Electrochemical synthesis of Ag(0)/Ag2S heterojunctions templated on pre-formed Ag2S nanowires

摘要

Hybrid metal/ionic conductor nanostructures are of considerable interest due to their potential use as resistive switches, and are envisioned as the next generation of memory devices. We present here the electrochemical conversion of ionic and semi-conducting Ag2S nanowires (NW) into a range of hybrid nanostructures. Partial electrochemical reduction of Au/Ag2S NW/Au junctions allows one to form Ag~0 NW/Ag2S NW and Ag~0 NW/Ag2S NW/Ag~0 NW heterojunctions. Control over the quantity of Ag~0 NW within the junctions is presented along with its influence on the conductivity of the junctions. We demonstrate the use of this technique to make functional Au/Ag~0 NW/Ag2S NW/Au resistive switches.