Investigations of endurance and retention in tantalum oxide based memristor

Abstract

Transparent neuromorphic electronics are gaining attention due the advantages of low-power operation, artificial self-learning synapses, and invisible circuits. Memristor plays a critical role in realizing these devices where the resistive state is continuously modified with application of external perturbations such as electric field, current, temperature and light. Endurance and retention are very important parameters for the repeatability and reliability of the device. Here, we have fabricated a memristor based on amorphous tantalum oxide thin films on transparent conducting oxide (TCO) substrate, using a physical vapor deposition technique. The structural quality of these films was confirmed by various characterization techniques namely Raman spectroscopy, UV–Vis spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy, and X-Ray Reflectivity. The device characteristics were measured using a semiconductor characterization system (SCS 4200). The influence of morphology, device thicknesses, and the nature of top and bottom electrodes has been investigated in detail to enhance the endurance and retention properties.