Ni-doped GST materials for high speed phase change memory applications

•Phase change materials of Ni doped GST were made by magnetron co-sputtering.•The optimal component of Ni doped GST was Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7.•Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7 shows a better data retention ability (∼135 °C for 10 years).•The phase change speed can be realized as short as 6 ns.•Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7 based cell shows endurance up to 1.5 × 104 SET–RESET cycles.

In this paper, Ni-doped Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) was investigated for high speed phase change memory applications. Compared with GST, Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7 film exhibits a higher crystallization temperature (∼217 °C) and a better data retention ability (∼135 °C for 10 years). A reversible switching between set and reset can be realized by an electric pulse as short as 6-ns for Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7 based phase change memory. Furthermore, Ni0.3Ge2.8Sb2.2Te4.7 based cell shows good endurance up to 1.5 × 104 SET–RESET cycles during endurance test.

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