Electrical bistabilities and carrier transport mechanisms of write-once-read-many-times memory devices fabricated utilizing ZnO nanoparticles embedded in a polystyrene layer

Abstract

High-resolution transmission electron microscopy images showed that ZnO nanoparticles were randomly distributed in a polystyrene (PS) layer. Current-voltage (I-V) curves at 300 K for Al/ZnO nanoparticles embedded in PS layer/indium tin oxide devices showed a current bistability with a large ON/OFF ratio of 10(3) for write-once-read-many-times (WORM) memory devices. The estimated retention time of the ON state for the WORM device was more than 10 years. The carrier transport mechanisms for the WORM memory device are described on the basis of the I-V results.