Eutectic Sb7.4Te92.6 thin film for non-volatile phase-change memories

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the structure and electrical properties of eutectic Sb7.4Te92.6 as made thin films to evaluate their potentiality for application to non-volatile phase-change memories. Design/methodology/approach The films were prepared by the pulsed laser deposition technique. The films were characterized by using X-ray diffraction in grazing-incident geometry, differential scanning calorimetry, Raman spectroscopy and transversal current–voltage curves. Findings The memory effect state, characteristic of a typical phase-change memory material, was observed. The temperature of crystallization was about 100ºC. Research limitations/implications Further studies on endurance, scaling and SET/RESET operations are needed. Practical implications One of the main characteristic values, the hold voltage and the threshold voltage values, were about 0.85 and 1.2 V, respectively, in a line with those of Ge2Sb2Te5, GeTe and Sb2Te being considered to date as the main compounds for phase-change memory devices. Originality/value The conduction mechanism in the amorphous regime is highly agreed with the Poole–Frenkel effect in deep traps.