An investigation of the atomic bonding present in amorphous chalcogenide materials by electron spectroscopy

The atomic bonding in amorphous switching materials based on tellurium and germanium has been shown to be largely dependent on the germanium atoms. The results of examination by electron spectroscopy show that germanium atoms can possess five different forms of chemical bonding. These are elemental, oxidised, ‘glassy’, and two states associated with the interatomic compound GeTe. The ‘glassy’ and compound forms of germanium have been found in the amorphous materials. Tellurium, however, shows no significant different in bonding from its elemental state in these materials.