Simulation of Phase Change Materials Using Cellular Automata

The most promising media for rewritable applications are the phase change materials [1]. For the modelling of the phase transition processes in phase change materials was used the minimum switching unit called “commuton” [2]. A commuton is a minimum cluster of atoms that supports a reversible change from OFF to ON state under the influence of an external applied energy pulse. It was developed a bidimensional model based on the cellular automata approach [3] to predict switching behavior in a Ge2Sb2Te5 phase change chalcogenide film. The formation of the percolation paths as a function of phase change induced in commutons can explain the switching phenomenon. The percolation thresholds of the switching were calculated for different sizes of the simulated system and the percolation kinetics was investigated.