Abstract

The use of chalcogenide alloys for reversible optical data storage was first reported by Ovshinsky in 1970.¹ The design of an optimal system requires a thin film design with the active material as part of a thin film structure.² The optical properties of the material in both the recorded (amorphous) and erased (crystalline) is required to calculate the performance of a particular design. Several chalcogenide compounds (TeSe, Te₃Sb₂, Te₃As₂, Te₂Sb₂Se) were deposited as amorphous thin films on quartz with a nominal thickness of 100nm. Two films from the same deposition were used in each study and one the films was crystallized by heating appropriately in an oven.

© 1987 Optical Society of America