Memristive phase switching in two-dimensional 1T-TaS2 crystals

Electrical switching to multiple novel metastable states in a correlated two-dimensional crystal. Scaling down materials to an atomic-layer level produces rich physical and chemical properties as exemplified in various two-dimensional (2D) crystals including graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides, and black phosphorus. This is caused by the dramatic modification of electronic band structures. In such reduced dimensions, the electron correlation effects are also expected to be significantly changed from bulk systems. However, there are few attempts to realize novel phenomena in correlated 2D crystals. We report memristive phase switching in nano-thick crystals of 1T-type tantalum disulfide (1T-TaS2), a first-order phase transition system. The ordering kinetics of the phase transition were found to become extremely slow as the thickness is reduced, resulting in an emergence of metastable states. Furthermore, we realized unprecedented memristive switching to multistep nonvolatile states by applying an in-plane electric field. The reduction of thickness is essential to achieve such nonvolatile electrical switching behavior. The thinning-induced slow kinetics possibly make the various metastable states robust and consequently realize the nonvolatile memory operation. The present result indicates that a 2D crystal with correlated electrons is a novel nano-system to explore and functionalize multiple metastable states that are inaccessible in its bulk form.

[1]  Xianfan Xu,et al.  Phosphorene: an unexplored 2D semiconductor with a high hole mobility. , 2014, ACS nano.

[2]  R. C. Macridis.  A review , 1963 .

[3]  Hua Zhang,et al.  The chemistry of two-dimensional layered transition metal dichalcogenide nanosheets. , 2013, Nature chemistry.

[4]  Andre K. Geim,et al.  The rise of graphene. , 2007, Nature materials.

[5]  Xianfan Xu,et al.  Phosphorene: an unexplored 2D semiconductor with a high hole mobility. , 2014, ACS nano.

[6]  S. Datta,et al.  Electrically driven reversible insulator-metal phase transition in 1T-TaS2. , 2015, Nano letters.

[7]  A. Bessonov,et al.  Layered memristive and memcapacitive switches for printable electronics. , 2015, Nature materials.

[8]  S. Ha,et al.  Adaptive oxide electronics: A review , 2011 .

[9]  F. Kagawa,et al.  Systematic Variations in the Charge-Glass-Forming Ability of Geometrically Frustrated $\theta$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2X$ Organic Conductors , 2014, 1408.2913.

[10]  K. Koepernik,et al.  Orbital textures and charge density waves in transition metal dichalcogenides , 2014, Nature Physics.

[11]  D. Mihailovic,et al.  Fast electronic resistance switching involving hidden charge density wave states , 2016, Nature Communications.

[12]  D. Uhlmann.  A kinetic treatment of glass formation , 1972 .

[13]  D. Stewart,et al.  The missing memristor found , 2008, Nature.

[14]  J Joshua Yang,et al.  Memristive devices for computing. , 2013, Nature nanotechnology.

[15]  J. Yang,et al.  Memristive switching mechanism for metal/oxide/metal nanodevices. , 2008, Nature nanotechnology.

[16]  J. Wilson,et al.  Charge-density waves and superlattices in the metallic layered transition metal dichalcogenides , 1975 .

[17]  E. Tosatti,et al.  Charge carrier localization in pure and doped 1T-TaS2 , 1979 .

[18]  Y. Tokura,et al.  Phase-change memory function of correlated electrons in organic conductors , 2015, 1501.02873.

[19]  Likai Li,et al.  Black phosphorus field-effect transistors. , 2014, Nature nanotechnology.

[20]  Shoji Tanaka,et al.  Nonlinear conduction in two-dimensional CDW system: 1T-TaS2 , 1978 .

[21]  J. Grollier,et al.  A ferroelectric memristor. , 2012, Nature materials.

[22]  M. Wuttig,et al.  Phase-change materials for rewriteable data storage. , 2007, Nature materials.

[23]  Qing Hua Wang,et al.  Electronics and optoelectronics of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides. , 2012, Nature nanotechnology.

[24]  L. Lauhon,et al.  Gate-tunable memristive phenomena mediated by grain boundaries in single-layer MoS2. , 2015, Nature nanotechnology.

[25]  J C Gill,et al.  Thermally initiated phase-slip in the motion and relaxation of charge-density waves in niobium triselenide , 1986 .

[26]  Massimiliano Di Ventra,et al.  Phase-transition driven memristive system , 2009, 0901.0899.

[27]  G. Grüner,et al.  The dynamics of charge-density waves , 1988 .

[28]  Wang Yao,et al.  Spin and pseudospins in layered transition metal dichalcogenides , 2014, Nature Physics.

[29]  A. Fujiwara,et al.  Controlling charge-density-wave states in nano-thick crystals of 1T-TaS2 , 2014, Scientific Reports.

[30]  Shiyan Li,et al.  Gate-tunable phase transitions in thin flakes of 1T-TaS2. , 2014, Nature nanotechnology.

[31]  A. Zettl,et al.  Scanning tunneling microscopy of the charge-density-wave structure in 1T-TaS2. , 1994 .

[32]  Clarke,et al.  Scanning tunneling microscopy of the charge-density-wave structure in 1T-TaS2. , 1991, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[33]  H. Berger,et al.  Pressure dependence of the charge density wave in 1T-TaS2 and its relation to superconductivity , 2013, 1302.6449.

[34]  D. Mihailovic,et al.  Ultrafast Switching to a Stable Hidden Quantum State in an Electronic Crystal , 2014, Science.