Memristors from vertically aligned transition metal dichalcogenide films: Computational screening study

Vertically aligned MoS2 films have been used for the fabrication of electrochemical metallization (ECM) memristor devices. While many other transition metal dichalcogenides can be synthesized in the vertical growth mode, their suitability for ECM memristors has not been studied. In this study, we investigate whether other vertically growable layered materials (MoSe2, MoTe2, WS2, and WSe2) can be used for the same purposes. We simulate metal ion incorporation to transition metal dichalcogenide films and their migration therein using first-principles and kinetic Monte Carlo calculations. Our results confirm that all studied materials are great ionic conductors, each with distinct characteristics. Among them, WS2 with Cu electrodes emerges as the most promising configuration for memristor applications.