To evaluate the possibility as a multi-level memory medium for the Ge2Sb2Te5/TiN/W-doped Ge2Sb2Te5 cell structure, the crystallization rate and stabilization characteristics according to voltage (V)- and current (I)- pulse sweeping were investigated. In the cell structures prepared by a magnetron sputtering system on a p-type Si (100) substrate, the Ge2Sb2Te5 and W-doped Ge2Sb2Te5 thin films were separated by a barrier metal, TiN, and the individual thicknesses were varied, but the total thickness was fixed at 200 nm. All cell structures exhibited relatively stable multi-level states of high-middle-low resistance (HR-MR-LR), which guarantee the reliability of the multilevel phase-change random access memory (PRAM). The amorphousto- multilevel crystallization rate was evaluated from a graph of resistance (R) vs. pulse duration (T) obtained by the nanoscaled pulse sweeping at a fixed applied voltage (12 V). For all structures, the phase-change rates of HR→MR and MR→LR were estimated to be approximately t<20 ns and t<40 ns, respectively, and the states were relatively stable. We believe that the doublestack structure of an appropriate Ge-Sb-Te film separated by barrier metal (TiN) can be optimized for high-speed and stable multilevel PRAM.

We evaluated the structural, electrical and optical properties of tungsten (W)-doped Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁ thin films. In a previous work, GeSbTe alloys were doped with different materials in an attempt to improve thermal stability. 200 mm thick Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁ and W-doped Ge₈Sb₂Te₁₁ films were deposited on p-type Si (100) and glass substrates using a magnetron co-sputtering system at room temperature. The fabricated films were annealed in a furnace in the 0~400℃ temperature range. The structural properties were analyzed using X-ray diffraction (X`pert PRO, Phillips). The results showed increased crystallization temperature (T_c) leading to thermal stability in the amorphous state. The optical properties were analyzed using an UV-Vis-IR spectrophotometer (Shimadzu, U-3501, range : 300~3,000 nm). The results showed an increase in the crystalline material optical energy band gap (E_op) and an increase in the Eop difference (△E_op). This is a good effect to reduce memory device noise. The electrical properties were analyzed using a 4-point probe (CNT-series). This showed increased sheet resistance (R_s), which reduces programming current in the memory device.

This work reports the phase-change behavior and thermal stability of doped GeSbTe/GeSbTe bilayers. We prepared the bilayers using RF sputtering, and annealed them at annealing temperature ranging from 100℃ to 400℃. The sheet resistance of the bilayer decreased and saturated with increasing annealing temperature, and the saturated value was close to that of pure GeSbTe film. The surface of the bilayer roughened at 400℃, which corresponds to the surface roughening of doped GeSbTe film. Mixed phases of face-centered cubic and hexagonal close-packed crystalline structures were identified in the bilayers annealed at elevated temperature. These results indicate that the phase-change behavior of the bilayer depends on the concurrent phase-transitions of the two GeSbTe-based films. The dopants in the doped GeSbTe film were diffused out at annealing temperatures of 300℃ or higher, which implies that the thermal stability of the bilayer should be considered for its application in phase-change electronic devices.

The dielectric thin films applied to multi-colored semitransparent thin film solar cells have been extensively studied. In this work, we prepared GeSbTe and GeTe chalcogenide thin films using magnetron sputtering, and investigated their optical and phase-change properties to replace the dielectric films. The changes of surface morphology, sheet resistance, and X-ray diffraction of the Te-based chalcogenide films support the fact that the amorphous stability of GeTe films is superior to that of GeSbTe films. While both amorphous GeSbTe and GeTe films thinner than 30 nm have optical transparency between 5% and 60%, GeTe films transmit more visible light than GeSbTe films. It is confirmed by computer simulation that the color of semitransparent silicon thin film solar cells can be adjusted with the addition of GeSbTe or GeTe films. Since it is possible to adjust the contrast of the solar cells by exploiting the phase-change property, the two kinds of chalcogenide films are anticipated to be used as an optical layer in semitransparent solar cells.

For phase transition method, good record sensitivity, low heat radiation, fast crystallization and hi-resolution are essential. Also, a retention time is very important part for phase-transition. In our past papers, we chose composition of Ge1Se1Te2 material to use a Se factor which has good optical sensitivity than conventional Sb. Sb/Ge-Se-Te thin films are fabricated and irradiated with UV light source to investigate a reversible phase change by Sb-doped condition. Because of Sb atoms, the Sb inserted sample showed better performance than conventional one. We should note that this novel one showed another possibility for phase-change random access memory.