The use of Ga₁₆Sb₈₄ alloy for electronic phase-change memory

The use of simpler compositions for phase-change memory has been a popular goal. This study explores phase-change, electrical conduction and thermal stability of Ga₁₆Sb₈₄ film to meet this purpose. Amorphous Ga₁₆Sb₈₄ film shows a crystallization temperature of 227 °C and a temperature for 10 year data retention of 148 °C. The density of the film increases 5% upon crystallization. A steep resistance drop during crystallization arises mainly from the sharp increase in carrier concentration with p-type conduction. Ga₁₆Sb₈₄ memory cells demonstrate set-reset switching at a pulse width of 10 ns and have a durability of >10⁵ cycles.