2009/06/30 by Vincent Dubost, T. Cren, Dubost, Vincent +13
Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #FOS: Physical sciences #Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci) #Phase-change materials and chalcogenides #Semiconductor Quantum Structures and Devices #Topological Materials and Phenomena
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.0906.5473
openalex publication_date 2009/06/30 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We report the first experimental evidence for a strong electromechanical coupling in the Mott insulator GaTa4Se8 allowing a highly reproducible nano-writing with a Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM). The local electric field across the STM junction is observed to have a threshold value above which the clean (100) surface of GaTa4Se8 becomes mechanically instable: At voltage biases V > 1.1V the surface suddenly inflates and comes in contact with the STM tip, resulting in nanometer size craters. The formed pattern can be indestructibly "read" by STM at lower voltage bias, thus allowing a 5 Tdots/inch2 dense writing/reading at room temperature. The discovery of the electromechanical coupling in GaTa4Se8 might give new clues in the understanding of the Electric Pulse Induced Resistive Switching recently observed in this stoechiometric Mott insulator.