Nonvolatile ternary resistive switching memory devices based on the polymer composites containing zinc oxide nanoparticles

Nonvolatile ternary memory devices were fabricated from the composites polymer blends containing zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles. When applying a negative bias on the top electrode, the fabricated devices with a simple sandwich structure of indium tin oxide (ITO)/composite polymer/aluminum (Al) exhibited three distinct resistance states, which could be labeled as OFF'', ON1'' and ON2'' for ternary data storage application. The ITO/polystyrene (PS) + ZnO/Al devices can endure 3 x 10(4) read-cycles and exhibit a retention time of 10(4) s. The resistance-temperature dependence at different resistance states was investigated to confirm the temperature-dependent properties. The resistance of the OFF'' and ON1'' state reveals negative temperature dependence, manifesting a typical semiconductor characteristic. The resistance of the ON2'' state exhibits positive temperature dependence, showing metallic properties.