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Crystallization kinetics and thermodynamics of an Ag–In–Sb–Te phase change material using complementary in situ microscopic techniques

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Abstract

The crystallization of an amorphous Ag–In–Sb–Te (AIST) phase change material (PCM) is studied using multiple in situ imaging techniques to directly quantify crystal growth rates over a broad range of temperatures. The measurable growth rates span from ≈ 10–9 to ≈ 20 m/s. Recent results using dynamic transmission electron microscopy (TEM), a photoemission TEM technique, and TEM with sub-framed imaging are reported here and placed into the context of previous growth rate measurements on AIST. Dynamic TEM experiments show a maximum observed crystal growth rate for as-deposited films to be > 20 m/s. It is shown that crystal growth above the glass transition can be imaged in a TEM through use of subframing and a high-frame-rate direct electron detection camera. Challenges associated with the determination of temperature during in situ TEM experiments are described. Preliminary nanocalorimetry results demonstrate the feasibility of collecting thermodynamic data for crystallization of PCMs with simultaneous TEM imaging.

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The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgments

Effort by M.K.S. and I.M. was supported by the National Science Foundation, Division of Materials Research CER [Grant No. 1945520]. TEM was performed at the Oregon State University Electron Microscope Facility which is supported by NSF MRI Grant No. 1040588, the Murdock Charitable Trust, and the Oregon Nanoscience and Micro-Technologies Institute. M.K.S would like to thank Dr. John Roehling and Dr. Garth Egan for assistance with thin film deposition and DTEM experiments at LLNL. Portions of this work were performed under the auspices of the US Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is operated by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC., for the US Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration under Contract No. DE-AC52-07NA27344. Work was performed at the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, a User Facility operated for the US DOE Office of Science at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International, Inc., for the US DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA-0003525. This work was performed under the Laboratory Directed Research and Development program at SNL. This material is based in part upon work supported by the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under Award No. DE-SC0013104. Views expressed here do not necessarily represent the views of the US DOE or US Government. Research was performed in part at the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology. Any mention of commercial products is for information only; it does not imply recommendation or endorsement by the NIST.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA

    Isak McGieson

  2. School of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA

    Victoriea L. Bird & M. K. Santala

  3. Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM, USA

    Christopher M. Barr & Khalid Hattar

  4. Integrated Dynamic Electron Solutions, Inc., Pleasanton, CA, USA

    Bryan W. Reed

  5. Materials Science Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA

    Joseph T. McKeown

  6. Materials Measurement Science Division, Material Measurement Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA

    Feng Yi & David A. LaVan

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  1. Isak McGieson
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McGieson, I., Bird, V.L., Barr, C.M. et al. Crystallization kinetics and thermodynamics of an Ag–In–Sb–Te phase change material using complementary in situ microscopic techniques. Journal of Materials Research 37, 1281–1295 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1557/s43578-022-00486-5

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