Percolation-Limited Threshold Switching in Strain-Graded Mott Devices.

ABSTRACT: The threshold switch operated by a field-driven insulator-to-metal transition in VO₂ has attracted considerable interest for emerging devices due to its nonlinear and sensitive response to external voltage. However, the nucleation barrier intrinsic to the first-order phase transition causes a finite time delay before the abrupt rise in currents under voltage pulses, thereby hindering energy-efficient device operation. Here, we demonstrate that the strain-graded VO₂ epilayer on Pt nanoislands (NIs) enables percolation-limited threshold switching by promoting the nucleation process of metallic phases during voltage-triggered phase transitions. Unlike constantly strained VO₂, the Pt NIs locally disrupt lattice coherency at the VO₂/TiO₂ in

SUBMITTER: Cho U 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12810470 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature