US Patent 7593250 - Ferroelectric nanostructure switch

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7593250.html

FeRAM is a type of non-volatile memory based on ferroelectric material having advantages in power consumption over DRAM and better data write speeds than Flash. This patent from the University of Arkansas discloses forming nanodots of PbZr1-xTixO3 providing higher memory density while avoiding electrical crosstalk. Claim 1 reads:

1. A device for storing data, comprising:

a low dimensional nano-scale ferroelectric material having at least one vortex ring of polarization generating an ordered toroid moment switchable between at least two stable states; and

means for switching said states with a transverse inhomogeneous static electric field.