Solid State Optical Switching and Memory Element with Conducting Polymer Controllable by Both Electric Field and Light Irradiation

With an irradiation of light on an element with a structure of nesa glass/conducting polymer/polymer matrix containing optically dissociative material/nesa glass, a remarkable spectral change is observed corresponding to optically induced dopings of dissociated or decomposed fragments into the conducting polymer. By the electrochemical undoping of this optically doped element, its color returns to the origirnal one. Using a similar element structure, electrochemical doping and undoping are also successfully performed.