Investigation of filamentation in a-Si/Ag/Cu memristors with atomic force microscope
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866913085864804352 |
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| author | Samsonova, Alena Dremov, Viacheslav Klimenko, Oleg Brilliantov, Nikolai Antonov, Vladimir N. |
| author_facet | Samsonova, Alena Dremov, Viacheslav Klimenko, Oleg Brilliantov, Nikolai Antonov, Vladimir N. |
| contents | Cation-based Ag/Cu filaments formed in an insulating $α$-Si matrix are widely used as memristors in crossbar arrays for efficient in-memory computing. However, the stochastic nature of filament formation and rupture gives rise to device-to-device and cycle-to-cycle variation. Despite successful implementation of large-scale memristor arrays, systematic studies of filament parameters and their spatial distribution in the memristors are scarce. In this work, we use conductive atomic force microscopy (c-AFM) to probe the spatial distribution of conductive filaments in $α$-Si memristors. The charge transport is dominated by a limited number of discrete filaments rather than by uniform conduction across the device area. The systematic analysis of the experiment gives the mean surface density of the conductive filaments $\sim$3200 per $μ\text{m}^2$. Both volatile and non-volatile filaments can be found within one memristor. The experimental data and the nature of volatile and non-volatile filaments may be explained within the model of multiple trap assisted tunnelling. The model yields reasonable estimates for physical properties for both types of filaments. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_02432 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Investigation of filamentation in a-Si/Ag/Cu memristors with atomic force microscope Samsonova, Alena Dremov, Viacheslav Klimenko, Oleg Brilliantov, Nikolai Antonov, Vladimir N. Materials Science Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics Applied Physics Cation-based Ag/Cu filaments formed in an insulating $α$-Si matrix are widely used as memristors in crossbar arrays for efficient in-memory computing. However, the stochastic nature of filament formation and rupture gives rise to device-to-device and cycle-to-cycle variation. Despite successful implementation of large-scale memristor arrays, systematic studies of filament parameters and their spatial distribution in the memristors are scarce. In this work, we use conductive atomic force microscopy (c-AFM) to probe the spatial distribution of conductive filaments in $α$-Si memristors. The charge transport is dominated by a limited number of discrete filaments rather than by uniform conduction across the device area. The systematic analysis of the experiment gives the mean surface density of the conductive filaments $\sim$3200 per $μ\text{m}^2$. Both volatile and non-volatile filaments can be found within one memristor. The experimental data and the nature of volatile and non-volatile filaments may be explained within the model of multiple trap assisted tunnelling. The model yields reasonable estimates for physical properties for both types of filaments. |
| title | Investigation of filamentation in a-Si/Ag/Cu memristors with atomic force microscope |
| topic | Materials Science Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics Applied Physics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.02432 |