A Thin-film, Nickel Oxide Switch

Résumé du livre

This report describes an electrically actuated, solid-state switch. The switch is a two-terminal device consisting of a thin nickel oxide film separating two ohmic contacts. The gross properties of the switch are (1) reversible switching between two impedance levels (ON: 100 ohms; OFF: 25 megohms), and (2) electrical actuation of the switch (turn-on: 500-v, 40 microsec pulse; turnoff: 300-ma, 10-nsec pulse). The fabrication of the device from thermally grown nickel oxide is described. A switching model for the device is established on the basis of a series of experiments, and theoretical calculations of switching times using this model are made. Limited lifetimes observed for the device suggest applications requiring single-shot operations which utilize the insulating properties of the NiO film. (Author).