Electrochemical-tunable and mesostructure-dependent abrupt-to-progressive conversion in fibroin-based transient memristor

The unique degradability and excellent biocompatibility make silk fibroin an attractive material for flexible transient memristors. Materials functionalization from the mesoscopic reconstruction view is a promising route to expand functions and create new types of electronic devices. Here, the transformation of the abrupt-to-progressive switching behavior in fibroin-based memristors is achieved via annealing to adjust the mesoscopic structure. Through electrical test and scanning electron microscope analysis, we study the electrochemical dynamics of metal nanoparticles in switching medium with different mesoscopic structures and directly reveal the microscopic origin of the abrupt-to-progressive transformation in fibroin-based transient memristors. The device exhibits abrupt resistive switching behaviors when the mobility and redox rate are high and displays progressive resistive switching behaviors under the low mobility and low redox rate condition. These findings reveal the microscopic origins of abrupt-to-progressive conversion and provide general guidance for designing high-performance memory devices and artificial synapses.