New technology utilising platinum and tantalum could replace silicon-based flash memory devices in the future, researchers have found.

There have been numerous attempts to improve the current model for flash memory, but all have so far failed, scientists from Samsung and Sejong University in Korea noted in their paper.

"A material or device structure that satisfies high-density, switching-speed, endurance, retention and most importantly power consumption criteria has yet to be announced," they said.

Published in the journal Nature Materials, the study describes tantalum oxide-based resistance-RAM (RRAM), which the authors claim is a marked improvement on current technology.

In the device in question, two layers of tantalum oxide are surrounded by platinum electrodes.

The "interface" between the tantalum oxide and the platinum forms a metal-semiconductor junction known as a Schottky barrier.

According to the research, the technology "drastically reduces power consumption and results in extreme cycling endurances".

The device is still in its infancy and it will be some time before this type of RRAM memory is found in industrial or domestic applications.

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