Sb-rich Zn-Sb-Te phase-change materials: A candidate for the trade-off between crystallization speed and data retention

Abstract

We explored the structural and physical properties of Sb-rich Zn-Sb-Te films in order to combine the good thermal stability of ZnSb with the high crystallization speed of Sb2Te. The films generally exhibit two different crystallization characteristics described as follows: amorphous → Sb2Te crystalline phase if the Zn content in the film is less than ∼10 at. % and amorphous → Sb crystalline phase if the Zn content is more than ∼10 at. %. Among the films, the Zn28.62Sb53.69Te17.69 film was found to show the highest crystallization temperature (∼255°C), best 10 year data retention (∼165.9°C), and shortest crystallization time of ∼58 ns at 70 mW with a stable rhombohedral Sb phase; thus, it is considered promising for phase-change memory applications.