A new type of organometallic system for high density data storage by scanning tunneling microscopy

We report a new type of organometallic system, Ag-toluylene 2,4-dicarbamidonitrite (TDCN) composite thin film, for ultrahigh density data storage devices by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). The Ag-TDCN thin film was prepared on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) substrate using an ionized-cluster-beam (ICB) deposition method. Marks can be created on the thin film by employing a voltage pulse between the STM tip and surface of the HOPG substrate. The size of the created marks is about 50 nm and the corresponding data storage density is about 1011 bits/cm2. The mechanism for the data storage can be attributed to the conductance transition in the complex system. This result shows a great potential for this new kind of organometallic composite system to find application in ultrahigh density data storage.