Theoretical framework of the thermal memristor via a solid-state phase change material

The thermal memristor is the equivalent of the electrical memristor but in the thermal domain. The defining characteristic of the electrical memristor is the pinched Lissajous-type i-v curve (current to voltage difference); therefore, analogous behavior in the q-T curve (heat flux to temperature difference) should be the distinguishing feature of a thermal memristor. Herein, we propose a theoretical framework to realize thermal memristor devices using a solid-solid phase change material, tungsten doped vanadium dioxide. We show that by adding a periodic thermal input to the device, it is possible to obtain the characteristic pinched Lissajous type q-T curve that is indicative of the existence of a thermal memristor. Published under license by AIP Publishing.