Flexible Sol-Gel—Processed Y₂O₃ RRAM Devices Obtained via UV/Ozone-Assisted Photochemical Annealing Process

Flexible indium tin oxide (ITO)/Y₂O₃/Ag resistive random access memory (RRAM) devices were successfully fabricated using a thermal-energy-free ultraviolet (UV)/ozone-assisted photochemical annealing process. Using the UV/ozone-assisted photochemical process, the organic residue can be eliminated, and thinner and smother Y₂O₃ films than those formed using other methods can be fabricated. The flexible UV/ozone-assisted photochemical annealing process-based ITO/Y₂O₃/Ag RRAM devices exhibited the properties of conventional bipolar RRAM without any forming process. Furthermore, the pure and amorphous-phase Y₂O₃ films formed via this process showed a decreased leakage current and an increased high-resistance status (HRS) compared with the films formed using other methods. Therefore, RRAM devices can be realized on plastic substrates using a thermal-energy-free UV/ozone-assisted photochemical annealing process. The fabricated devices exhibited a resistive window (ratio of HRS/low-resistance status (LRS)) of >10⁴, with the HRS and LRS values remaining almost the same (i.e., limited deterioration occurred) for 10⁴ s and up to 10² programming/erasing operation cycles.