Microscopic Studies of Fast Phase Transformations in GeSbTe Films

Abstract

Vital requirements for the future success of phase change media are high data transfer rates, i.e., fast processes to read, write and erase bits of information. The understanding and optimization of fast transformations is a considerable challenge since the processes only occur on a submicrometer length scale in actual bits. Hence both high temporal and spatial resolution is needed to unravel the essential details of the phase transformation. We employ a combination of fast optical measurements with microscopic analyses using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The AFM measurements exploit the fact that the phase transformation from amorphous to crystalline is accompanied by a 6% volume reduction. This enables a measurement of the vertical and lateral speed of the phase transformation. Several examples will be presented showing the information gained by this combination of techniques.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 2001
Accession Number
ADP012319

Entities

People

  • Ines Friedrich
  • Ingo Thomas
  • Ralf Detemple
  • Volker Weidenhof
  • Walter Njoroge

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Amorphous Materials
  • Crystal Structure
  • Crystallization
  • Data Storage Systems
  • Environment
  • Geometry
  • Laser Pulses
  • Lasers
  • Light Sources
  • Materials
  • Optical Properties
  • Phase Change Materials
  • Phase Transformations
  • Recrystallization
  • Temperature Gradients
  • Thickness
  • X Rays

Readers

  • Integrated Circuit Design and Technology.
  • Materials Science and Engineering.
  • Quantum Dot Semiconductor Device Photonics and Graphene Optoelectronic Materials and THz Physics.

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics
  • Microelectronics - Graphene