Nonvolatile flash memory based on biologically integrated hierarchical nanostructures.

The first six peptides of multifunctional titanium binding peptide-1 bestowed recombinant L-ferritin, minT1-LF, was genetically engineered and used to fabricate multilayered nanoparticle architecture. The multifunctionality of minT1-LF enables specific binding of nanoparticle-accommodated minT1-LF to the silicon substrate surface and wet biochemical fabrication of gate oxide layer by its biomineralization activity. Three-dimensional (3D) nanoparticle architecture with multilayered structure was fabricated by the biological layer-by-layer method and embedded in a metal oxide-semiconductor device structure as a charge storage node of a flash memory device. The 3D-integrated multilayered nanoparticle architecture successfully worked as a charge storage node in flash memory devices that exhibited improved charge storage capacity compared with that of a conventional monolayer structure device.

Suppression of inhomogeneous segregation in graphene growth on epitaxial metal films.

Large-scale uniform graphene growth was achieved by suppressing inhomogeneous carbon segregation using a single domain Ru film epitaxially grown on a sapphire substrate. An investigation of how the metal thickness affected growth and a comparative study on metals with different crystal structures have revealed that locally enhanced carbon segregation at stacking domain boundaries of metal is the origin of inhomogeneous graphene growth. Single domain Ru film has no stacking domain boundary, and the graphene growth on it is mainly caused not by segregation but by a surface catalytic reaction. Suppression of local segregation is essential for uniform graphene growth on epitaxial metal films.

Resistive random access memory utilizing ferritin protein with Pt nanoparticles.

This study reports controlled single conductive paths found in resistive random access memory (ReRAM) formed by embedding Pt nanoparticles (Pt NPs) in NiO film. Homogeneous Pt NPs produced and placed by ferritin protein produce electric field convergence which leads to controlled conductive path formation. The ReRAM with Pt NPs shows stable switching behavior. A Pt NP density decrease results in an increase of OFF state resistance and decrease of forming voltage, whereas ON resistance was independent of the Pt NP density, which indicates that a single metal NP in a memory cell will achieve low power and stable operation.

Using the ring-shaped protein TRAP to capture and confine gold nanodots on a surface.

The cavity of the toroidal protein TRAP (trp RNA-binding attenuation protein) is modified to capture gold nanodots in solution. By engineering a titanium-binding peptide onto one surface of the ring it is also possible to bind it specifically and tightly to a TiO2 surface. TRAP bound in this way is then used to capture gold nanodots and attach them to prepared surfaces. Gold-protein complexes are observed using atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The modified TRAP is used to build gold nanodots into the SiO2 layer of a metal oxide semiconductor. This is the first use of a ring protein, rather than the more commonly used spherical protein cages, to constrain nanodots to a surface. This method is an important addition to the current range of bionanotechnology tools and may be the basis for future, multicomponent electronic devices.

Non-volatile flash memory with discrete bionanodot floating gate assembled by protein template.

We demonstrated non-volatile flash memory fabrication by utilizing uniformly sized cobalt oxide (Co(3)O(4)) bionanodot (Co-BND) architecture assembled by a cage-shaped supramolecular protein template. A fabricated high-density Co-BND array was buried in a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistor (MOSFET) structure to use as the charge storage node of a floating nanodot gate memory. We observed a clockwise hysteresis in the drain current-gate voltage characteristics of fabricated BND-embedded MOSFETs. Observed hysteresis obviously indicates a memory operation of Co-BND-embedded MOSFETs due to the charge confinement in the embedded BND and successful functioning of embedded BNDs as the charge storage nodes of the non-volatile flash memory. Fabricated Co-BND-embedded MOSFETs showed good memory properties such as wide memory windows, long charge retention and high tolerance to repeated write/erase operations. A new pathway for device fabrication by utilizing the versatile functionality of biomolecules is presented.

In aqua structuralization of a three-dimensional configuration using biomolecules.

Ferritin nanoparticles ornamented with a Ti-binding peptide are versatile nanoscaled building blocks. Their specific binding ability is strong enough to position them on nanopatterned Ti regions on a Pt substrate. Furthermore, the peptides mineralization activity enables the formation of titania on the outer side of the particle, and the particle's inner nanospaces can serve as a carrier for inorganic nanodots. Making use of all these properties, here we show controlled in aqua fabrication of three-dimensional nanoscale structures. The X-Y positioning obeyed the specific binding of the peptide, while fabrication in the Z-dimension entailed stepwise formation of titania and ferritin layers by alternately applying the binding and mineralization abilities of the Ti-binding peptide. This method paves the way for in aqua fabrication of nanodevices having complicated structures and functions.