Paper Presentation on Plastic Memory ( Paper Presentation )
Abstract: A conducting plastic has been used to create a new memory technology which has the
potential to store a mega bit of data in a millimeter- square device-10 times denser than
current magnetic memories. This device is cheap and fast, but cannot be rewritten, so would only be suitable for permanent storage.
The device sandwiches a blob of a conducting polymer called PEDOT and a silicon diode between perpendicular wires.
The key to the new technology was discovered by passing high current through PEDOT (Polyethylenedioxythiophene) which turns it into an insulator, rather like blowing a fuse .The polymer has two possible states- conductor and insulator, that form the one and zero, necessary to store digital data.
However tuning the polymer into an insulator involves a permanent chemical change, meaning the memory can only be written once.
