Comparison of thermal stabilities between Ge-Sb-Te and In-Sb-Te phase change materials

Abstract

Crystallization temperatures, activation energies, and thermal diffusivities of In3Sb1Te2 (IST) and Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) are investigated with a differential scanning calorimetry, a xenon laser flash, and a transmission electron microscopy. The activation energies for crystallizing the IST and the GST are 5.2 eV and 3.31 eV, respectively. The thermal diffusivity of the IST is about a half of the GST. The thermal diffusion length in the IST-phase change random access memory cell is relatively shorter than the GST due to lower thermal diffusivity. Experimental results reveal that the IST is more thermally stable than the GST.