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The amorphous to crystalline transition in the semiconductor GaSb has been studied as a recording mechanism for write-once optical storage. Amorphous as-deposited films, 100 nm thick, are transformed locally to the crystalline state by a focused laser beam. This recording process can be accomplished within 10 ns. The dimensions of the crystalline marks can be accurately controlled. Optical storage media based on GaSb are suitable for the archival storage of information modulated according to the compact disk format.
Gravesteijn et al. (1987) studied this question.