Thermal Analysis of Bi/Ga Doped Germanium Chalcogenides

Bi and Ga doped chalcogenide glasses (ChG) have several potential applications in modern photonics and optoelectronics. In addition, ChG can be used in phase-change memory material, since they possess rapid phase change between amorphous and crystalline states. In this work, we have investigated the glasses of Bi$_{\mathrm{x}}$Ga$_{\mathrm{y}}$(GeSe$_{\mathrm{4}})_{\mathrm{50-(x+y)/2}}$(GeTe$_{\mathrm{4}})_{\mathrm{50-(x+y)/2}}$ family with thermal analysis techniques in order to determine crystallization kinetics and Index of Crystallization Rapidity (ICR) for major phases. These ICR rates suggest further potential uses for this glass family in phase change memory storage. The X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) Spectroscopy also gives a look at the specifics of this material's crystalline compounds.