title: X-ray irradiation induced reversible resistance change in Pt/TiO2/Pt cells.
abstract: The interaction between X-rays and matter is an intriguing topic for both fundamental science and possible applications. In particular, synchrotron-based brilliant X-ray beams have been used as a powerful diagnostic tool to unveil nanoscale phenomena in functional materials. However, it has not been widely investigated how functional materials respond to the brilliant X-rays. Here, we report the X-ray-induced reversible resistance change in 40-nm-thick TiO2 films sandwiched by Pt top and bottom electrodes, and propose the physical mechanism behind the emergent phenomenon. Our findings indicate that there exists a photovoltaic-like effect, which modulates the resistance reversibly by a few orders of magnitude, depending on the intensity of impinging X-rays. We found that this effect, combined with the X-ray irradiation induced phase transition confirmed by transmission electron microscopy, triggers a nonvolatile reversible resistance change. Understanding X-ray-controlled reversible resistance changes can provide possibilities to control initial resistance states of functional materials, which could be useful for future information and energy storage devices.
authors.affiliation: Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory , Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States.
authors.forename: Seo Hyoung
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Jungho
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Charudatta
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Phatak
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: D'Aquila
authors.forename: Seong Keun
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jiyoon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Seul Ji
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Cheol Seong
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Eastman
authors.forename: John W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Freeland
authors.forename: Seungbum
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hong