Electrical probe storage using Joule heating in phase change media

We demonstrate the feasibility of ultrahigh-density probe recording in chalcogenide-based phase change media. The multilayer medium has been optimized with respect to electrical, thermal, and tribological requirements. Design of the multilayer takes into account the nonlinear dependence of the electrical properties of the phase change layer with respect to both electrical field and temperature. Memory dots as small as 15nm have been written and read repeatably. Data storage density of greater than Tbit∕in.2 density has been successfully achieved.