Nanoparticles as Building Units for Bio-Inspired Electronics –Switching and Sensing

Abstract

Owing to their high surface-to-volume ratio, their small size and the high number of intrinsic defects, nanoparticless (NPs) exhibit properties that go beyond typical bulk materials. Consequently, nanogranular systems, with NPs as their fundamental building units, differ in many aspects from their atom-assembled counterparts. In this work, gas phase synthesis of NPs is applied as it offers the benefit of a high purity, surfactant free deposition that is compatible with a broad range of substrates. At the example of three fundamentally different NP assemblies it is showcased, how the unique properties of NPs make them promising building units for electronic devices with neuron-inspired functionalities. First, metal- insulator-metal structures with sparse embedding of AgAu alloy NPs inside a dielectric matrix are investigated for their diffusive memristive switching with distinct, well-separable resistance states. Secondly, the dynamic transitions between multiple resistance states in highly interconnected multi- terminal Ag NP networks are described. Lastly, illumination-dependent resistance states are investigated in two-terminal TiO2 NP sensor devices.