Thermal Conductivities And Phase Transition Temperatures Of Various Phase-Change Materials Measured By The 3 Omega Method

We have employed the "3 omega method" to determine the thermal conductivities of the amorphous and crystalline phases of the technologically important materials Ge(2)Sb(2)Te(5), nitrogen-doped Ge(2)Sb(2)Te(5), Ag- and In-doped Sb(2)Te, and Ge(15)Sb(85). We used the "3 omega voltage" as a monitor of thermal conductivity that allowed us to observe the amorphous-to-crystalline phase transition as the material was annealed. For these materials, our results reveal that the thermal conductivity kappa is related to the electrical conductivity sigma by an empirical relationship of the form kappa=sigma LT+0.175 W/m K, where L is the Lorenz number and T is temperature.