Organic electronic memory chip to be demonstrated in the UK

Dan Rogers - 25 Mar 2010

Memory devices using organic electronics could be made possible following research at a UK university.

Researchers at the Emerging Technologies Research Centre (EmTeRC) at De Montfort University in Leicester have developer nanomaterials for organic electronics, and enhanced knowledge of how the materials interact in a plastic electronic device.

The results will now be applied to a demonstrator of a simple memory device for a product, in a bid to engage industry and generate applications.

Shashi Paul, head of EmTeRC and lead researcher on the project, explains: 'Now we understand the blend of electronics with a polymer factor, we can create organic or plastic memory devices.

'We're very close to demonstrating a working demonstrator, cross-bar memory chip.'

Memory applications

Organic electronic memory, produced at low cost, could add memory chip capabilities to products needing it over a short period time.

Paul explains: 'We're not competing with silicon memory devices, but there is no plastic device in the market for short-term memory.

'This could be used in very simple ways: an electronic toy could have memory for 1-2 months, when the child gets bored and stops playing with it, or could store information on prescription medication bottles for a six-week course.'

The gold nanoparticles developed by the researchers have been proven to retain an electrical charge applied in tests, meaning information can be stored via charged and uncharged particles. The materials are also readily available and could help replace the need for silicon.

The research was undertaken as part of a two-year programme to understand how charging takes place in nanomaterials that can be used in organic electronic memory devices, partly funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council with a £207,000 (€231,000) grant.

'We have been supported by the National Physical Laboratory for 28 months. The key was to understand the science behind this technology and fabricating memory devices.

'Although you can do a lot with a technology without fully understanding it, the true essence of a technology will develop only when you know the science.'