Controlled synthesis of Ni/CuO(x)/Ni nanowires by electrochemical deposition with self-compliance bipolar resistive switching

We demonstrate synthesis of Ni/CuO(x)/Ni nanowires (NWs) by electrochemical deposition on anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) membranes. AAO with pore diameter of ~70 nm and pore length of ~50 μm was used as the template for synthesis of NWs. After deposition of Au as the seed layer, NWs with a structure of Ni/CuO(x)/Ni were grown with a length of ~12 μm. The lengths of 1(st) Ni, CuO(x), and 2(nd) Ni were ~4.5 μm, ~3 μm, and ~4.5 μm, respectively. The Ni/CuO(x)/Ni device exhibits bipolar resistive switching behavior with self-compliance characteristics. Due to the spatial restriction of the current path in NW the Ni/CuO(x)/Ni NW devices are thought to exhibit self-compliance behaviour. Ni/CuO(x)/Ni NWs showed bipolar resistive changes possibly due to conducting filaments that are induced by oxygen vacancies. The reliability of the devices was confirmed by data retention measurement. The NW-based resistive switching memory has applications in highly scalable memory devices and neuromorphic devices.