Synthesis of large-area ultrathin graphdiyne films at an air–water interface and their application in memristors

Abstract

In this work we present for the first time the nonvolatile resistive switching behavior of graphdiyne (GDY) film. We developed a simple approach to fabricate large-area homogeneous GDY films at an air/water interface, via catalytic homocoupling of hexaethynylbenzene at ambient temperature. The high uniformity, large size and low surface roughness of the as obtained GDY films to a large extent simplify the typical complex fabrication processes of carbon-based memristors. The rewritable memristors based on this ultrathin GDY film (about 7 nm) exhibit steady nonvolatile resistance switching behavior with excellent data retention capability (>10³ s) and high on/off ratio (about 10³). This is the first report on nonvolatile memristors based on pure continuous ultrathin GDY films which show clear write/erase switching properties. The electrical performances of the GDY memristors are significantly improved when Ag is used as a top electrode, which is likely due to the formation of Ag conductive filaments, as observed by HRTEM measurements. This study demonstrates that GDY films are promising candidates for carbon-based nonvolatile memristors.