Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Heat-treated GeSb_2Te_4 Thin Films

The effect of annealing on microstructure,adhesive and frictional properties of GeSb 2 Te 4 films were experimentally studied.The GeSb 2 Te 4 films were prepared by radio frequency(RF)magnetron sputtering,and annealed at 200℃and 340℃under vacuum circumstance,respectively.The adhesion and friction experiments were mainly conducted with a lateral force microscope(LFM)for the GeSb 2 Te 4 thin films before and after annealing.Their morphology and phase structure were analyzed by using atomic force microscopy(AFM)and X-ray Diffraction(XRD)techniques,and the nanoindention was employed to evaluate their hardness values.Moreover,an electric force microscope(EFM)was used to measure the surface potential. It is found that the deposited GeSb 2 Te 4 thin film undergoes an amorphous-to-fcc and fcc-to-hex structure transition;the adhesion has a weaker dependence on the surface roughness,but a certain correlation with the surface potential of GeSb 2 Te 4 thin films.And the friction behavior of GeSb 2 Te 4 thin films follows their adhesion behavior under a lower applied load.However,such a relation is replaced by the mechanical behavior when the load is relatively higher.Moreover,the GeSb 2 Te 4 thin film annealed at 340℃presents a lubricative property.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Heat-treated GeSb2Te4 Thin Films