Colossal electroresistance effect around room temperature in LuFe2O4

TL;DR

This paper reports a colossal electroresistance effect in LuFe2O4 near room temperature, where small electric fields induce a transition from insulator to metal, driven by breakdown of charge order, with potential applications.

Contribution

It demonstrates a significant electroresistance effect in LuFe2O4 at room temperature and links it to charge-order breakdown, highlighting its application potential.

Findings

Electric field induces insulator-metal transition in LuFe2O4

Transition threshold decreases exponentially with temperature

High dielectric tunability observed near room temperature

Abstract

A colossal electroresistance effect is observed around room temperature in a transition metal oxide LuFe2O4. The measurements of resistance under various applied voltages as well as the highly nonlinear current-voltage characteristics reveal that a small electric field is able to drive the material from the insulating state to a metallic state. The threshold field at which the insulating-metallic transition occurs, decreases exponentially with increasing temperature. We interpret this transition as a consequence of the breakdown of the charge-ordered state triggered by applied electric field, which is supported by the dramatic dielectric response in a small electric field. This colossal electroresistance effect as well as the high dielectric tunability around room temperature in low applied fields makes LuFe2O4 a very promising material for many applications.