The present invention provides a sputtering target for a phase change
memory and a phase change memory film formed with such a target, and the
manufacturing method thereof, characterized in that the sputtering target
is composed from elements of not less than a three component system and
has as its principal component one or more components selected from
stibium, tellurium and selenium, and the compositional deviation in
relation to the intended composition is .+-.1.0 at % or less. This
sputtering target for a phase change memory is capable of reducing, as
much as possible, impurities that cause the reduction in the number of
times rewriting can be conducted as a result of such impurities
segregating and condensing in the vicinity of the boundary face of the
memory point and non-memory point; in particular, impurity elements that
affect the crystallization speed, reducing the compositional deviation of
the target in relation to the intended composition, and improving the
rewriting properties and crystallization speed of the phase change memory
by suppressing the compositional segregation of the target.