Abstract
The phase change memory (PCM) is a new kind of memory device that had been studied and noticed in the few years. The phase change memory has a lot of advantages. It possesses very fast programming time, low power consumption, high endurance (more than 1013 times), and may suitable for IC process nowadays.In this research, we attempted to understand the effect of thin film microstructures on Chalcogenide-Based Phase Change Memory (PCM), and to find the recording mechanism in PCM. We used Ge2Sb2Te5 to be active layer of PCM, and confered two thin film microstructures obtained by the different deposited method (DC or RF sputtering). We found the RF-sputtering film has higher density, flatter surface, lower defect concentration, and its crystalline phase has tendency to form smaller grain. In 30μm sandwich structure measurement, we found the cells manufactured by RF-sputtering do not have 2-steps sudden current raising in its I-V curve, and have finer crystal channels growth.