Phase change memory (PCM), due to the advantages in capacity and endurance, has the opportunity to become the next generation of general−purpose memory. However, operation speed and data retention are still bottlenecks for PCM development. The most direct way to solve this problem is to find a material with high speed and good thermal stability. In this paper, platinum doping is proposed to improve performance. The 10-year data retention temperature of the doped material is up to 104 °C; the device achieves an operation speed of 6 ns and more than 3 × 10⁵ operation cycles. An excellent performance was derived from the reduced grain size (10 nm) and the smaller density change rate (4.76%), which are less than those of Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) and Sb₂Te₃. Hence, platinum doping is an effective approach to improve the performance of PCM and provide both good thermal stability and high operation speed.

Phase change memory (PCM), a typical representative of new storage technologies, offers significant advantages in terms of capacity and endurance. However, among the research on phase change materials, thermal stability and switching speed performance have always been the direction where breakthroughs are needed. In this research, as a high-speed and good thermal stability material, Ta was proposed to be doped in Sb₃Te₁ alloy to improve the phase transition performance and electrical properties. The characterization shows that Ta-doped Sb₃Te₁ can crystallize at temperatures up to 232 °C and devices can operate at speeds of 6 ns and 8 × 10⁴ operation cycles. The reduction of grain size and the density change rate (3.39%) show excellent performances, which are both smaller than that of Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) and Sb₃Te₁. These properties conclusively demonstrate that Ta incorporation of Sb₃Te₁ alloy is a material with better thermal stability and faster crystallization rates for PCM applications.