Understanding Electrical Conduction States in WO3 Thin Films Applied for Resistive Random-Access Memory

The electrical conduction and associated resistance switching mechanism of top electrode/WO3/bottom electrode devices [top electrode (TE): Ag, Ti; bottom electrode (BE): Pt, fluorine-doped tin oxide] have been investigated. The direction of switching and switching ability depended on both the top and bottom electrode material. Multiple electrical conduction mechanisms control the leakage current of such switching devices, including trap-controlled space-charge, ballistic, Ohmic, and Fowler-Nordheim tunneling effects. The transition between electrical conduction states is also linked to the switching (SET-RESET) process. This is the first report of ballistic conduction in research into resistive random-access memory. The associated resistive switching mechanisms are also discussed.