A theoretical investigation on the transport properties of armchair biphenylene nanoribbons

Armchair biphenylene nanoribbons are investigated by using density functional theory. The nanoribbon that contains one biphenylene subunit in a unit cell is a semiconductor with a direct band gap larger than 1 eV, while that containing four biphenylene subunits is a metal. The semiconducting nanoribbon has high electron mobility of 57174 cm(2) V-1 s(-1), superior to armchair graphene nanoribbons. Negative differential resistance behavior is observed in two electronic devices composed of the semiconducting and metallic nanoribbons. The on/off ratios are in the order of 10(3). All these indicate that armchair biphenylene nanoribbons are potential candidates for ultra-small logic devices. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.