Colossal emergent inductance in a molecular memristor
Memristors exhibit history-dependent transport and are widely studied for their hysteretic current-voltage characteristics, yet their dynamical electrodynamic roles remain largely unexplored. Here, we investigate the quasi-one-dimensional halogen-bridged metal complex [Ni(chxn)[Formula: see text]Br]Br[Formula: see text] using transport measurements, impedance spectroscopy, and oscillation analysis. We show that this material functions as a memristor exhibiting a clear pinched hysteresis loop (PHL) under ac bias. Remarkably, this hysteresis gives rise to a colossal emergent inductance of [Formula: see text]-[Formula: see text] H, far exceeding that of conventional coil-based inductors. The inductive response appears only under finite bias, ruling out parasitic origins, and is independently confirmed by impedance spectroscopy and oscillation-frequency analysis. When combined with a simple capacitor, this intrinsic inductance together with negative differential resistance drives self-sustained oscillations without any external inductor, redefining the origin of oscillatory behavior in this system. These results establish emergent inductance as a fundamental memristive property, reveal a new electrodynamic functionality in correlated molecular materials, and suggest potential routes toward coil-free low-frequency functionalities in electronic and neuromorphic systems.
Authors
- Rei Usami
- Y. Oshima (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9822-8262)
- Taishi Takenobu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7313-6396)
- Shinya Takaishi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6739-8119)
- Tetsuro Moriya
Institutions
- Pioneer (United States) (US)
- Tohoku University (JP)
- RIKEN (JP)
- RIKEN Advanced Science Institute (JP)
- Nagoya University (JP)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Scientific Reports
- Published
- 2026-05-08
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-48808-5
- Primary Topic
- Advanced Memory and Neural Computing
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
- Japan Science and Technology Agency
- Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology