biased magnetic nanoparticles for application in flexible polymer-based films

Background: Magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) must not only be well-defined in composition, shape and size to exhibit the desired properties (e.g., exchange-bias for thermal stability of the magnetization) but also judiciously functionalized to ensure their stability in air and their compatibility with a polymer matrix, in order to avoid aggregation which may seriously affect their physical properties. Dipolar interactions between NPs too close to each other favour a collective magnetic glass state with lower magnetization and coercivity because of inhomogeneous and frustrated macrospin cluster freezing. Consequently, tailoring chemically (through surface functionalization) and magnetically stable NPs for technological applications is of primary importance. Results: In this work, well-characterized exchange-biased perfectly epitaxial Co x Fe3-x O4@CoO core@shell NPs, which were isotropic in shape and of about 10 nm in diameter, were decorated by two different polymers, poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) or polystyrene (PS), using radical-controlled polymerization under various processing conditions. We compared the influence of the synthesis parameters on the structural and microstructural properties of the resulting hybrid systems, with special emphasis on significantly reducing their mutual magnetic attraction. For this, we followed two routes: the first one consists of the direct grafting of bromopropionyl ester groups at the surface of the NPs, which were previously recovered and redispersed in a suitable solvent. The second route deals with an "all in solution" process, based on the decoration of NPs by oleic acid followed by ligand exchange with the desired bromopropionyl ester groups. We then built various assemblies of NPs directly on a substrate or suspended in PMMA. Conclusion: The alternative two-step strategy leads to better dispersed polymer-decorated magnetic particles, and the resulting nanohybrids can be considered as valuable building blocks for flexible, magnetic polymer-based devices.

Ferroelectric fluorinated copolymers with improved adhesion properties

Modified fluorinated electroactive poly(VDF-co-TrFE) copolymers with improved adhesion properties, on glass or metal substrates, are presented.

One-Dimensional Ferroelectric Nanostructures: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

One-dimensional (1D) ferroelectric nanostructures, such as nanowires, nanorods, nanotubes, nanobelts, and nanofibers, have been studied with increasing intensity in recent years. Because of their excellent ferroelectric, ferroelastic, pyroelectric, piezoelectric, inverse piezoelectric, ferroelectric-photovoltaic (FE-PV), and other unique physical properties, 1D ferroelectric nanostructures have been widely used in energy-harvesting devices, nonvolatile random access memory applications, nanoelectromechanical systems, advanced sensors, FE-PV devices, and photocatalysis mechanisms. This review summarizes the current state of 1D ferroelectric nanostructures and provides an overview of the synthesis methods, properties, and practical applications of 1D nanostructures. Finally, the prospects for future investigations are outlined.

CMOS-Technology-Enabled Flexible and Stretchable Electronics for Internet of Everything Applications

Flexible and stretchable electronics can dramatically enhance the application of electronics for the emerging Internet of Everything applications where people, processes, data and devices will be integrated and connected, to augment quality of life. Using naturally flexible and stretchable polymeric substrates in combination with emerging organic and molecular materials, nanowires, nanoribbons, nanotubes, and 2D atomic crystal structured materials, significant progress has been made in the general area of such electronics. However, high volume manufacturing, reliability and performance per cost remain elusive goals for wide commercialization of these electronics. On the other hand, highly sophisticated but extremely reliable, batch-fabrication-capable and mature complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS)-based technology has facilitated tremendous growth of today's digital world using thin-film-based electronics; in particular, bulk monocrystalline silicon (100) which is used in most of the electronics existing today. However, one fundamental challenge is that state-of-the-art CMOS electronics are physically rigid and brittle. Therefore, in this work, how CMOS-technology-enabled flexible and stretchable electronics can be developed is discussed, with particular focus on bulk monocrystalline silicon (100). A comprehensive information base to realistically devise an integration strategy by rational design of materials, devices and processes for Internet of Everything electronics is offered.

The combined effect of mechanical strain and electric field cycling on the ferroelectric performance of P(VDF-TrFE) thin films on flexible substrates and underlying mechanisms

In this manuscript, we study the combined effect of mechanical strain and electric field cycling on the ferroelectric properties and polarization fatigue of P(VDF-TrFE) based flexible thin film capacitors from the perspective of flexible memory applications.