BYU Authors: Kevin R. Laughlin, Sarah Jamieson, Anthony C. Pearson, Hao Wang,
Richard R. Vanfleet,
Robert C. Davis, Matthew R. Linford, and Barry M. Lunt, published in
ACS OmegaIn this study, we have fabricated nanofuses from thin-film, arc-deposited carbon for use in permanent data storage. Thin-film carbon fuses have fewer fabrication barriers and retain the required resistivity and structural stability to act as a data-storage medium. Carbon thin films were characterized for their electrical, microstructural, and chemical bonding properties. Annealing these films in an argon environment at 400 °C reduced the resistivity from about 4 × 10–2 Ω cm as deposited to about 5 × 10–4 Ω cm, allowing a lower blowing voltage. Nanofuses with widths ranging from 200 to 60 nm were fabricated and tested. They blow with voltages between 2 and 5.5 V, and the nanofuses remain stable in both “1” and “0” states under a constantly applied read voltage of 1 V for over 90 h.