Instantaneous Gelation of a Self-Healable Wide-Bandgap Semiconducting Supramolecular Mg(II)-Metallohydrogel: An Efficient Nonvolatile Memory Design with Supreme Endurance

Abstract

An efficient strategy for room-temperature, atmospheric-pressure synthesis of a supramolecular metallohydrogel of the Mg(II) ion, i.e., Mg@3AP, using the metal-coordinating organic ligand 3-amino-1-propanol as a low-molecular-weight gelator (LMWG) in a water medium has been developed. Through a rheological analysis, we looked into the mechanical properties of the supramolecular Mg(II)-metallohydrogel. The self-healing nature of the metallohydrogel is confirmed along with the thixotropic characteristics. Investigation using field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed the hierarchical network of the supramolecular metallohydrogel. The EDX elemental mapping confirms the primary chemical constituents of the metallohydrogel. The possible metallohydrogel formation strategy has been analyzed through FT-IR spectroscopic studies. In this work, Schottky diode structures in a metal–semiconductor–metal geometry structures based on a magnesium(II) metallohydrogel (Mg@3AP) have been constructed, and charge transport behavior has been observed. Furthermore, here, it is demonstrated that the resistive random access memory (RRAM) device based on Mg@3AP exhibits bipolar resistive switching behavior at room temperature and ambient conditions. We have also looked into the switching mechanism through the formation (rupture) of conductive filaments between the metal electrodes to understand the process of resistive switching behavior. With a high on/off ratio (∼100), this RRAM device exhibits remarkable switching endurance over 10,000 switching cycles. These structures are suitable for use in nonvolatile memory design, neuromorphic computing, flexible electronics, and optoelectronics, among other fields, due to their simple fabrication procedures, reliable resistive switching behavior, and stability of the current system.