X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy have been utilized to measure the ion irradiation-induced modification in amorphous Ge2Sb2Te5 thin films. The isothermal crystallization of sputtered-deposited and Sb+ ion irradiated amorphous samples has been studied, focusing on the evolution of the microstructure during the initial stage of the transformation. In both samples, the amorphous to crystal transition occurs through the nucleation of face centered cubic (fcc) crystal domains at the film surface. A fast bidimensional growth of the crystalline nuclei in the sputtered-deposited films occurs by the generation of transrotational grains. The lattice parameter decreases as the crystalline fraction increases above 80%, and it approaches the fcc bulk value at the end of the transformation. Ion irradiation produces a densification of the deposited amorphous film (∼4% vertical shrinkage measured by atomic force …