  We report persistently increased conduction in ZnO nanowires irradiated by
ion beam with various ion energies and species. This effect is shown to be
related to the already known persistent photo conduction in ZnO and dubbed
persistent ion beam induced conduction. Both effects show similar excitation
efficiency, decay rates, and chemical sensitivity. Persistent ion beam induced
conduction will potentially allow countable (i.e., single dopant) implantation
in ZnO nanostructures and other materials showing persistent photo conduction.
