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Effect of Ion Irradiation on Amorphous and Crystalline Ge–Se and Their Application as Phase Change Temperature Sensor
Author(s) -
Ahmed Simon Al-Amin,
Jones Lyle,
Sakaguchi Yoshifumi,
Kunold Henri,
van Rooyen Isabella,
Mitkova Maria
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
physica status solidi (b)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 109
eISSN - 1521-3951
pISSN - 0370-1972
DOI - 10.1002/pssb.202000429
Subject(s) - materials science , amorphous solid , orthorhombic crystal system , irradiation , chalcogenide , raman spectroscopy , thin film , phase (matter) , ion , fluence , analytical chemistry (journal) , optoelectronics , crystallography , crystal structure , nanotechnology , optics , chemistry , physics , organic chemistry , chromatography , nuclear physics
Research on phase change materials is predominantly focused on their application as memory devices or for temperature control which requires low phase change temperature. The Ge–Se binary chalcogenide glass system with its wide glass‐forming region is a potential candidate for high‐temperature and high‐radiation phase change applications. Herein, the concept of employing Ge x Se 100− x glasses to monitor high temperature (450–528 °C) using the phase change effect, is reported. Materials selection, device structure, and performance of prototype sensors are analyzed. In addition, the effect of heavy ion irradiation by Xe ions with energies of 200, 600, and 1000 keV (fluence ≈10 14 cm −2 ) on the Ge x Se 100− x ( x = 30, 33, 40) thin films and phase change devices is studied. The irradiation effect on the amorphous and crystalline structure of the thin films is evaluated by Raman spectroscopy and X‐ray diffraction (XRD). Although the changes in the structural units of amorphous films are negligible, in crystalline films orthorhombic‐GeSe 2 crystals are found to be most affected by irradiation and a new phase, orthorhombic GeSe is found in the thin films after irradiation. The performance of a sensor with an active film of Ge 40 Se 60 is also shown as an example.