A method to enhance the data transfer rate of eutectic Sb-Te phase-change recording media

Journal Article · Fri Jul 15 00:00:00 EDT 2005 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1957132· OSTI ID:20713976

Yeh, T -T; Hsieh, T -E; Shieh, H -P.D. ^[1]

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1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Chiao-Tung University, 1001 Ta-Hsueh Road, Hsinchu 30050, Taiwan (China)

This work describes the effect of nitrogen doping to eutectic Sb-Te phase-change materials in order to enhance the speed of the amorphous-to-crystalline phase transformation. When nitrogen at a sputtering gas flow ratio of N{sub 2}/Ar=3% was doped in the eutectic Ge-In-Sb-Te recording layer, the data transfer rate was increased up to 1.6 times. When thin GeN{sub x} nucleation promotion layers were further added in below and above the recording layer, an overall enhancement up to 3.3 times in data transfer rate was achieved. The nitrogen contents corresponding to the N{sub 2}/Ar flow ratios (N{sub 2}/Ar=0%-10%) were calibrated by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that nitrogen doping was able to promote the phase transformation by generating numerous nucleation sites uniformly distributed in the recording layer and hence increased the recrystallization speed.

• OSTI ID: 20713976
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 98, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.1957132; (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
ANTIMONY ALLOYS
ARGON
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CRYSTALLIZATION
DEPOSITION
DOPED MATERIALS
ELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
EUTECTICS
GERMANIUM ALLOYS
GERMANIUM NITRIDES
INDIUM ALLOYS
LAYERS
NITROGEN
PHASE CHANGE MATERIALS
RECRYSTALLIZATION
SPUTTERING
TELLURIUM ALLOYS
TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY