Electromigration effect of Ni electrodes on the resistive switching characteristics of NiO thin films

The effects of Ni and Ni0.83Pt0.17 alloy electrodes on the resistance switching of the dc-sputtered polycrystalline NiO thin films were investigated. The initial off-state resistances of the films were similar to that of Pt/NiO/Pt film. However, after the first cycle of switching, the off-state resistance significantly decreased in the films with Ni in the electrode. It can be attributed to the migration of Ni from electrodes to the NiO films. The improvement in data dispersion of switching parameters is explained in terms of the decrease of the effective thickness of the films resulting from the migration of Ni.