Impact of high nitrogen doping on the heterophase structure of Ge
6 affiliations
- 1Farabi University, IETP, 71 Al-Farabi Ave, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan
- 2Farabi University, IETP, 71 Al-Farabi Ave, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan; Corresponding authors.
- 3Farabi University, NNLOT, 71 Al-Farabi Ave, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan
- 4Farabi University, IETP, 71 Al-Farabi Ave, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan; Farabi University, NNLOT, 71 Al-Farabi Ave, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan
- 5School of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Road, Beilin District, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710072, PR China
- 6Civil Aviation Academy, Department of General Education Disciplines, Almaty, 050039, Kazakhstan; Corresponding authors.
Abstract
Phase-change chalcogenide semiconductor films are widely used in non-volatile phase-change memory devices, and their properties can be controlled through nitrogen doping. Films with high nitrogen doping levels are of particular interest. In this work, the composition, structure, laser-induced structural transformations, and current–voltage characteristics of highly nitrogen-doped phase-change Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) thin films (NGST) were investigated. Amorphous NGST films with a nitrogen concentration of 22 at% were deposited by ion-plasma reactive RF magnetron sputtering in an Ar+N₂ atmosphere. The highly nitrogen-doped NGST films in the temperature range from 25 to 330 °C exhibit a single phase transition at 169 °C, and, after crystallization, form a stable heterophase structure with a high degree of crystallinity (76%), comprising Sb₂Te₃, β-Ge₃N₄, and fcc-GST phases. The formation of the nitride phase results in a nanostructured composite (with crystallite sizes ranging from 11 to 21 nm, depending on the annealing temperature) that exhibits enhanced thermal stability of the matrix. Therefore, when GST films are doped with nitrogen to a concentration of 22 at.%, the crystallization temperature increases from 153 to 169 °C, the threshold energy for laser-induced crystallization increases from 6.6 to 10.2 mJ, and the threshold voltage for the electrically induced transition from the high-resistance amorphous state to the low-resistance crystalline state increases from 1.20 to 3.20 V. The resulting NGST heterophase films constitute a structurally and chemically coherent system in which, upon laser irradiation, a sequence of stable states with varying degrees of crystallinity is realized.
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BibTeX
@article{ismailova2026impact,
title = {{Impact of high nitrogen doping on the heterophase structure of Ge}},
author = {Guzal Ismailova and Oleg Prikhodko and Aru Kozhakenova and Nazim Guseinov and Zhandos Tolepov and Suyumbika Maksimova and Xuqing Liu and Zhasulan Nakysbekov and Yerzhan Mukhametkarimov and Svetlana Peshaya and Gulnura Nyssanbayeva},
journal = {Chemical Physics Impact},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.chphi.2026.101195},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chphi.2026.101195},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Impact of high nitrogen doping on the heterophase structure of Ge
AU - Guzal Ismailova
AU - Oleg Prikhodko
AU - Aru Kozhakenova
AU - Nazim Guseinov
AU - Zhandos Tolepov
AU - Suyumbika Maksimova
AU - Xuqing Liu
AU - Zhasulan Nakysbekov
AU - Yerzhan Mukhametkarimov
AU - Svetlana Peshaya
AU - Gulnura Nyssanbayeva
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - Chemical Physics Impact
DO - 10.1016/j.chphi.2026.101195
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chphi.2026.101195
AB - Phase-change chalcogenide semiconductor films are widely used in non-volatile phase-change memory devices, and their properties can be controlled through nitrogen doping. Films with high nitrogen doping levels are of particular interest. In this work, the composition, structure, laser-induced structural transformations, and current–voltage characteristics of highly nitrogen-doped phase-change Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) thin films (NGST) were investigated. Amorphous NGST films with a nitrogen concentration of 22 at% were deposited by ion-plasma reactive RF magnetron sputtering in an Ar+N₂ atmosphere. The highly nitrogen-doped NGST films in the temperature range from 25 to 330 °C exhibit a single phase transition at 169 °C, and, after crystallization, form a stable heterophase structure with a high degree of crystallinity (76%), comprising Sb₂Te₃, β-Ge₃N₄, and fcc-GST phases. The formation of the nitride phase results in a nanostructured composite (with crystallite sizes ranging from 11 to 21 nm, depending on the annealing temperature) that exhibits enhanced thermal stability of the matrix. Therefore, when GST films are doped with nitrogen to a concentration of 22 at.%, the crystallization temperature increases from 153 to 169 °C, the threshold energy for laser-induced crystallization increases from 6.6 to 10.2 mJ, and the threshold voltage for the electrically induced transition from the high-resistance amorphous state to the low-resistance crystalline state increases from 1.20 to 3.20 V. The resulting NGST heterophase films constitute a structurally and chemically coherent system in which, upon laser irradiation, a sequence of stable states with varying degrees of crystallinity is realized.
SN - 2667-0224
ER -