Dielectric relaxation in the GeSb2Te4 phase-change material

Dielectric relaxation in thin layers of amorphous and crystalline GeSb2Te4 was studied. A relaxation process associated with the manifestation of dipole-relaxation polarization is found. The appearance of dipoles is thought to be caused by the off-center location of Ge and Sb in cubic fragments of GeSb2Te4. The activation energies for relaxation processes were calculated to be Ea≈0.34 eV for amorphous and EC≈0.47 eV for crystalline GeSb2Te4.