Chitosan-Based Flexible Memristors with Embedded Carbon Nanotubes for Neuromorphic Electronics

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electronics Engineering
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Neuromorphic electronics require advanced memristive devices for artificial synaptic applications.
• Flexible and transparent memristors are crucial for next-generation electronic systems.
• Chitosan and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) offer promising properties for electronic materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop high-performance chitosan-based flexible memristors with embedded SWCNTs.
• To investigate the effect of SWCNTs on the bipolar resistive switching (BRS) characteristics.
• To evaluate the memristive properties for artificial synaptic applications.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of flexible memristors on a polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) substrate using low-temperature solution processing.
• Analysis of bipolar resistive switching (BRS) behavior attributed to cation-based electrochemical reactions.
• Characterization of SWCNT-embedded chitosan nanocomposite memristors for memory window and synaptic plasticity.

Main Results:

• SWCNT-embedded chitosan memristors exhibited enhanced BRS behavior with a wider memory window (14.98) compared to non-SWCNT devices (6.39).
• SWCNTs facilitate conductive filament formation by absorbing metal ions, leading to improved device stability.
• Demonstrated short-term and long-term plasticity, including paired-pulse facilitation and spike-timing-dependent plasticity.

Conclusions:

• SWCNT-embedded chitosan memristors are a promising material for artificial synaptic electronics.
• The proposed devices offer enhanced performance and stability for neuromorphic computing.
• Low-temperature solution processing enables scalable fabrication of these flexible electronic components.