Self-Consistent Numerical Model

In the development of a new technology, the availability of a tool able to simulate the cell behavior is key for proper device engineering. However, as extensively discussed in Chaps. 2 and 3, the main physical ingredients at the basis of PCM operation are uncommon for conventional electronics, and the available commercial tools cannot be thus employed. In this chapter, a numerical model will be described that couples the conduction properties of crystalline and amorphous Ge2Sb2Te5 (including the threshold switching) with a local nucleation and growth algorithm to account for the phase transition dynamics. The proposed model can simulate three-dimensional PCM devices, and it is capable to quantitatively reproduce the key features of chalcogenide physics when integrated in an electronic memory cell. More detailed material can be found in the original paper which is partially reproduced here with permission from A. Redaelli A. P. (J Appl Phys – Appl Phys Rev 103(111101), 2008); copyright AIP Publishing LLC 2008.