The phase change materials have been extensively used as an optical rewritable data storage media utilizing their phase
change properties. Recently, the phase change materials have been spotlighted for the application of non-volatile memory
device, such as the phase change random access memory. In this work, we have investigated the crystallization behavior
and microstructure analysis of In-Sb-Te (IST) thin films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering. Transmission electron
microscopy measurement was carried out after the annealing at 300C, 350C, 400C and 450C for 5 min. It was observed
that InSb phases change into In3SbTe2 phases and InTe phases as the temperature increases. It was found that the thickness
of thin films was decreased and the grain size was increased by the bright field transmission electron microscopy (BF
TEM) images and the selected area electron diffraction (SAED) patterns. In a high resolution transmission electron microscopy
(HRTEM) study, it shows that 350C-annealed InSb phases have {111} facet because the surface energy of a {111}
close-packed plane is the lowest in FCC crystals. When the film was heated up to 400C, In3SbTe2 grains have coherent
micro-twins with {111} mirror plane, and they are healed annealing at 450C. From the HRTEM, InTe phase separation
was occurred in this stage. It can be found that In3SbTe2 forms in the crystallization process as composition of the film
near stoichiometric composition, while InTe phase separation may take place as the composition deviates from In3SbTe2.