Actual origin and precise control of asymmetrical hysteresis in an individual CH3NH3PbI3 micro/nanowire for optical memory and logic operation

Although CH3NH3PbI3 can present an excellent photoresponse to visible light, its application in solar cells and photodetectors is seriously hindered due to hysteresis behaviour. Moreover, for its origin, there exist different opinions. Herein, we demonstrate a route to realize precise control for the electrical transport of a single CH3NH3PbI3 micro/nanowire by constructing a two-terminal device with asymmetric Ag and C electrodes, and its hysteresis can be clearly identified as a synergistic effect of the redox reaction at the interface of the Ag electrode and the injection and ejection of holes in the interfacial traps of the C electrode rather than its bulk effect. The device can show superior bias amplitude and illumination intensity dependence of hysteresis loops with typical bipolar resistive switching features. Thus, an excellent multilevel nonvolatile optical memory can be effectively realized by the modulation of the illumination and bias, and moreover a logic OR gate operation can be successfully implemented with voltage and illumination as input signals as well. This work clearly reveals and provides a new insight of hysteresis origin that can be attributed to a synergistic effect of two asymmetrical electrode interfaces, and therefore precisely controlling its electrical transport to realize an outstanding application potential in multifunctional devices integrated with optical nonvolatile memory and logic OR gate operation.