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Threshold Switching in Chalcogenide-Glass Thin Films

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Disordered Materials

Part of the book series: Institute for Amorphous Studies Series ((IASS))

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Abstract

The application of sufficiently high electric fields to any material eventually results in deviations from linearity in the observed current-voltage I(V) characteristic. There are two general classes of explanations for such non-Ohmic effects— thermal and electronic. Thermal effects arise because the electrons accelerated by the field always emit phonons in an attempt to return to equilibrium. Electronic effects are due to changes in the response of the charged carriers to high applied fields. In general, both effects must be considered in any quantitative analysis, and the two can produce a coupled response ofter called “electrothermal.” The use of the terminology electrothermal encompasses predominantly thermal and predominantly electronic processes as well as all intermediate cases, and therefore should not prejudice the casual observer into concluding that both effects are necessarily important. In a discussion of the physical mechanism in a particular sample, the major parameters controlling its operation must be identified and separated out from the less significant features.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Center for Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139, USA

    D. Adler

  2. Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55455, USA

    M. S. Shur

  3. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27514, USA

    M. Silver

  4. Energy Conversion Devices, Inc., Troy, Michigan, 48084, USA

    S. R. Ovshinsky

Authors
  1. D. Adler
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  2. M. S. Shur
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  3. M. Silver
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  4. S. R. Ovshinsky
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Late of Massachusetts Institute of Techology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

    David Adler

  2. Institute for Amorphous Studies, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, USA

    Brian B. Schwartz

  3. Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, Brooklyn, New York, USA

    Brian B. Schwartz

  4. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA

    Marvin Silver

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© 1991 Plenum Press, New York

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Adler, D., Shur, M.S., Silver, M., Ovshinsky, S.R. (1991). Threshold Switching in Chalcogenide-Glass Thin Films. In: Adler, D., Schwartz, B.B., Silver, M. (eds) Disordered Materials. Institute for Amorphous Studies Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-8745-9_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-8745-9_16

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  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-8745-9

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