Nano-ZnO-Decorated lotus fibers for nonvolatile memristors

The memory device is based on a nanocomposite of cellulose fibers and ZnO nanoparticles. [Display omitted] •The environmentally friendly nanocomposites from lotus fiber cellulose and nano-ZnO.•The volatile behavior-based cellulose turned to the nonvolatile-based ZnO@cellulose.•The oxygen vacancies of nano-ZnO are responsible for the resistive switching mechanism.•The sustainable approach for the high potential of bio-organic electronic devices. Electronic devices incorporating green materials offer a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative, harnessing the unique properties of natural substances to contribute to a more eco-conscious and biodegradable technological landscape. This study extracts cellulose fibers from lotus petiole and decorates them with zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles. The hybrid ZnO and cellulose (ZC) nanocomposite was used as a switching layer in the RRAM structure. The ZC thin film-based device displayed non-volatile bipolar behavior, whereas the device based on pure cellulose exhibited volatile behavior. This ZC-based device had significant enhancements, including a low operating voltage range of 2.0 V, a high ON/OFF resistance ratio of 103, endurance of 102 cycles, and an excellent retention time of 104 s. Oxygen vacancies, explored by PL and XPS results, are the most dominant in ZnO particles, indicating a substantial effect on the non-volatile characteristic in the Ag/ZC/FTO device. These results demonstrate that the lotus petiole cellulose-ZnO nanocomposite is a promising material for developing eco-friendly and low-cost memory devices.