Kinetics of switching in glass-metal particulate systems

Abstract

The kinetics of switching of molten metal granules in glass-metal particulate systems has been investigated by solving numerically the relevant fluid flow equations. The calculated stretching time is of the order of 10⁻⁹ s. The speed of switching in a vanadium phosphate glass-bismuth metal system has also been measured by applying electrical pulses to samples and monitoring changes in their resistance. The experimental switching time is found to be of the order of 50 μ s, which is several orders of magnitude higher than the time taken for two proximate particles to coalesce by stretching. From the solution of the time-dependent heat equation reported in an earlier paper it is concluded that in the present glass-metal system Joule heating is the rate determining process for memory switching.