Phase-change Memory: Progress in Development of a New Computer Data Storage Technology

Phase-change memory (PCM), which uses a reversible transformation of the atomic structure of certain semiconductor alloys between a glassy and a crystalline phase, is now being actively developed by many semiconductor device manufacturers. Although the underlying phenomenon was reported more than 40 years ago, many fundamental aspects of PCM devices have become clear only recently, in part because of new structural information about both the glassy and crystalline states provided by the XAFS techniques pioneered by Dale Sayers. This talk will describe our current understanding of PCM devices and the progress toward commercialization of this new nonvolatile memory technology.