Nonvolatile Bio-Memristor Fabricated with Egg Albumen Film

This study demonstrates the fabrication and characterization of chicken egg albumen-based bio-memristors. By introducing egg albumen as an insulator to fabricate memristor devices comprising a metal/insulator/metal sandwich structure, significant bipolar resistive switching behavior can be observed. The 1/f noise characteristics of the albumen devices were measured, and results suggested that their memory behavior results from the formation and rupture of conductive filaments. Oxygen diffusion and electrochemical redox reaction of metal ions under a sufficiently large electric field are the principal physical mechanisms of the formation and rupture of conductive filaments; these mechanisms were observed by analysis of the time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) and resistance–temperature (R–T) measurement results. The switching property of the devices remarkably improved by heat-denaturation of proteins; reliable switching endurance of over 500 cycles accompanied by an on/off current ratio (I(on/off)) of higher than 10(3) were also observed. Both resistance states could be maintained for a suitably long time (>10(4) s). Taking the results together, the present study reveals for the first time that chicken egg albumen is a promising material for nonvolatile memory applications.