Investigating the Resistive Switching Mechanisms of Oxide and Nitride-Based Memristor Devices via In Situ STEM and EELS

The resistive-switching (RS) phenomenon observed in a variety of transitional metal oxides is of great research interest since it opens enormous opportunities for the next-generation electronic devices such as nonvolatile memory and neuromorphic computing units, etc. However, the RS mechanisms for many oxide- and nitride- based memristor devices are still unclear. In this project, we use <i>in situ</i> transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS) to investigate the RS mechanisms of different types of memristor devices. The high resolution STEM images captured during the <i>in situ</i> biasing experiment revealed the potential phase transition processes and polarized cations displacements, and the core EELS spectra confirmed the cations valene states change and the oxygen stoichiometry modulation during the RS processes. This study has shined great light on clarifying the RS mechanisms of different types memristor devices, which can be applied to the development of next-generation nanoelectronic devices towards advanced memory and neuromorphic computing units etc.