Physical properties and structure characteristics of titanium-modified antimony-selenium phase change thin film

Effects of the titanium dopant on the physical properties and structure of SbSe thin films were systematically investigated by experiments and first-principles calculations. The amorphous-to-polycrystalline transformation induced by heat was examined by in situ electrical resistance measurements. Wi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 2021-02, Vol.118 (8)
Main Authors: Wu, Weihua, Sun, Yuemei, Zhu, Xiaoqin, Shen, Bo, Zhai, Jiwei, Yue, Zhenxing
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Antimony
Applied physics
Atomic force microscopy
Crystallization
Density functional theory
Dopants
Electrical resistance
Energy consumption
First principles
Grain growth
Interfacial properties
Mathematical analysis
Microscopy
Morphology
Phase change materials
Physical properties
Selenium
Thermal stability
Thin films
Titanium
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Effects of the titanium dopant on the physical properties and structure of SbSe thin films were systematically investigated by experiments and first-principles calculations. The amorphous-to-polycrystalline transformation induced by heat was examined by in situ electrical resistance measurements. With the incorporation of titanium atoms, both the crystallization temperature and electrical resistance increase, revealing the improvement of the amorphous thermal stability and programing energy consumption. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and density functional theory calculations illustrate that a small amount of titanium dopant can inhibit the grain growth and refine the crystal size. The shift of Raman modes associated Sb upon the crystallization was observed. X-ray reflectivity and atomic force microscopy results prove the smaller volume fluctuation and the smoother surface morphology, meaning the better interfacial property and reliability of titanium-doped SbSe materials. Phase change memory cells based on titanium-doped antimony-selenium were fabricated to evaluate the electrical performance as well. All these results indicate that the suitable incorporation of the titanium element will be an effective method to optimize the physical properties and tune the structure of the SbSe phase change material.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/5.0024839