Properties of Ti–Sb–Te doped with SbSe alloy for application in nonvolatile phase change memory

Sb 2 Se 3 alloy is used as a dopant for Ti–Sb–Te phase change material aiming to improve the thermal stability of Ti–Sb–Te based phase change memory cell. In this paper, the thermal and electrical properties of Sb 2 Se 3 -doped Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 are respectively investigated. Compared with Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 material, (Sb 2 Se 3 ) 0.28 (Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 ) 0.72 has better thermal stability with crystallization temperature of 203 °C and estimated 10-year data retention of 102 °C. For the (Sb 2 Se 3 ) 0.28 (Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 ) 0.72 -based PCM cell, it inherits the advantage of fast switching speed and good endurance of TST based one with wider SET/RESET window. The effects of Sb 2 Se 3 doping on the structure of Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 are also systemically studied. In crystalline (Sb 2 Se 3 ) 0.28 (Ti 0.32 Sb 2 Te 3 ) 0.72 film structure, Se is prone to substitute Te and bond with Sb and Te in the Sb 2 Te 3 lattice structure which may decrease the crystal lattice constant.