In situ TEM observations of void movement in Ag nanowires affecting the electrical properties under biasing.

In this study we investigated the electromigration (EM) of metal electrodes and the effect of stacking faults on the EM in Ag nanowires (NWs). We used the galvanic replacement method to synthesize these NWs by controlling the concentration of silver nitrate. In situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed the presence of both intrinsic and extrinsic stacking faults in the Ag NWs. We found that planar defects increased the lifetime of the devices with an intrinsic change in the material properties. Our EM measurements involved examinations of the change in electrical resistance (arising from void formation in the NW as a result of electromigration) as well as direct visual observation of the shape (using in situ TEM).