Bismuth doping effect on the phase-change characteristics of nitrogen-doped GeTe films

The microstructures and electrical properties of 8.4% nitrogen-doped GeTe and GeBi(6 at.%)Te films thermally annealed in N2 atmosphere were investigated. With the addition of Bi to N-doped GeTe films, the initial crystallization temperature was reduced and crystallization speed slowed. The N-doped GeBiTe films showed a rapid increase in crystallite size compared to the N-doped GeTe films. The formation energy of the nucleus may be lower due to the Bi atoms and the growth speed may be slower.