US Patent 7511294 - Nanoparticle RRAM

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7511294.html

By using voltage pulses to alter the resistance states of certain materials a new form of non-volatile memory called RRAM has been under development over the past year and has recently been popularized by the memristor theory. This patent from Infineon teaches incorporating nanoparticles in the material to reduce the time necessary for data erasure. Claim 1 reads:

1. A resistive memory element for reversibly switching between a high-resistance OFF state and a low-resistance ON state, the resistive memory element comprising:

a reactive electrode;

an inert electrode;

a solid electrolyte arranged between the reactive and inert electrodes; and

a nanoparticle structure arranged on the inert electrode, wherein the nanoparticle structure is formed of a plurality of nanoparticles that are arranged at a distance and are separated from each other so as to define openings within the nanoparticle structure between the nanoparticles through which the solid electrolyte makes contact with the inert electrode, and the openings within the nanoparticle structure have a defined average size.