Electrical switching in the MoO3–WO3–P2O5 and MoO3–P2O5 glasses

Abstract

High field electrical switching on blown films of MoO3(60%)–P2O5(40%), MoO3(50%)–WO3(10%)–P2O5(40%), and MoO3(45%)–WO3(15%)–P2O5(40%) having different thicknesses was studied and compared. Switching was observed using two terminal samples. S-type current–voltage characteristic (current-controlled negative resistance—CCNR) with memory was observed in molybdenum–phosphate glasses, but N-type characteristic (voltage-controlled negative resistance—VCNR) with threshold in tungsten–molybdenum–phosphate glasses was observed. The important observation was that with the addition of WO3 to binary MoO3–P2O5 led to a change of I–V characteristic from CCNR with memory to VCNR with threshold. The measurements of density and molar volume showed linear relation between MoO3 content and density which decreased with the increase of MoO3 content. The samples’ thickness had no significant effect on threshold voltage. The attained results also indicated that the electrode material had no effect on switching property of devices. The switching behavior of the devices did not show any dependence on the polarity of the applied voltage. In terms of the effect of heat on the switching behavior of molybdenum–phosphate glasses, it was found that threshold voltage decreases with increasing of temperature. Finally, the switching phenomenon was explained by thermal (formation of crystalline filaments) and electronic models.