Structural and optical properties of amorphous GeTe films

Abstract

Chalcogenide amorphous materials are known to have different structural and optical properties depending on the deposition method. Here, we investigate thin amorphous GeTe films [1] obtained through co-sputtering from two distinct Ge and Te targets and by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) from a polycrystalline GeTe target. The formation of a single and homogeneous amorphous GeTe phase by co-deposition is uncertain since we can have mixtures of monoelemental nanoclusters. In order to refine the homogeneity of the amorphous phase during co-sputtering, the temperature of the substrate was increased from room temperature up to 180 °C.