Because of its excellent non-volatile storage characteristics, simple structure, fast storage, low energy consumption and high integration, memristor has aroused a widespread interest in the field of new electronic devices. In this paper, metal-insulator-metal stack of memristor is introduced and relative memristive material, its mechanism as well as the application in the field of electronic circuits and artificial intelligence are summarized. The significant role of interfacial effects on memristive behavior and improvement of its performance is emphasized on. Especially, the effects of interface nanodots on the optimization of memristor properties are proposed. The research prospects of memristor are also analyzed and discussed.