Effects of annealing temperature on the resistance switching behaviour of solution-processed ZnO thin films

Abstract

In this study, the resistance switching (RS) behaviour of the fabricated devices with the configuration: ITO/ZnO (x annealing temperature)/Al were investigated. It was observed that the area of a hysteresis loop in the Current-Voltage characteristics was reduced with increase in ZnO annealing temperature. Correspondingly, the on/off ratio of the RS also gets reduced. The hysteresis behaviour was highly consistent and repeatable for the films annealed at 150 °C. The films annealed at 450 °C did not show any RS behaviour. Under the high current condition, a reproducible RS behaviour was observed. This was attributed to the synergetic effects of lowering of the barrier height at electrode/ZnO interface and the increase in the grain size with the annealing temperatures. The RS behaviour is ascribed to the conduction mechanism at the ITO/ZnO interface. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd