In this paper, we investigated current (I)- and voltage (V)-sweeping properties in a double-stack structure, Ge₂Sb₂Te₅/Ti/W-doped Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁, a candidate medium for applications to multilevel phase-change memory. 200-nm-thick Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ and W-doped Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁ films were deposited on p-type Si(100) substrate using magnetron sputtering system, and the sheet resistance was measured using 4 point-probe method. The sheet resistance of amorphous-phase W-doped Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁ film was about 1 order larger than that of Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ film. The I- and V-sweeping properties were measured using sourcemeter, pulse generator, and digital multimeter. The speed of amorphous-to-multilevel crystallization was evaluated from a graph of resistance vs. pulse duration (t) at a fixed applied voltage (12 V). All the double-stack cells exhibited a two-step phase change process with the multilevel memory states of high-middle-low resistance (HR-MR-LR). In particular, the stable MR state is required to guarantee the reliability of the multilevel phase-change memory. For the Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (150 nm)/Ti (20 nm)/WGe₈Sb₂Te₁₁ (50 nm), the phase transformations of HR→MR and MR→LR were observed at t<30ns and t<65ns, respectively. We believe that a high speed and stable multilevel phase-change memory can be optimized by the double-stack structure of proper Ge-Sb-Te films separated by a barrier metal (Ti).

The phase change memory material is an active element in phase change memory and exhibits reversible phase transition behavior by thermal energy input. The doping of the phase change memory material with Ga leads to the increase of its crystallization temperature and the improvement of its amorphous stability. In this study, we investigated the effect of GaGe sputtering power on the formation of the phase change memory material including Ga. The deposition rate linearly increased to a maximum of 127 nm and the surface roughness remained uniform as the GaGe sputtering power increased in the range from 0 to 75 W. The Ga concentration in the thin film material abruptly increased at the critical sputtering power of 60 W. This influence of GaGe sputtering power was confirmed to result from a combined sputtering-evaporation process of Ga occurring due to the low melting point of Ga (29.77℃).

In this study, Ge8Se(2+x)Te(6-x) thin film amorphous-to-crystalline phase-change rate was evaluated in using a nano-pulse scanner. The focused laser beam with a diameter <10 μm was illuminated in the power (P) and pulse duration (t) ranges of 1-31 mW and 10-460 ns, respectively, with subsequent detection of the responsive signals reflected from the film surface. We also evaluated the material characteristics, such as optical absorption and energy gap, crystalline phases, and sheet resistance of as-deposited and annealed films. The result of experiments showed that the thermal stability of the Ge-Se-Te film is largely improved by adding Se.

An amorphous Ge2Sb2Te5 thin film is one of the most commonly used materials for phase-change data storage. In this study, Aux(Ge2Sb2Te5)1-x thin film amorphous-to-crystalline phase-change rate were evaluated in using 658 nm laser beam. The focused laser beam with a diameter <10 μm was illuminated in the power (P) and pulse duration (t) ranges of 1-17 mW and 10-460 ns, respectively, with subsequent detection of the responsive signals reflected from the film surface. We also evaluated the material characteristics, such as optical absorption and energy gap, crystalline phases, and sheet resistance of as-deposited and annealed films. The result of experiments showed that the thermal stability of the Ge2Sb2Te5 film is largely improved by adding Au.