Journal of Photonic Materials and Technology 2015; 1(2): 27-32 Published online July 18, 2015 (http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/jpmt) doi: 10.11648/j.jmpt.20150102.12 Memristor, a Nano-Scaled Element for the Computer Memory: A Mini-Review with Some New Results for an ac- Driven Memristor Elena Zhitlukhina 1 , Mikhail Belogolovskii 2 1 Dept. of Dynamical Properties of Complex Systems, Donetsk Institute for Physics and Engineering, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine 2 Lab. of Dynamics of Electronic Processes in Hybrid Structures, Institute for Metal Physics, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine Email address: elena_zhitlukhina@ukr.net (E. Zhitlukhina), belogolovskii@ukr.net (M. Belogolovskii) To cite this article: Elena Zhitlukhina, Mikhail Belogolovskii. Memristor, a Nano-Scaled Element for the Computer Memory: A Mini-Review with Some New Results for an ac-Driven Memristor. Journal of Photonic Materials and Technology. Vol. 1, No. 2, 2015, pp. 27-32. doi: 10.11648/j.jmpt.20150102.12 Abstract: In this paper, we give a short look at the concept of memristive nano-technology, its history, and actual state-of- the-art. It is expected that together with advanced light-driven data transfer technology, computer operation will change dramatically by memristors, a new kind of the computer memory, which is becoming a sustaining hotspot in fields of physics and electronics. This entry aims to familiarize scientists working in the field of photonics with the phenomenon of resistive switching in ac-driven memristors. In addition to already published results, we present our original interpretation of resistance changes in heterostructures based on complex oxides with oxygen vacancies as the most moveable component under applied electric fields. Keywords: Electric Fields, Multilayered Structures, Resistive Switching, Memristive Technology, Complex Oxides, Oxygen Vacancies 1. Introduction Last year, the scientific community learned about the development of a new form of computer architecture that brings together advancements in nano-scale manufacturing and fiber optics. With this new approach, using electrons for computation, photons for communication, and ions for storage, researchers at Hewlett-Packard are going to change dramatically the way how computers are operating today [1]. Whereas the first issue is well developed at the moment, the company is working on applying the high-speed potential of fiber optics inside computers, in place of traditional copper wires. In parallel with its light-driven data transfer technology (high-speed silicon photonic interconnects), researchers are working on a new kind of the computer memory called memristor, a nanoscale chip which increases both the storage capacity and speed of memory. And it is just the third part of the ambitious project. A network of memristors can be realized using a grid of wires with layers of extremely thin nano-ionic materials stacked up at each intersection. As a result, the novel computers with unprecedented amounts of memory will be able to store huge amounts of information. It should be noted that, comparing to two other new components of the computer architecture, memristive nano- technology as well as its physical principles are less known. The short overview offers an introductory background on memristors, the history, and the main concepts of the memristive behavior when it is caused by movement of ions. In addition to the already published results, we present our original interpretation of resistance changes in complex oxides with oxygen vacancies as the most moveable component under electric fields applied. The main aim of the overview is to familiarize a reader from the photonics community to this new exciting field of nano-ionics. 2. The Main Concept In 1971 Prof. L.O. Chua introduced a theoretical concept of what he defined as the fourth fundamental passive device named as memory-resistor (memristor for short) [2].