Study on effect of mean stress on fatigue life prediction of thin film structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shin, Myung Soo [Ahtti Co., Seongnam (Korea, Republic of); Park, Jun Hyu [Tongmyong University, Busan (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jung Yup [Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-04-15

This paper describes the effect of mean stress on fatigue life prediction of structure made with thin film. It is well known that the mean stress influences fatigue life prediction of mechanical structure. We investigated a reasonable method for considering mean stress when fatigue strength assessment of micro structure of thin film should be performed. Fatigue tests of smooth specimen of beryllium-copper (BeCu) thin film were performed in ambient air at R = 0.1 with 5 Hz. A micro probe was designed and made with BeCu thin film by the precision press process. Fatigue tests of micro structure were performed with 5 Hz frequency, in ambient air to verify the fatigue life predicted by computer simulation through FE analysis. The fatigue life predicted by the Sa -N curve modified by Goodman method with principal stress through FE analysis shows a more reasonable result than other methods.

Study on effect of mean stress on fatigue life prediction of thin film structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shin, Myung Soo; Park, Jun Hyu; Kim, Jung Yup

2016-01-01

This paper describes the effect of mean stress on fatigue life prediction of structure made with thin film. It is well known that the mean stress influences fatigue life prediction of mechanical structure. We investigated a reasonable method for considering mean stress when fatigue strength assessment of micro structure of thin film should be performed. Fatigue tests of smooth specimen of beryllium-copper (BeCu) thin film were performed in ambient air at R = 0.1 with 5 Hz. A micro probe was designed and made with BeCu thin film by the precision press process. Fatigue tests of micro structure were performed with 5 Hz frequency, in ambient air to verify the fatigue life predicted by computer simulation through FE analysis. The fatigue life predicted by the Sa -N curve modified by Goodman method with principal stress through FE analysis shows a more reasonable result than other methods

Artificially controlled stress anisotropy and magnetic properties of FeTaN thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deng, H.; Jarratt, J.D.; Minor, M.K.; Barnard, J.A.

1997-01-01

This article presents a new method of investigating internal stress effects on thin film magnetic properties, in this case magnetically soft FeTaN sputtered films. The FeTaN films were deposited on a series of oxidized silicon (111) substrates prestressed to different degrees. During sputtering all the deposition conditions were kept exactly the same for all the samples. However, anisotropic stresses with different amplitudes are systematically introduced into the films when the prestressed wafers were released. In this way, FeTaN films with compressive stress varying from 80 to 608 MPa are produced. We found that the saturation magnetostriction (λ s ), anisotropy field (H k ), initial permeability (μ i ) as well as easy axis orientation of FeTaN thin films are strongly affected by the induced stress anisotropy. A stress ratio concept is proposed as a measure of the degree of the stress anisotropy. Models for easy-hard axis switching induced by stress for magnetic films with positive magnetostriction are discussed. copyright 1997 American Institute of Physics

Effects of crystallographic texture on stress-migration resistance in copper thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koike, J.; Wada, M.; Sanada, M.; Maruyama, K.

2002-01-01

The crystallographic texture of heat-treated Cu thin films and its effects on stress-migration resistance were studied as a function of film thickness within a range of 50-900 nm. All as-deposited films had (111) texture. After heat treatment at 723 K, texture transition from (111) to (100) was observed in films of thickness greater than 300 nm. The (111) texture films after heat treatment showed severe stress migration; in contrast, the (100) texture films showed no noticeable stress migration. The observed stress-migration resistance in the (100) texture films can be attributed to the absence of twins and to lower thermal stress as compared with the (111) texture films

Mechanical stress and stress release channels in 10–350 nm palladium hydrogen thin films with different micro-structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, Stefan; Kramer, Thilo; Uchida, Helmut; Dobron, Patrik; Cizek, Jakub; Pundt, Astrid

2016-01-01

For thin metal films adhered to rigid substrates hydrogen uptake results in compressive stresses in the GPa range. Stresses affect the thermodynamics as well as the durability of thin films, but many films can release stress above critical stress values. Depending on the films' thickness, microstructure and adhesion to the substrate, which determine the energy available in the nano-sized system, stress release is conducted via different release mechanisms. To evaluate the different mechanisms, Palladium thin films ranging from 10 nm to 350 nm and with three different types of microstructures (nanocrystalline, multi-oriented epitaxy and three-fold epitaxy) are studied with special focus on the mechanical stress. In-situ substrate curvature measurements, XRD stress analyses and acoustic emission (AE) measurements are conducted to determine intrinsic stresses, hydrogen-induced stress changes and stress release signals. By this complementary experimental approach, different stress release mechanisms (named channels) are identified. Discrete stress relaxation (DSR) events are found already within the overall linear elastic stress-strain regime. Energies to stimulate DSRs lay well below the formation energy of dislocations, and may allow the movement of defects pre-existing in the films. For higher strain energies, all studied films can release stress by the formation of new dislocations and plastic deformation. When the adhesion to the substrate is small, an alternative release channel of film buckling opens for thick films.

Fabrication, microstructure and stress effects in sputtered TiNi thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grummon, D.S.

2000-01-01

Sputtered thin films of equiatomic TiNi and TiNiX ternary alloys have excellent mechanical properties and exhibit robust shape-memory and transformational superelasticity. Furthermore, the energetic nature of the sputter deposition process allows the creation of highly refined microstructures that are difficult to achieve by melt-solidification. The present paper will present recent work on the relationship between processing, microstructure and properties of binary TiNi thin films, focusing primarily on residual stresses, kinetics of stress-relaxation and crystallization, and fine grain sizes achievable using hot-substrate direct crystallization. (orig.)

X-ray diffraction stress analysis of ferroelectric thin films with ideal (h k l) textures considering the piezoelectric coupling effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu Huaping; Wu Linzhi; Li Jiquan; Chai Guozhong; Du Shanyi

2010-01-01

Ferroelectric thin films present large residual stress and strong texture during preparation, which affect the mechanical, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the thin films. The determination of residual stresses in ferroelectric thin films with different textures is therefore very important. In this paper, an extended crystallite group model to evaluate the residual stresses of ferroelectric thin films using X-ray diffraction is proposed by considering the constitutive equation of orthogonally anisotropic ferroelectric medium. The effects of anisotropy and piezoelectric coupling on residual stresses of ferroelectric thin films are analyzed. X-ray stress factors for ideal (h k l)-textured ferroelectric thin films are obtained. An example of calculating the residual stresses of tetragonal perovskite ferroelectric thin films with (1 1 1) and (1 0 0) textures using the extended model is provided to validate the model.

Stress effects in ferroelectric perovskite thin-films

Science.gov (United States)

Zednik, Ricardo Johann

The exciting class of ferroelectric materials presents the engineer with an array of unique properties that offer promise in a variety of applications; these applications include infra-red detectors ("night-vision imaging", pyroelectricity), micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS, piezoelectricity), and non-volatile memory (NVM, ferroelectricity). Realizing these modern devices often requires perovskite-based ferroelectric films thinner than 100 nm. Two such technologically important material systems are (Ba,Sr)TiO3 (BST), for tunable dielectric devices employed in wireless communications, and Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT), for ferroelectric non-volatile memory (FeRAM). In general, the material behavior is strongly influenced by the mechanical boundary conditions imposed by the substrate and surrounding layers and may vary considerably from the known bulk behavior. A better mechanistic understanding of these effects is essential for harnessing the full potential of ferroelectric thin-films and further optimizing existing devices. Both materials share a common crystal structure and similar properties, but face unique challenges due to the design parameters of these different applications. Tunable devices often require very low dielectric loss as well as large dielectric tunability. Present results show that the dielectric response of BST thin-films can either resemble a dipole-relaxor or follow the accepted empirical Universal Relaxation Law (Curie-von Schweidler), depending on temperature. These behaviors in a single ferroelectric thin-film system are often thought to be mutually exclusive. In state-of-the-art high density FeRAM, the ferroelectric polarization is at least as important as the dielectric response. It was found that these properties are significantly affected by moderate biaxial tensile and compressive stresses which reversibly alter the ferroelastic domain populations of PZT at room temperature. The 90-degree domain wall motion observed by high resolution

Stress and stability of sputter deposited A-15 and bcc crystal structure tungsten thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O' Keefe, M.J.; Stutz, C.E.

1997-07-01

Magnetron sputter deposition was used to fabricate body centered cubic (bcc) and A-15 crystal structure W thin films. Previous work demonstrated that the as-deposited crystal structure of the films was dependent on the deposition parameters and that the formation of a metastable A-15 structure was favored over the thermodynamically stable bcc phase when the films contained a few atomic percent oxygen. However, the A-15 phase was shown to irreversibly transform into the bcc phase between 500 C and 650 C and that a significant decrease in the resistivity of the metallic films was measured after the transformation. The current investigation of 150 nm thick, sputter deposited A-15 and bcc tungsten thin films on silicon wafers consisted of a series of experiments in which the stress, resistivity and crystal structure of the films was measured as a function of temperatures cycles in a Flexus 2900 thin film stress measurement system. The as-deposited film stress was found to be a function of the sputtering pressure and presputter time; under conditions in which the as-deposited stress of the film was {approximately}1.5 GPa compressive delamination of the W film from the substrate was observed. Data from the thermal studies indicated that bcc film stress was not affected by annealing but transformation of the A-15 structure resulted in a large tensile increase in the stress of the film, regardless of the as-deposited stress of the film. In several instances, complete transformation of the A-15 structure into the bcc phase resulted in {ge}1 GPa tensile increase in film stress.

Stress and stability of sputter deposited A-15 and bcc crystal structure tungsten thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Keefe, M.J.; Stutz, C.E.

1997-01-01

Magnetron sputter deposition was used to fabricate body centered cubic (bcc) and A-15 crystal structure W thin films. Previous work demonstrated that the as-deposited crystal structure of the films was dependent on the deposition parameters and that the formation of a metastable A-15 structure was favored over the thermodynamically stable bcc phase when the films contained a few atomic percent oxygen. However, the A-15 phase was shown to irreversibly transform into the bcc phase between 500 C and 650 C and that a significant decrease in the resistivity of the metallic films was measured after the transformation. The current investigation of 150 nm thick, sputter deposited A-15 and bcc tungsten thin films on silicon wafers consisted of a series of experiments in which the stress, resistivity and crystal structure of the films was measured as a function of temperatures cycles in a Flexus 2900 thin film stress measurement system. The as-deposited film stress was found to be a function of the sputtering pressure and presputter time; under conditions in which the as-deposited stress of the film was approximately1.5 GPa compressive delamination of the W film from the substrate was observed. Data from the thermal studies indicated that bcc film stress was not affected by annealing but transformation of the A-15 structure resulted in a large tensile increase in the stress of the film, regardless of the as-deposited stress of the film. In several instances, complete transformation of the A-15 structure into the bcc phase resulted in ge1 GPa tensile increase in film stress

Residual stress mapping by micro X-ray diffraction: Application to the study of thin film buckling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goudeau, P.; Villain, P.; Tamura, N.; Celestre, R.S.; Padmore, H.A.

2002-11-06

Thin films deposited by Physical Vapour Deposition techniques on substrates generally exhibit large residual stresses which may be responsible of spontaneous detachment of the film from its substrate and in the case of compressive stresses, thin film buckling. Although these effects are undesirable for future applications, one may take benefit of it for thin film mechanical properties investigation. Since the 80's, a lot of theoretical works have been done to develop mechanical models with the aim to get a better understanding of driven mechanisms giving rise to this phenomenon and thus to propose solutions to avoid such problems. Nevertheless, only a few experimental works have been done on this subject to support these theoretical results and nothing concerning local stress/strain measurement mainly because of the small dimension of the buckling (few tenth mm). This paper deals with the application of micro beam x-ray diffraction available on synchrotron radiation sources for stress/ strain mapping analysis of gold thin film buckling.

Influence of stress on the structural and dielectric properties of rf magnetron sputtered zinc oxide thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Menon, Rashmi; Sreenivas, K.; Gupta, Vinay

2008-05-01

Highly c axis oriented zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have been prepared on 1737 Corning glass substrate by planar rf magnetron sputtering under varying pressure (10-50mTorr) and different oxygen percentage (40%-100%) in reactive gas mixtures. The as-grown ZnO thin films were found to have stress over a wide range from -6×1010to-9×107dynes/cm2. The presence of stress depends strongly on processing conditions, and films become almost stress free under a unique combination of sputtering pressure and reactive gas composition. The studies show a correlation of stress with structural and electrical properties of the ZnO thin film. The stressed films possess high electrical conductivity and exhibits strong dielectric dispersion over a wide frequency (1kHz-1MHz). The dielectric constant ɛ'(ω) of stress free ZnO film was almost frequency independent and was close to the bulk value. The measured value of dc conductivity, σdc(ω) and ac conductivity σac(ω) of stress free ZnO film was 1.3×10-9 and 6.8×10-5Ω-1cm-1, respectively. The observed variation in the structural and electrical properties of ZnO thin film with stress has been analyzed in the light of growth kinetics.

Stress relaxation and hillock growth in thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, M.S.; Li, C.Y.

1978-01-01

The relaxation of thermal stress in a thin film adhering to a substrate of differing expansion coefficient is discussed. Good agreement is found between literature data on relaxation during isothermal anneals of Pb films at up to 350 0 K and model calculations based on a state variable description of plastic flow. The stress system during relaxation is explored, and the absence of diffusional creep is explained. The plasticity-dominated relaxation process suggested by this analysis is shown to be in good qualitative agreement with data on rapid relaxation over the course of a cycle between room and cryogenic temperatures. The implications of this for long-range material transport in the film are discussed. It is shown that hillock volume should increase over the course of a temperature cycle. Finally, a mechanism for hillock nucleation based on grain boundary sliding is suggested

Application-related properties of giant magnetostrictive thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, S.H.; Kim, H.J.; Na, S.M.; Suh, S.J.

2002-01-01

In an effort to facilitate the utilization of giant magnetostrictive thin films in microdevices, application-related properties of these thin films, which include induced anisotropy, residual stress and corrosion properties, are investigated. A large induced anisotropy with an energy of 6x10 4 J/m 3 is formed in field-sputtered amorphous Sm-Fe-B thin films, resulting in a large magnetostriction anisotropy. Two components of residual stress, intrinsic compressive stress and tensile stress due to the difference of the thermal expansion coefficients between the substrate and thin film, are identified. The variation of residual stress with fabrication parameter and annealing temperature, and its influence on mechanical bending and magnetic properties are examined. Better corrosion properties are observed in Sm-Fe thin films than in Tb-Fe. Corrosion properties of Tb-Fe thin films, however, are much improved with the introduction of nitrogen to the thin films without deteriorating magnetostrictive properties

Accelerated stress testing of thin film solar cells: Development of test methods and preliminary results

Science.gov (United States)

Lathrop, J. W.

1985-01-01

If thin film cells are to be considered a viable option for terrestrial power generation their reliability attributes will need to be explored and confidence in their stability obtained through accelerated testing. Development of a thin film accelerated test program will be more difficult than was the case for crystalline cells because of the monolithic construction nature of the cells. Specially constructed test samples will need to be fabricated, requiring committment to the concept of accelerated testing by the manufacturers. A new test schedule appropriate to thin film cells will need to be developed which will be different from that used in connection with crystalline cells. Preliminary work has been started to seek thin film schedule variations to two of the simplest tests: unbiased temperature and unbiased temperature humidity. Still to be examined are tests which involve the passage of current during temperature and/or humidity stress, either by biasing in the forward (or reverse) directions or by the application of light during stress. Investigation of these current (voltage) accelerated tests will involve development of methods of reliably contacting the thin conductive films during stress.

Stress analysis, structure and magnetic properties of sputter deposited Ni-Mn-Ga ferromagnetic shape memory thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Annadurai, A. [Department of Physics, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore 641004 (India); Manivel Raja, M., E-mail: mraja@dmrl.drdo.in [Defense Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad 500058 (India); Prabahar, K.; Kumar, Atul [Defense Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad 500058 (India); Kannan, M.D.; Jayakumar, S. [Department of Physics, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore 641004 (India)

2011-11-15

The residual stress instituted in Ni-Mn-Ga thin films during deposition is a key parameter influencing their shape memory applications by affecting its structural and magnetic properties. A series of Ni-Mn-Ga thin films were prepared by dc magnetron sputtering on Si(1 0 0) and glass substrates at four different sputtering powers of 25, 45, 75 and 100 W for systematic investigation of the residual stress and its effect on structure and magnetic properties. The residual stresses in thin films were characterized by a laser scanning technique. The as-deposited films were annealed at 600 deg. C for 1 h in vacuum for structural and magnetic ordering. The compressive stresses observed in as-deposited films transformed into tensile stresses upon annealing. The annealed films were found to be crystalline and possess mixed phases of both austenite and martensite, exhibiting good soft magnetic properties. It was found that the increase of sputtering power induced coarsening in thin films. Typical saturation magnetization and coercivity values were found to be 330 emu/cm{sup 3} and 215 Oe, respectively. The films deposited at 75 and 100 W display both structural and magnetic transitions above room temperature. - Highlights: > Compressive stresses observed in as-deposited films transformed into tensile stresses upon annealing. > Annealed films were found to be crystalline and possess mixed phases of both austenite and martensite, exhibiting good soft magnetic properties. > The highest Curie transition in the films was observed at 365 K. > The films deposited at 75 and 100 W display both structural and magnetic transitions above room temperature.

Influence of Ni Solute segregation on the intrinsic growth stresses in Cu(Ni) thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaub, T.M.; Felfer, P.; Cairney, J.M.; Thompson, G.B.

2016-01-01

Using intrinsic solute segregation in alloys, the compressive stress in a series of Cu(Ni) thin films has been studied. The highest compressive stress was noted in the 5 at.% Ni alloy, with increasing Ni concentration resulting in a subsequent reduction of stress. Atom probe tomography quantified Ni's Gibbsian interfacial excess in the grain boundaries and confirmed that once grain boundary saturation is achieved, the compressive stress was reduced. This letter provides experimental support in elucidating how interfacial segregation of excess adatoms contributes to the post-coalescence compressive stress generation mechanism in thin films. - Graphical abstract: Cu(Ni) film stress relationship with Ni additions. Atom probe characterization confirms solute enrichment in the boundaries, which was linked to stress response.

Evolution of normal stress and surface roughness in buckled thin films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Palasantzas, G; De Hosson, JTM

2003-01-01

In this work we investigate buckling of compressed elastic thin films, which are bonded onto a viscous layer of finite thickness. It is found that the normal stress exerted by the viscous layer on the elastic film evolves with time showing a minimum at early buckling stages, while it increases at

Stress-Induced Crystallization of Ge-Doped Sb Phase-Change Thin Films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eising, Gert; Pauza, Andrew; Kooi, Bart J.

The large effects of moderate stresses on the crystal growth rate in Ge-doped Sb phase-change thin films are demonstrated using direct optical imaging. For Ge6Sb94 and Ge7Sb93 phase-change films, a large increase in crystallization temperature is found when using a polycarbonate substrate instead of

Correlation between hardness and stress in Al-(Nb, Mo, Ta) thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Car, T., E-mail: car@irb.h [Rudjer Boskovic Institute, Division of Materials Science, Bijenicka cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, P.O.B. 1016 (Croatia); Radic, N. [Rudjer Boskovic Institute, Division of Materials Science, Bijenicka cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, P.O.B. 1016 (Croatia); Panjan, P.; Cekada, M. [Jozef Stefan Institute, Ljubljana (Slovenia); Tonejc, A. [Department of Physics, Bijenicka cesta 32, 10000 Zagreb, P.O.B. 331 (Croatia)

2009-06-30

The thin films of Al{sub x}Nb{sub 1-x} (95 {>=} x {>=} 20), Al{sub x}Mo{sub x} (90 {>=} x {>=} 20) and Al{sub x}Ta{sub 1-x} (95 {>=} x {>=} 20) were prepared by magnetron codeposition at room temperature. The average film thickness was from 325 to 400 nm, depending on the film composition. The structure of the as-deposited films was examined by the X-ray diffraction. The stress of the films was determined from the substrate deformation by the profilometer, and the microhardness (load 2 mN) was examined by the micro- and nano-hardness device. For the purpose of the examination of the hardness, the samples were deposited onto the sapphire wafers, while the examination of the film stress, was performed by using thin glass substrates. For all the Al-(Nb, Mo, Ta) alloy compositions, the microhardness is predominantly under the influence of the harder element, and monotonically decreases with the increase of the aluminum content. However, the microhardness of the amorphous AlTa films was higher than the bulk value of a harder element (Ta) in the alloy. A simple empirical linear relationship between the Vickers hardness, the bulk value hardness of the transition metal (harder element) and the elastic energy fraction of the identation deformation, was established. The elastic energy fraction in the microhardness is also linearly correlated with the stress in films.

Compressive intrinsic stress originates in the grain boundaries of dense refractory polycrystalline thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magnfält, D., E-mail: danma@ifm.liu.se; Sarakinos, K. [Nanoscale Engineering Division, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM), Linköping University, SE-581 83 Linköping (Sweden); Fillon, A.; Abadias, G. [Institut P' , Département Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, Université de Poitiers-CNRS-ENSMA, SP2MI, Téléport 2, Bd M. et P. Curie, F-86962 Chasseneuil-Futuroscope (France); Boyd, R. D.; Helmersson, U. [Plasma and Coatings Physics Division, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (IFM), Linköping University, SE-581 83 Linköping (Sweden)

2016-02-07

Intrinsic stresses in vapor deposited thin films have been a topic of considerable scientific and technological interest owing to their importance for functionality and performance of thin film devices. The origin of compressive stresses typically observed during deposition of polycrystalline metal films at conditions that result in high atomic mobility has been under debate in the literature in the course of the past decades. In this study, we contribute towards resolving this debate by investigating the grain size dependence of compressive stress magnitude in dense polycrystalline Mo films grown by magnetron sputtering. Although Mo is a refractory metal and hence exhibits an intrinsically low mobility, low energy ion bombardment is used during growth to enhance atomic mobility and densify the grain boundaries. Concurrently, the lateral grain size is controlled by using appropriate seed layers on which Mo films are grown epitaxially. The combination of in situ stress monitoring with ex situ microstructural characterization reveals a strong, seemingly linear, increase of the compressive stress magnitude on the inverse grain size and thus provides evidence that compressive stress is generated in the grain boundaries of the film. These results are consistent with models suggesting that compressive stresses in metallic films deposited at high homologous temperatures are generated by atom incorporation into and densification of grain boundaries. However, the underlying mechanisms for grain boundary densification might be different from those in the present study where atomic mobility is intrinsically low.

Probing stress state and phase content in ultra-thin Ta films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whitacre, J.F.; Yalisove, S.M.; Bilello, J.C.; Rek, Z.U.

1998-01-01

Ta films 25 angstrom to 200 angstrom in thickness were sputter-deposited using different sputter gas (Ar) pressures and cathode power settings. The average in-plane stresses were determined using double crystal diffraction topography (DCDT). X-ray analysis (using the grazing incidence x-ray scattering (GIXS) geometry) was performed using a synchrotron light source. To study microstructure and phase content, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and transmission electron diffraction (TED) were used. Well resolved x-ray patterns were collected for all of the films. The DCDT stress data was found to be consistent with stress effects evidence in the GIXS data. In general, residual stress state was not strongly dependent upon Ar pressure. The strongest evidence of amorphous content was found in both x-ray and TED data taken from 25 angstrom thick films deposited using 2mTorr Ar pressure and 460 W cathode power. These results show that it is possible to create and study ultra-thin Ta films which possess a range of residual stresses and phase compositions

Microstructure and mechanical properties of stress-tailored piezoelectric AlN thin films for electro-acoustic devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reusch, Markus, E-mail: markus.reusch@iaf.fraunhofer.de [Laboratory for Compound Semiconductor Microsystems, IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg (Germany); Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Cherneva, Sabina [Institute of Mechanics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 4, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Lu, Yuan; Žukauskaitė, Agnė; Kirste, Lutz; Holc, Katarzyna [Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Datcheva, Maria [Institute of Mechanics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 4, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Stoychev, Dimitar [Institute of Physical Chemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 11, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Lebedev, Vadim [Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Ambacher, Oliver [Laboratory for Compound Semiconductor Microsystems, IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg (Germany); Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany)

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Sputtered AlN thin films with minimized intrinsic stress gradient. • Gradual increase of N{sub 2} concentration during film growth. • No degradation of AlN film properties by changing process conditions. • 2D Raman mapping of nanoindentation area. - Abstract: Nanoindentation measurements along with atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and residual stress analyses on the basis of Raman measurements have been performed to characterize stress-tailored AlN thin films grown using reactive RF magnetron sputtering. The intrinsic stress gradient caused by the growing in-plane grain size along film thickness was minimized by increasing the N{sub 2} concentration in the Ar/N{sub 2} gas mixture during the growth process. The increase of N{sub 2} concentration did not degrade the device-relevant material properties such as crystallographic orientation, surface morphology, piezoelectric response, or indentation modulus. Due to comparable crystallographic film properties for all investigated samples it was concluded that mainly the AlN crystallites contribute to the mechanical film properties such as indentation modulus and hardness, while the film stress or grain boundaries had only a minor influence. Therefore, by tailoring the stress gradient in the AlN films, device performance, fabrication yield, and the design flexibility of electro-acoustic devices can be greatly improved.

Tailoring the stress-depth profile in thin films; the case of γ'-Fe4N1-x

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wohlschloegel, M.; Welzel, U.; Mittemeijer, E.J.

2011-01-01

Homogeneous γ'-Fe 4 N 1-x thin films were produced by gas through-nitriding of iron thin films (thickness 800 nm) deposited onto Al 2 O 3 substrates by Molecular Beam Epitaxy. The nitriding parameters were chosen such that the nitrogen concentration within the γ' thin films was considerably lower (x ∼ 0.05) than the stoichiometric value (x = 0). X-ray diffraction stress analysis at constant penetration depths performed after the nitriding step revealed the presence of tensile stress parallel to the surface; the tensile stress was shown to be practically constant over the entire film thickness. For further nitriding treatments, the parameters were adjusted such that nitrogen enrichment occurred near the specimen surface. The depth-dependent nitrogen enrichment could be monitored by evaluating the strain-free lattice parameter of γ' as a function of X-ray penetration depth and relating it to the nitrogen concentration employing a direct relation between lattice parameter and nitrogen concentration. The small compositional variations led to distinct characteristic stress-depth profiles. The stress changes non-monotonously with depth in the film as could be shown by non-destructive X-ray diffraction stress analysis at constant penetration depths. This work demonstrates that by a specific choice of a first and a subsequent nitriding treatment (employing different nitriding potentials and/or different temperatures for both treatments) controlled development of residual stress profiles is possible in thin iron-nitride surface layers.

DOE Final Report: A Unified Understanding of Residual Stress in Thin Films: Kinetic Models, Experiments and Simulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chason, Eric [Brown Univ., Providence, RI (United States)

2018-02-01

Thin films are critical for a wide range of advanced technologies. However, the deposited films often have high levels of residual stress that can limit their performance or lead to failure. The stress is known to depend on many variables, including the processing conditions, type of material, deposition technique and the film’s microstructure. The goal of this DOE program was to develop a fundamental understanding of how the different processes that control thin film growth under different conditions can be related to the development of stress. In the program, systematic experiments were performed or analyzed that related the stress to the processing conditions that were used. Measurements of stress were obtained for films that were grown at different rates, different solutions (for electrodeposition), different particle energies (for sputter deposition) and different microstructures. Based on this data, models were developed to explain the observed dependence on the different parameters. The models were based on considering the balance among different stress-inducing mechanism occurring as the film grows (for both non-energetic and energetic deposition). Comparison of the model predictions with the experiments enabled the kinetic parameters to be determined for different materials. The resulting model equations provide a comprehensive picture of how stress changes with the processing conditions that can be used to optimize the growth of thin films.

Micromachined sensor for stress measurement and micromechanical study of free-standing thin films for MEMS applications

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Ping

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have a wide range of applications. In the field of wireless and microwave technology, considerable attention has been given to the development and integration of MEMS-based RF (radio frequency) components. An RF MEMS switch requires low insertion loss, high isolation, and low actuation voltage - electrical aspects that have been extensively studied. The mechanical requirements of the switch, such as low sensitivity to built-in stress and high reliability, greatly depend on the micromechanical properties of the switch materials, and have not been thoroughly explored. RF MEMS switches are typically in the form of a free-standing thin film structure. Large stress gradients and across-wafer stress variations developed during fabrication severely degrade their electrical performance. A micromachined stress measurement sensor has been developed that can potentially be employed for in-situ monitoring of stress evolution and stress variation. The sensors were micromachined using five masks on two wafer levels, each measuring 5x3x1 mm. They function by means of an electron tunneling mechanism, where a 2x2 mm silicon nitride membrane elastically deflects under an applied deflection voltage via an external feedback circuitry. For the current design, the sensors are capable of measuring tensile stresses up to the GPa range under deflection voltages of 50--100 V. Sensor functionality was studied by finite element modeling and a theoretical analysis of square membrane deflection. While the mechanical properties of thin films on substrates have been extensively studied, studies of free-standing thin films have been limited due to the practical difficulties in sample handling and testing. Free-standing Al and Al-Ti thin films specimens have been successfully fabricated and microtensile and stress relaxation tests have been performed using a custom-designed micromechanical testing apparatus. A dedicated TEM (transmission electron microscopy

Tailoring of in-plane magnetic anisotropy in polycrystalline cobalt thin films by external stress

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Dileep, E-mail: dkumar@csr.res.in [UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientic Research, Khandwa Road, Indore 452001 (India); Singh, Sadhana [UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientic Research, Khandwa Road, Indore 452001 (India); Vishawakarma, Pramod [School of Nanotechnology, RGPV, Bhopal 462036 (India); Dev, Arun Singh; Reddy, V.R. [UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientic Research, Khandwa Road, Indore 452001 (India); Gupta, Ajay [Amity Center for Spintronic Materials, Amity University, Sector 125, Noida 201303 (India)

2016-11-15

Polycrystalline Co films of nominal thickness ~180 Å were deposited on intentionally curved Si substrates. Tensile and compressive stresses of 100 MPa and 150 MPa were induced in the films by relieving the curvature. It has been found that, within the elastic limit, presence of stress leads to an in-plane magnetic anisotropy in the film and its strength increases with increasing stress. Easy axis of magnetization in the films is found to be parallel/ transverse to the compressive /tensile stresses respectively. The origin of magnetic anisotropy in the stressed films is understood in terms of magneto- elastic coupling, where the stress try to align the magnetic moments in order to minimize the magneto-elastic as well as anisotropy energy. Tensile stress is also found to be responsible for the surface smoothening of the films, which is attributed to the movement of the atoms associated with the applied stress. The present work provides a possible way to tailor the magnetic anisotropy and its direction in polycrystalline and amorphous films using external stress. - Highlights: • Tensile and compressive stresses were induced in Co films by removing the bending force from the substrates after film deposition. • Controlled external mechanical stress is found to be responsible for magnetic anisotropies in amorphous and polycrystalline thin films, where crystalline anisotropy is absent. • Tensile stress leads to surface smoothening of the polycrystalline Co films.

Synthesis, structuring and characterization of rare earth oxide thin films: Modeling of the effects of stress and defects on the phase stability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gaboriaud, R.J.; Paumier, F.; Lacroix, B.

2014-01-01

This work studies the effects of the deposition parameters on the microstructure and the related residual stress in a rare earth oxide thin film. This study is focused on the yttrium sesquioxide (Y 2 O 3 ) thin films deposited on Si (100) substrates using the ion beam sputtering technique. This technique allows the control of the microstructure and the related residual stress in the thin films by monitoring the energy of the argon beam used in the deposition process. Measurements of the stresses within the oxide layer were performed by the X-ray diffraction-sin 2 Ψ method. The results show that the classic model of a pure biaxial in-plane model of stress, generally proposed in thin films, is not satisfying. A model that includes a hydrostatic stress due to the crystalline defects generated during the deposition process and a biaxial stress called a fixation stress, gives a good agreement with the experimental results. This modeling of the residual stress, based on nanometer-scale inclusions (point, extended defects) inducing a hydrostatic stress field, leads to a quantitative analysis of the nature and the concentration of the defects. This work shows results that establish a relationship between residual stress, defects and non-equilibrium phase stabilization during growth. - Highlights: • Microstructure of Y 2 O 3 thin films • Measurements of residual stresses in the thin films • Modeling of a triaxial residual stress state • Stress-induced stabilization of non-equilibrium phase

Residual stress and Young's modulus of pulsed laser deposited PZT thin films: Effect of thin film composition and crystal direction of Si cantilevers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nazeer, H.; Nguyen, Duc Minh; Rijnders, Augustinus J.H.M.; Abelmann, Leon; Sardan Sukas, Ö.

2016-01-01

We investigated the residual stress and Young's modulus of Pb(ZrxTi1 - x)O3 (PZT) thin films with a (110) preferred orientation and a composition x ranging from 0.2 to 0.8. The films are grown by pulsed laser deposition on silicon cantilevers aligned along the <110> and <100> silicon crystal

Modelling and analysis of the stress distribution in a multi-thin film system Pt/USG/Si

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, W. Z.; Roqueta, F.; Craveur, J. C.; Belhenini, S.; Gardes, P.; Tougui, A.

2018-04-01

Residual stress analysis is commonly achieved through curvature measurement with the help of Stoney’s formula. However, this conventional approach is inadequate for multi-layer thin film systems, which are widely used in today’s microelectronics. Also, for the thin film case, the residual stress is composed of thermal stress and intrinsic stress. Measuring the wafer curvature at room temperature provides a value for the average stresses in the layer, the two components cannot be distinguished by the existing methodologies of curvature measurement. To alleviate these problems, a modified curvature method combining finite element (FE) modelling is proposed to study the stress distribution in a Pt/USG/Si structure. A 2D FE model is firstly built in order to calculate the thermal stress in the multilayer structure, the obtained thermal stresses in respective films are verified by an analytical model. Then, we calculate the warpage of the multilayer structure by considering the intrinsic stress in the respective films. The residual stresses in the films are determined by minimizing the difference between the simulated warpage and that of experimental measurement. The proposed approach can be used to calculate not only the average residual stress but also thermal and intrinsic stress components in the USG and Platinum films. The obtained residual and intrinsic stresses from a numerical model are compared with the values of other studies. There is no limitation for the application of our methodologies regarding the number of the layers in the stack.

Influence of stress on morphology and magnetism of heteroepitaxial thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wedler, G.

2001-01-01

In this thesis the method of the bending-beam technique and the scanning tunnel microscopy was used in order to study the influence of mechanical stresses on growth and magnetoelastic coupling of selected epitaxial thin-layer systems. The Si x Ge 1-x alloy films deposited at 900 K on Si(001) substrates with Si concentrations 20% a change of the stress-behaviour is observed, which lets conclude to pure 3D island growth without wetting layer. Scanning-tunnel-microscopy studies show already at intermediate film thicknesses of 1 nm regular islands with a narrow size distribution. For the explanation of this surprising change of the growth modus the influence of kinetic parameters is discussed. Furthermore for the first time stress measurements of Fe/ GaAs(001) are presented. The behaviour of the film stress at 450 K hints to a few nm thick interdiffusion layer between film and substrate. This interdiffusion is at 300 K only by about 30% reduced and cannot by this be neglected anywhere. By means of on different substrates [Mg(001), lowly stressed Cr(001) buffer layer, GaAs(001)] growed Fe films for the first time a detailed picture of the stress dependence of the magnetoelastic coupling constants B 1 and B 2 of Fe in the layer-density range of 2-100 mm is presented. While the coupling constants of stress-free Fe(001) films exhibit volume behaviour, distinct deviations occur already at small stresses of about 0.1 GPa; at some GPa even the sign changes. The value of B 2 decreases linearly with the film stress up to 6 GPa, in B 1 after an initially linear slope above 2-3 GPa a saturation occurs. Magnetization and magnetic anisotropy however behave in whole studied layer-density range as in the volume

Measurement of adherence of residually stressed thin films by indentation. I. Mechanics of interface delamination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshall, D.B.; Evans, A.G.

1984-01-01

A fracture analysis of indentation-induced delamination of thin films is presented. The analysis is based on a model system in which the section of film above the delaminating crack is treated as a rigidly clamped disc, and the crack extension force is derived from changes in strain energy of the system as the crack extends. Residual deposition stresses influence the cracking response by inducing buckling of the film above the crack and by providing an additional crack driving force once buckling occurs. A relation for the equilibrium crack length is derived in terms of the indenter load and geometry, the film thickness and mechanical properties, the residual stress level and the fracture toughness of the interface. The analysis provides a basis for using controlled indentation cracking as a quantitative measure of interface toughness and for evaluating contact-induced damage in thin films

High-throughput characterization of stresses in thin film materials libraries using Si cantilever array wafers and digital holographic microscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lai, Y. W.; Ludwig, A.; Hamann, S.; Ehmann, M.

2011-01-01

We report the development of an advanced high-throughput stress characterization method for thin film materials libraries sputter-deposited on micro-machined cantilever arrays consisting of around 1500 cantilevers on 4-inch silicon-on-insulator wafers. A low-cost custom-designed digital holographic microscope (DHM) is employed to simultaneously monitor the thin film thickness, the surface topography and the curvature of each of the cantilevers before and after deposition. The variation in stress state across the thin film materials library is then calculated by Stoney's equation based on the obtained radii of curvature of the cantilevers and film thicknesses. DHM with nanometer-scale out-of-plane resolution allows stress measurements in a wide range, at least from several MPa to several GPa. By using an automatic x-y translation stage, the local stresses within a 4-inch materials library are mapped with high accuracy within 10 min. The speed of measurement is greatly improved compared with the prior laser scanning approach that needs more than an hour of measuring time. A high-throughput stress measurement of an as-deposited Fe-Pd-W materials library was evaluated for demonstration. The fast characterization method is expected to accelerate the development of (functional) thin films, e.g., (magnetic) shape memory materials, whose functionality is greatly stress dependent.

Imposition of defined states of stress on thin films by a wafer-curvature method; validation and application to aging Sn films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stein, J., E-mail: Jendrik.Stein@de.bosch.com [Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (formerly Max Planck Institute for Metals Research), Heisenbergstr. 3, 70569 Stuttgart (Germany); Robert Bosch GmbH, Automotive Electronics/Engineering Assembly and Interconnect Technology (AE/EAI2), Robert-Bosch-Str. 2, 71701 Schwieberdingen (Germany); Pascher, M. [Institute for Materials Science, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, 70569 Stuttgart (Germany); Welzel, U. [Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (formerly Max Planck Institute for Metals Research), Heisenbergstr. 3, 70569 Stuttgart (Germany); Huegel, W. [Robert Bosch GmbH, Automotive Electronics/Engineering Assembly and Interconnect Technology (AE/EAI2), Robert-Bosch-Str. 2, 71701 Schwieberdingen (Germany); Mittemeijer, E.J. [Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (formerly Max Planck Institute for Metals Research), Heisenbergstr. 3, 70569 Stuttgart (Germany); Institute for Materials Science, University of Stuttgart, Pfaffenwaldring 55, 70569 Stuttgart (Germany)

2014-10-01

A wafer-curvature method has been developed to subject thin films, deposited on (Si) substrates, to well defined and controllable loads in a contact-free manner. To this end, a custom-made glass pan (i.e. a roof-less cylinder with a connection piece for vacuum tubes) connected to a needle valve, a vacuum pump and a pressure gauge has been used as an experimental setup. By fixing the coated Si wafer on top of the glass cylinder and evacuating the glass cylinder to a defined low-pressure, a state of stress is imposed in the thin film due to bending of the wafer. It has been shown that the (initial) stress state of a film and its change, due to its bending with the help of the wafer-curvature method, can be analyzed accurately close to the wafer center by application of one of two independent X-ray diffraction techniques: i) conventional X-ray diffraction stress analysis (i.e. application of the well known sin{sup 2}ψ-method) to reflections originating from the film and ii) determination of the radii of curvature by rocking curve measurements utilizing reflections originating from the substrate. The validation of this stress-imposition method has been carried out with a tungsten film of 500 nm thickness, since tungsten is known to be (practically) intrinsically elastically isotropic. Further, the method has been applied to an electro-deposited, potentially whiskering, aging Sn film of 3 μm thickness where a combination of both stress-measurement techniques is essential for the determination of initial and (by wafer bending) imposed stresses. The results of the aging experiment of the Sn film under load have been discussed with respect to the current whisker-growth model. - Highlights: • A wafer-curvature method has been developed to subject thin films to defined loads. • Two X-ray diffraction techniques were employed for the analysis of stresses. • The wafer-curvature method was validated by application to a W film. • Application to a potentially whiskering

Imposition of defined states of stress on thin films by a wafer-curvature method; validation and application to aging Sn films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stein, J.; Pascher, M.; Welzel, U.; Huegel, W.; Mittemeijer, E.J.

2014-01-01

A wafer-curvature method has been developed to subject thin films, deposited on (Si) substrates, to well defined and controllable loads in a contact-free manner. To this end, a custom-made glass pan (i.e. a roof-less cylinder with a connection piece for vacuum tubes) connected to a needle valve, a vacuum pump and a pressure gauge has been used as an experimental setup. By fixing the coated Si wafer on top of the glass cylinder and evacuating the glass cylinder to a defined low-pressure, a state of stress is imposed in the thin film due to bending of the wafer. It has been shown that the (initial) stress state of a film and its change, due to its bending with the help of the wafer-curvature method, can be analyzed accurately close to the wafer center by application of one of two independent X-ray diffraction techniques: i) conventional X-ray diffraction stress analysis (i.e. application of the well known sin 2 ψ-method) to reflections originating from the film and ii) determination of the radii of curvature by rocking curve measurements utilizing reflections originating from the substrate. The validation of this stress-imposition method has been carried out with a tungsten film of 500 nm thickness, since tungsten is known to be (practically) intrinsically elastically isotropic. Further, the method has been applied to an electro-deposited, potentially whiskering, aging Sn film of 3 μm thickness where a combination of both stress-measurement techniques is essential for the determination of initial and (by wafer bending) imposed stresses. The results of the aging experiment of the Sn film under load have been discussed with respect to the current whisker-growth model. - Highlights: • A wafer-curvature method has been developed to subject thin films to defined loads. • Two X-ray diffraction techniques were employed for the analysis of stresses. • The wafer-curvature method was validated by application to a W film. • Application to a potentially whiskering Sn

Examining the validity of Stoney-equation for in-situ stress measurements in thin film electrodes using a large-deformation finite-element procedure

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Jici; Wei, Yujie; Cheng, Yang-Tse

2018-05-01

During the lithiation and delithiation of a thin film electrode, stress in the electrode is deduced from the curvature change of the film using the Stoney equation. The accuracy of such a measurement is conditioned on the assumptions that (a) the mechanical properties of the electrode remain unchanged during lithiation and (b) small deformation holds. Here, we demonstrate that the change in elastic properties can influence the measurement of the stress in thin film electrodes. We consider the coupling between diffusion and deformation during lithiation and delithiation of thin film electrodes and implement the constitutive behavior in a finite-deformation finite element procedure. We demonstrate that both the variation in elastic properties in thin film electrodes and finite-deformation during lithiation and delithiation would challenge the applicability of the Stoney-equation for in-situ stress measurements of thin film electrodes.

Guided aggregation of three-dimensional nanostructures in stressed thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi, Qiwei; Bassani, John L; Lou, Yucun

2012-01-01

Stress fields induced by external loads can alter the energy landscape in alloy systems and direct precipitation to form organized nanostructures. The aggregation of periodically patterned nanostructures via surface indentation on thin films is investigated using a phase-field model, which includes chemical, interfacial and elastic energies coupled with externally imposed stress fields. Both cylindrical and spherical indenters are considered, which lead to the formation of nanorods and nanodots, respectively, in the film, and the effects of loading geometry and material properties are systematically studied through 3D simulations. Nanostructures can be formed with varying precipitate morphologies. The results are shown to be consistent with estimates of elastic interaction energies associated with transformation strain, contrast in elastic properties and external loading. (paper)

Self-contained in-vacuum in situ thin film stress measurement tool

Science.gov (United States)

Reinink, J.; van de Kruijs, R. W. E.; Bijkerk, F.

2018-05-01

A fully self-contained in-vacuum device for measuring thin film stress in situ is presented. The stress was measured by measuring the curvature of a cantilever on which the thin film was deposited. For this, a dual beam laser deflectometer was used. All optics and electronics needed to perform the measurement are placed inside a vacuum-compatible vessel with the form factor of the substrate holders of the deposition system used. The stand-alone nature of the setup allows the vessel to be moved inside a deposition system independently of optical or electronic feedthroughs while measuring continuously. A Mo/Si multilayer structure was analyzed to evaluate the performance of the setup. A radius of curvature resolution of 270 km was achieved. This allows small details of the stress development to be resolved, such as the interlayer formation between the layers and the amorphous-to-crystalline transition of the molybdenum which occurs at around 2 nm. The setup communicates with an external computer via a Wi-Fi connection. This wireless connection allows remote control over the acquisition and the live feedback of the measured stress. In principle, the vessel can act as a general metrology platform and add measurement capabilities to deposition setups with no modification to the deposition system.

Effects of DC gate and drain bias stresses on the degradation of excimer laser crystallized polysilicon thin film transistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kouvatsos, D N; Michalas, L; Voutsas, A T; Papaioannou, G J

2005-01-01

The effects of gate and drain bias stresses on thin film transistors fabricated in polysilicon films crystallized using the advanced sequential lateral solidification excimer laser annealing (SLS ELA) process, which yields very elongated polysilicon grains and allows the fabrication of TFTs without grain boundary barriers to current flow, are investigated as a function of the active layer thickness and of the TFT orientation relative to the grains. The application of hot carrier stress, with a condition of V GS = V DS /2, was determined to induce threshold voltage, subthreshold swing and transconductance degradation for TFTs in thicker polysilicon films and the associated stress-induced increase in the active layer trap density was evaluated. However, this device degradation was drastically reduced for TFTs fabricated in ultra-thin films. Furthermore, the application of the same stress condition to TFTs oriented vertically to the elongated grains resulted in similar threshold voltage shift but in substantially decreased subthreshold swing and transconductance degradation. The immunity of ultra-thin active layer devices to degradation under hot carrier stress clearly suggests the implementation of ultra thin SLS ELA polysilicon films for the fabrication of TFTs exhibiting not only high performance but, especially, the high reliability needed for integrated systems on panel

High-throughput characterization of stresses in thin film materials libraries using Si cantilever array wafers and digital holographic microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Y W; Hamann, S; Ehmann, M; Ludwig, A

2011-06-01

We report the development of an advanced high-throughput stress characterization method for thin film materials libraries sputter-deposited on micro-machined cantilever arrays consisting of around 1500 cantilevers on 4-inch silicon-on-insulator wafers. A low-cost custom-designed digital holographic microscope (DHM) is employed to simultaneously monitor the thin film thickness, the surface topography and the curvature of each of the cantilevers before and after deposition. The variation in stress state across the thin film materials library is then calculated by Stoney's equation based on the obtained radii of curvature of the cantilevers and film thicknesses. DHM with nanometer-scale out-of-plane resolution allows stress measurements in a wide range, at least from several MPa to several GPa. By using an automatic x-y translation stage, the local stresses within a 4-inch materials library are mapped with high accuracy within 10 min. The speed of measurement is greatly improved compared with the prior laser scanning approach that needs more than an hour of measuring time. A high-throughput stress measurement of an as-deposited Fe-Pd-W materials library was evaluated for demonstration. The fast characterization method is expected to accelerate the development of (functional) thin films, e.g., (magnetic) shape memory materials, whose functionality is greatly stress dependent. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

Stress evolution during and after sputter deposition of thin Cu Al alloy films

Science.gov (United States)

Pletea, M.; Wendrock, H.; Kaltofen, R.; Schmidt, O. G.; Koch, R.

2008-06-01

The stress evolution during and after sputter deposition of thin Cu-Al alloy films containing 1 and 2 at.% Al onto oxidized Si(100) substrates has been studied up to thicknesses of 300 nm by means of in situ substrate curvature measurements. In order to correlate stress and morphology, the microstructure was investigated by focused ion beam microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. The evolution of the stress and microstructure of the Cu-Al alloy films is similar to that for sputtered pure Cu films. Film growth proceeds in the Volmer-Weber mode, typical for high mobility metals. It is characterized by nucleation, island, percolation, and channel stages before the films become continuous, as well as lateral grain growth in the compact films. With increasing Al content the overall atom mobility and, thus, the average grain size of the alloy films are reduced. Increase of the sputter pressure from 0.5 to 2 Pa leads to films with larger grain size, rougher surface morphology and higher electrical resistivity.

Effect of texture and grain size on the residual stress of nanocrystalline thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Lei; Sengupta, Arkaprabha; Pantuso, Daniel; Koslowski, Marisol

2017-10-01

Residual stresses develop in thin film interconnects mainly as a result of deposition conditions and multiple thermal loading cycles during the manufacturing flow. Understanding the relation between the distribution of residual stress and the interconnect microstructure is of key importance to manage the nucleation and growth of defects that can lead to failure under reliability testing and use conditions. Dislocation dynamics simulations are performed in nanocrystalline copper subjected to cyclic loading to quantify the distribution of residual stresses as a function of grain misorientation and grain size distribution. The outcomes of this work help to evaluate the effect of microstructure in thin films failure by identifying potential voiding sites. Furthermore, the simulations show how dislocation structures are influenced by texture and grain size distribution that affect the residual stress. For example, when dislocation loops reach the opposite grain boundary during loading, these dislocations remain locked during unloading.

Acoustoelastic effect of textured (Ba,Sr)TiO{sub 3} thin films under an initial mechanical stress

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kamel, Marwa; Mseddi, Souhir; Njeh, Anouar; Ben Ghozlen, Mohamed Hédi [Laboratoire de Physique des Matériaux, Faculté des Sciences de Sfax, Université de Sfax, Sfax (Tunisia); Donner, Wolfgang [Institute of Materials Science, University of Technology, Alarich-Weiss-Strasse.2, 64287 Darmstadt (Germany)

2015-12-14

Acoustoelastic (AE) analysis of initial stresses plays an important role as a nondestructive tool in current engineering. Two textured BST (Ba{sub 0.65}Sr{sub 0.35}TiO{sub 3}) thin films, with different substrate to target distance, were grown on Pt(111)/TiO{sub 2}/SiO{sub 2}/Si(001) substrate by rf-magnetron sputtering deposition techniques. A conventional “sin{sup 2} ψ” method to determine residual stress and strain in BST films by X-ray diffraction is applied. A laser acoustic waves (LA-waves) technique is used to generate surface acoustic waves (SAW) propagating in both samples. Young's modulus E and Poisson ratio ν of BST films in different propagation directions are derived from the measured dispersion curves. Estimation of effective second-order elastic constants of BST thin films in stressed states is served in SAW study. This paper presents an original investigation of AE effect in prestressed Ba{sub 0.65}Sr{sub 0.35}TiO{sub 3} films, where the effective elastic constants and the effect of texture on second and third order elastic tensor are considered and used. The propagation behavior of Rayleigh and Love waves in BST thin films under residual stress is explored and discussed. The guiding velocities affected by residual stresses, reveal some shifts which do not exceed four percent mainly in the low frequency range.

Properties of RF-Sputtered PZT Thin Films with Ti/Pt Electrodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cui Yan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Effect of annealing temperature and thin film thickness on properties of Pb(Zr0.53Ti0.47O3 (PZT thin film deposited via radiofrequency magnetron sputtering technique onto Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrate was investigated. Average grain sizes of the PZT thin film were measured by atomic force microscope; their preferred orientation was studied through X-ray diffraction analysis. Average residual stress in the thin film was estimated according to the optimized Stoney formula, and impedance spectroscopy characterization was performed via an intelligent LCR measuring instrument. Average grain sizes of PZT thin films were 60 nm~90 nm and their average roughness was less than 2 nm. According to X-ray diffraction analysis, 600°C is the optimal annealing temperature to obtain the PZT thin film with better crystallization. Average residual stress showed that thermal mismatch was the decisive factor of residual stress in Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrate; the residual stress in PZT thin film decreased as their thickness increased and increased with annealing temperature. The dielectric constant and loss angle tangent were extremely increased with the thickness of PZT thin films. The capacitance of the device can be adjusted according to the thickness of PZT thin films.

A kinetic model for stress generation in thin films grown from energetic vapor fluxes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chason, E.; Karlson, M. [School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912 (United States); Colin, J. J.; Abadias, G. [Institut P' , Département Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, Université de Poitiers-CNRS-ENSMA, SP2MI, Téléport 2, Bd M. et P. Curie, F-86962 Chasseneuil-Futuroscope (France); Magnfält, D.; Sarakinos, K. [Nanoscale Engineering Division, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology, Linköping University, SE-581 83 Linköping (Sweden)

2016-04-14

We have developed a kinetic model for residual stress generation in thin films grown from energetic vapor fluxes, encountered, e.g., during sputter deposition. The new analytical model considers sub-surface point defects created by atomic peening, along with processes treated in already existing stress models for non-energetic deposition, i.e., thermally activated diffusion processes at the surface and the grain boundary. According to the new model, ballistically induced sub-surface defects can get incorporated as excess atoms at the grain boundary, remain trapped in the bulk, or annihilate at the free surface, resulting in a complex dependence of the steady-state stress on the grain size, the growth rate, as well as the energetics of the incoming particle flux. We compare calculations from the model with in situ stress measurements performed on a series of Mo films sputter-deposited at different conditions and having different grain sizes. The model is able to reproduce the observed increase of compressive stress with increasing growth rate, behavior that is the opposite of what is typically seen under non-energetic growth conditions. On a grander scale, this study is a step towards obtaining a comprehensive understanding of stress generation and evolution in vapor deposited polycrystalline thin films.

Growth stress buildup in ion beam sputtered Mo thin films and comparative study of stress relaxation upon thermal annealing or ion irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Debelle, A.; Abadias, G.; Michel, A.; Jaouen, C.; Pelosin, V.

2007-01-01

In an effort to address the understanding of the origin of growth stress in thin films deposited under very energetic conditions, the authors investigated the stress state and microstructure of Mo thin films grown by ion beam sputtering (IBS) as well as the stress relaxation processes taking place during subsequent thermal annealing or ion irradiation. Different sets of samples were grown by varying the IBS deposition parameters, namely, the energy E 0 and the flux j of the primary ion beam, the target-to-sputtering gas mass ratio M 1 /M 2 as well as film thickness. The strain-stress state was determined by x-ray diffraction using the sin 2 ψ method and data analyzed using an original stress model which enabled them to correlate information at macroscopic (in terms of stress) and microscopic (in terms of defect concentration) levels. Results indicate that these refractory metallic thin films are characterized by a high compressive growth stress (-2.6 to -3.8 GPa), resulting from the creation of a large concentration (up to ∼1.4%) of point or cluster defects, due to the atomic peening mechanism. The M 1 /M 2 mass ratio enables tuning efficiently the mean deposited energy of the condensing atoms; thus, it appears to be the more relevant deposition parameter that allows modifying both the microstructure and the stress level in a significant way. The growth stress comes out to be highly unstable. It can be easily relaxed either by postgrowth thermal annealing or ion irradiation in the hundred keV range at very low dose [<0.1 dpa (displacement per atom)]. It is shown that thermal annealing induces deleterious effects such as oxidation of the film surface, decrease of the film density, and in some cases adhesion loss at the film/substrate interface, while ion irradiation allows controlling the stress level without generating any macroscopic damage

Structural characterization of vacuum evaporated ZnSe thin films

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The lattice parameter, grain size, average internal stress, microstrain, dislocation density and degree of pre- ferred orientation in the film are calculated and correlated with Ts. Keywords. ZnSe thin films; X-ray diffraction; average internal stress; microstrain; dislocation density. 1. Introduction. Thin films of ZnSe has attracted ...

Uniaxial stress influence on electrical conductivity of thin epitaxial lanthanum-strontium manganite films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stankevič, V., E-mail: wstan@pfi.lt [Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Semiconductor Physics Institute, A.Gostauto 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Sauletekio 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Šimkevičius, Č.; Balevičius, S.; Žurauskienė, N. [Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Semiconductor Physics Institute, A.Gostauto 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Sauletekio 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Cimmperman, P. [Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Semiconductor Physics Institute, A.Gostauto 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Abrutis, A. [Vilnius University, Dept. of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Naugarduko 24, Vilnius (Lithuania); Plaušinaitienė, V. [Center for Physical Sciences and Technology, Semiconductor Physics Institute, A.Gostauto 11, Vilnius (Lithuania); Vilnius University, Dept. of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Naugarduko 24, Vilnius (Lithuania)

2013-07-01

This is a study of the influence of external uniaxial mechanical strains on the transport properties of thin epitaxial La{sub 0.83}Sr{sub 0.17}MnO{sub 3} (LSMO) films. Our measurements were carried out using standard isosceles triangle-shaped cantilever. Films which were tensed in-plane or compressed or were subjected to both tension and compression strains were grown onto SrTiO{sub 3} (STO), LaAlO{sub 3} (LAO) and (001) NdGaO{sub 3} (NGO) substrates, respectively. It was found that for thin films (less than 100 nm), the uniaxial compression of such films which were initially tensed in-plane (grown onto STO substrates) produces a decrease of their resistance, whereas the compression of initially compressed films (on LAO substrates) produces an increase of the films' resistance. The same results were obtained for LSMO films grown onto (001) NGO substrates when they were compressed along the [010] and [100] directions, respectively. For thicker films (more than 100 nm), the resistance behavior after uniaxial compression was found to be identical to that produced by hydrostatic compression, namely, the resistance decreases irrespective of the substrate. These experiments also reveal an increase of resistance and a shift of metal–insulator transition temperature T{sub m} to lower temperatures corresponding to a decrease of the film thickness. The occurrence of this effect is also independent of the kind of substrate used. Thus it was concluded that the influence of film thickness on its resistance as well as on the behavior of such films while under external uniaxial compression cannot be explained fully by only the presence of residual stress in these films. A possible reason is that the inhomogeneous distribution of the mechanical stresses in the films can lead to the appearance of two conductivity phases, each having a different mechanism. The results which were obtained when these films were subjected to hydrostatic compression were also explained by this

Diffraction stress analysis of thin films; investigating elastic grain interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, A.

2005-12-01

This work is dedicated to the investigation of specimens exhibiting anisotropic microstructures (and thus macroscopic elastic anisotropy) and/or inhomogeneous microstructures, as met near surfaces and in textured materials. The following aspects are covered: (i) Analysis of specimens with direction-dependent (anisotropic) elastic grain-interaction. Elastic grain-interaction determines the distribution of stresses and strains over the (crystallographically) differently oriented grains of a mechanically stressed polycrystal and the mechanical and diffraction (X-ray) elastic constants (relating (diffraction) lattice strains to mechanical stresses). Grain interaction models that allow for anisotropic, direction-dependent grain interaction have been developed very recently. The notion 'direction-dependent' grain-interaction signifies that different grain-interaction constraints prevail along different directions in a specimen. Practical examples of direction-dependent grain interaction are the occurrence of surface anisotropy in thin films and the surface regions of bulk polycrystals and the occurrence of grain-shape (morphological) texture. In this work, for the first time, stress analyses of thin films have been performed on the basis of these newly developed grain-interaction models. It has also been demonstrated that the identification of the (dominant) source of direction-dependent grain interaction is possible. The results for the grain interaction have been discussed in the light of microstructural investigations of the specimens by microscopic techniques. (ii) Analysis of specimens with depth gradients: Diffraction stress analysis can be hindered if gradients of the stress state, the composition or the microstructure occur in the specimen under investigation, as the so-called information depth varies in the course of a traditional stress measurement: Ambiguous results are thus generally obtained. In this work, a strategy for stress measurements at fixed

Dual mechanical behaviour of hydrogen in stressed silicon nitride thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Volpi, F.; Braccini, M.; Pasturel, A.; Devos, A.; Raymond, G.; Morin, P.

2014-01-01

In the present article, we report a study on the mechanical behaviour displayed by hydrogen atoms and pores in silicon nitride (SiN) films. A simple three-phase model is proposed to relate the physical properties (stiffness, film stress, mass density, etc.) of hydrogenated nanoporous SiN thin films to the volume fractions of hydrogen and pores. This model is then applied to experimental data extracted from films deposited by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition, where hydrogen content, stress, and mass densities range widely from 11% to 30%, −2.8 to 1.5 GPa, and 2.0 to 2.8 g/cm 3 , respectively. Starting from the conventional plotting of film's Young's modulus against film porosity, we first propose to correct the conventional calculation of porosity volume fraction with the hydrogen content, thus taking into account both hydrogen mass and concentration. The weight of this hydrogen-correction is found to evolve linearly with hydrogen concentration in tensile films (in accordance with a simple “mass correction” of the film density calculation), but a clear discontinuity is observed toward compressive stresses. Then, the effective volume occupied by hydrogen atoms is calculated taking account of the bond type (N-H or Si-H bonds), thus allowing a precise extraction of the hydrogen volume fraction. These calculations applied to tensile films show that both volume fractions of hydrogen and porosity are similar in magnitude and randomly distributed against Young's modulus. However, the expected linear dependence of the Young's modulus is clearly observed when both volume fractions are added. Finally, we show that the stiffer behaviour of compressive films cannot be only explained on the basis of this (hydrogen + porosity) volume fraction. Indeed this stiffness difference relies on a dual mechanical behaviour displayed by hydrogen atoms against the film stress state: while they participate to the stiffness in compressive films, hydrogen atoms mainly

Theoretical Study on Synchronous Characterization of Surface and Interfacial Mechanical Properties of Thin-Film/Substrate Systems with Residual Stress Based on Pressure Blister Test Technique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhi-xin Yang

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In this study, based on the pressure blister test technique, a theoretical study on the synchronous characterization of surface and interfacial mechanical properties of thin-film/substrate systems with residual stress was presented, where the problem of axisymmetric deformation of a blistering film with initial stress was analytically solved and its closed-form solution was presented. The expressions to determine Poisson’s ratios, Young’s modulus, and residual stress of surface thin films were derived; the work done by the applied external load and the elastic energy stored in the blistering thin film were analyzed in detail and their expressions were derived; and the interfacial adhesion energy released per unit delamination area of thin-film/substrate (i.e., energy release rate was finally presented. The synchronous characterization technique presented here has theoretically made a big step forward, due to the consideration for the residual stress in surface thin films.

Evaluating the residual stress in PbTiO3 thin films prepared by a polymeric chemical method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valim, D; Filho, A G Souza; Freire, P T C; Filho, J Mendes; Guarany, C A; Reis, R N; Araujo, E B

2004-01-01

We report a study of residual stress in PbTiO 3 (PT) thin films prepared on Si substrates by a polymeric chemical method. The E(1TO) frequency was used to evaluate the residual stress through an empirical equation available for bulk PT. We find that the residual stress in PT films increases as the film thickness decreases and conclude that it originates essentially from the contributions of extrinsic and intrinsic factors. Polarized Raman experiments showed that the PT films prepared by a polymeric chemical method are somewhat a-domain (polar axis c parallel to the substrate) oriented

Separation of stress-free AlN/SiC thin films from Si substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Redkov, A V; Osipov, A V; Mukhin, I S; Kukushkin, S A

2016-01-01

We separated AlN/SiC film from Si substrate by chemical etching of the AlN/SiC/Si heterostructure. The film fully repeats the size and geometry of the original sample and separated without destroying. It is demonstrated that a buffer layer of silicon carbide grown by a method of substitution of atoms may have an extensive hollow subsurface structure, which makes it easier to overcome the differences in the coefficients of thermal expansion during the growth of thin films. It is shown that after the separation of the film from the silicon substrate, mechanical stresses therein are almost absent. (paper)

Deposition of stress free c-axis oriented LiNbO3 thin film grown on (002) ZnO coated Si substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shandilya, Swati; Gupta, Vinay; Tomar, Monika

2012-01-01

C-axis oriented lithium niobate thin films have been deposited on Si substrate using RF sputtering technique. A thin buffer layer of c-axis (002) oriented ZnO on Si substrate has been used as a nucleating layer to promote the growth of (006) oriented LiNbO 3 film. The processing gas composition and pressure are found to be very critical in obtaining stress free LiNbO 3 film having desired (006) orientation. The LiNbO 3 films deposited under unique combination of sputtering pressure (10 mTorr) and argon percentage (80%) in reactive gas (Ar + O 2 ) composition become almost stress free having lattice parameter (1.3867 A) close to the bulk value. The observed variation in the structural properties and optical phonon modes observed by Raman spectroscopic studies of the oriented LiNbO 3 thin film with stress has been correlated with growth kinetics.

Techniques for Achieving Zero Stress in Thin Films of Iridium, Chromium, and Nickel

Science.gov (United States)

Broadway, David M.; O'Dell, Stephen L.; Ramsey, Brian D.; Weimer, Jeffrey

2015-01-01

We examine techniques for achieving zero intrinsic stress in thin films of iridium, chromium, and nickel deposited by magnetron sputter deposition. The intrinsic stress is further correlated to the microstructural features and physical properties such as surface roughness and optical density at a scale appropriate to soft X-ray wavelengths. The examination of the stress in these materials is motivated by efforts to advance the optical performance of light-weight X-ray space telescopes into the regime of sub-arcsecond resolution through various deposition techniques that rely on control of the film stress to values within 10-100 MPa. A characteristic feature of the intrinsic stress behavior in chromium and nickel is their sensitivity to the magnitude and sign of the intrinsic stress with argon gas pressure and deposition rate, including the existence of a critical argon process pressure that results in zero film stress which scales linearly with the atomic mass of the sputtered species. While the effect of stress reversal with argon pressure has been previously reported by Hoffman and others for nickel and chromium, we report this effect for iridium. In addition to stress reversal, we identify zero stress in the optical functioning iridium layer shortly after island coalescence for low process pressures at a film thickness of approximately 35nm. The measurement of the low values of stress during deposition was achieved with the aid of a sensitive in-situ instrument capable of a minimum detectable level of stress, assuming a 35nm thick film, in the range of 0.40-6.0 MPa for oriented crystalline silicon substrate thicknesses of 70-280 microns, respectively.

Anomalous degradation behaviors under illuminated gate bias stress in a-Si:H thin film transistor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsai, Ming-Yen; Chang, Ting-Chang; Chu, Ann-Kuo; Hsieh, Tien-Yu; Lin, Kun-Yao; Wu, Yi-Chun; Huang, Shih-Feng; Chiang, Cheng-Lung; Chen, Po-Lin; Lai, Tzu-Chieh; Lo, Chang-Cheng; Lien, Alan

2014-01-01

This study investigates the impact of gate bias stress with and without light illumination in a-Si:H thin film transistors. It has been observed that the I–V curve shifts toward the positive direction after negative and positive gate bias stress due to interface state creation at the gate dielectric. However, this study found that threshold voltages shift negatively and that the transconductance curve maxima are anomalously degraded under illuminated positive gate bias stress. In addition, threshold voltages shift positively under illuminated negative gate bias stress. These degradation behaviors can be ascribed to charge trapping in the passivation layer dominating degradation instability and are verified by a double gate a-Si:H device. - Highlights: • There is abnormal V T shift induced by illuminated gate bias stress in a-Si:H thin film transistors. • Electron–hole pair is generated via trap-assisted photoexcitation. • Abnormal transconductance hump is induced by the leakage current from back channel. • Charge trapping in the passivation layer is likely due to the fact that a constant voltage has been applied to the top gate

Development of a tensile-stress-induced anisotropy in amorphous magnetic thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mandal, K.; Vazquez, M.; Garcia, D.; Castano, F.J.; Prados, C.; Hernando, A.

2000-01-01

Magnetic anisotropy was induced in positive magnetostrictive Fe 80 B 20 and negative magnetostrictive Co 75 Si 15 B 10 thin films by developing a tensile stress within the samples. The films were grown on the concave surfaces of mechanically bowed glass substrates. On releasing the substrates from the substrate holders, a tensile stress was developed within the samples that modified the domain structure. As a result of it, a magnetic easy axis parallel to the direction of the stress was induced in FeB sample whereas in CoSiB sample the induced easy axis was perpendicular to the direction of the developed stress. To produce magnetic multilayers with crossed anisotropy, FeB/CoSiB bilayers and FeB/Cu/CoSiB trilayers were grown on bowed substrates. The study of magnetic properties of the multilayers indicates the development of crossed anisotropy within them, particularly when the magnetic layers are separated by a nonmagnetic Cu layer

Post-annealing effects on pulsed laser deposition-grown GaN thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, Yu-Wen; Wu, Hao-Yu; Lin, Yu-Zhong; Lee, Cheng-Che; Lin, Ching-Fuh

2015-01-01

In this work, the post-annealing effects on gallium nitride (GaN) thin films grown from pulsed laser deposition (PLD) are investigated. The as-deposited GaN thin films grown from PLD are annealed at different temperatures in nitrogen ambient. Significant changes of the GaN crystal properties are observed. Raman spectroscopy is used to observe the crystallinity, the change of residual stress, and the thermal decomposition of the annealed GaN thin films. X-ray diffraction is also applied to identify the crystal phase of GaN thin films, and the surface morphology of GaN thin films annealed at different temperatures is observed by scanning electron microscopy. Through the above analyses, the GaN thin films grown by PLD undergo three stages: phase transition, stress alteration, and thermal decomposition. At a low annealing temperature, the rock salt GaN in GaN films is transformed into wurtzite. The rock salt GaN diminishes with increasing annealing temperature. At a medium annealing temperature, the residual stress of the film changes significantly from compressive strain to tensile strain. As the annealing temperature further increases, the GaN undergoes thermal decomposition and the surface becomes granular. By investigating the annealing temperature effects and controlling the optimized annealing temperature of the GaN thin films, we are able to obtain highly crystalline and strain-free GaN thin films by PLD. - Highlights: • The GaN thin film is grown on sapphire by pulsed laser deposition. • The GaN film undergoes three stages with increasing annealing temperature. • In the first stage, the film transfers from rock salt to wurtzite phase. • In the second stage, the stress in film changes from compressive to tensile. • In the final stage, the film thermally decomposes and becomes granular

Stress reduction in tungsten films using nanostructured compliant layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karabacak, Tansel; Picu, Catalin R.; Senkevich, Jay J.; Wang, G.-C.; Lu, T.-M.

2004-01-01

The residual stress in thin films is a major limiting factor for obtaining high quality films. We present a strategy for stress reduction in sputter deposited films by using a nanostructured compliant layer obtained by the oblique angle deposition technique, sandwiched between the film and the substrate. The technique is all in situ, does not require any lithography steps, and the nanostructured layer is made from the same material as the deposited thin film. By using this approach we were able to reduce stress values by approximately one order of magnitude in sputter deposited tungsten films. These lower stress thin films also exhibit stronger adhesion to the substrate, which retards delamination buckling. This technique allows the growth of much thicker films and has enhanced structural stability. A model is developed to explain the stress relief mechanism and the stronger adhesion associated with the presence of the nanostructured compliant layer

Strain Relaxation and Vacancy Creation in Thin Platinum Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gruber, W.; Chakravarty, S.; Schmidt, H.; Baehtz, C.; Leitenberger, W.; Bruns, M.; Kobler, A.; Kuebel, C.

2011-01-01

Synchrotron based combined in situ x-ray diffractometry and reflectometry is used to investigate the role of vacancies for the relaxation of residual stress in thin metallic Pt films. From the experimentally determined relative changes of the lattice parameter a and of the film thickness L the modification of vacancy concentration and residual strain was derived as a function of annealing time at 130 deg. C. The results indicate that relaxation of strain resulting from compressive stress is accompanied by the creation of vacancies at the free film surface. This proves experimentally the postulated dominant role of vacancies for stress relaxation in thin metal films close to room temperature.

Processing of thin SU-8 films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keller, Stephan; Blagoi, Gabriela; Lillemose, Michael; Haefliger, Daniel; Boisen, Anja

2008-01-01

This paper summarizes the results of the process optimization for SU-8 films with thicknesses ≤5 µm. The influence of soft-bake conditions, exposure dose and post-exposure-bake parameters on residual film stress, structural stability and lithographic resolution was investigated. Conventionally, the SU-8 is soft-baked after spin coating to remove the solvent. After the exposure, a post-exposure bake at a high temperature T PEB ≥ 90 °C is required to cross-link the resist. However, for thin SU-8 films this often results in cracking or delamination due to residual film stress. The approach of the process optimization is to keep a considerable amount of the solvent in the SU-8 before exposure to facilitate photo-acid diffusion and to increase the mobility of the monomers. The experiments demonstrate that a replacement of the soft-bake by a short solvent evaporation time at ambient temperature allows cross-linking of the thin SU-8 films even at a low T PEB = 50 °C. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy is used to confirm the increased cross-linking density. The low thermal stress due to the reduced T PEB and the improved structural stability result in crack-free structures and solve the issue of delamination. The knowledge of the influence of different processing parameters on the responses allows the design of optimized processes for thin SU-8 films depending on the specific application

Thermal Stress Behavior of Micro- and Nano-Size Aluminum Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanabusa, T.; Kusaka, K.; Nishida, M.

2008-01-01

In-situ observation of thermal stresses in thin films deposited on silicon substrate was made by X-ray and synchrotron radiation. Specimens prepared in this experiment were micro- and nano-size thin aluminum films with and without passivation film. The thickness of the film was 1 micrometer for micro-size films and 10, 20 and 50 nanometer for nano-size films. The stress measurement in micro-size films was made by X-ray radiation whereas the measurement of nano-size films was made by synchrotron radiation. Residual stress measurement revealed tensile stresses in all as-deposited films. Thermal stresses were measured in a series of heating- and cooling-stage. Thermal stress behavior of micro-size films revealed hysteresis loop during a heating and cooling process. The width of a hysteresis loop was larger in passivated film that unpassivated film. No hysteresis loops were observed in nano-size films with SiO 2 passivation. Strengthning mechanism in thin films was discussed on a passivation film and a film thickness

Stress in ion-beam assisted silicon dioxide and tantalum pentoxide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sirotkina, Natalia

2003-01-01

Ta 2 O 5 and SiO 2 thin films, deposited at room temperature by ion-beam sputtering (IBS) and dual ion-beam sputtering (DIBS), and SiO 2 films, deposited by reactive e-beam evaporation and ion-assisted deposition, were studied. The energy (150-600 eV) and ion-to-atom arrival ratio (0.27-2.0) of assisting argon and oxygen ions were varied. Influence of deposition conditions (deposition system geometry, nature and amount of gas in the chamber, substrate cleaning and ion-assistance parameters) on films properties (stress, composition, refractive index n 500nm and extinction coefficient k 500nm ) was investigated. A scanning method, based on substrate curvature measurements by laser reflection and stress calculation using the Stoney equation, was employed. RBS showed that stoichiometric Ta 2 O 5 films contain impurities of Ar, Fe and Mo. Stoichiometric SiO 2 films also contain Ta impurity. Argon content increases with ion bombardment and, at maximum incorporation, argon bubbles are registered by TEM. XPS studies are complicated by surface contaminations and preferential sputtering. Evaporated SiO 2 films show +100 MPa stress (+ is tensile, - compressive). With 300 eV Ar + bombardment, stress changes to -200 MPa, n 500nm decreases (1.56-1.49) and k 500nm increases (1.4x10 -4 - 1.8x10 -3 ). Of all studied IBS conditions, stress in SiO 2 (-560 MPa) and Ta 2 O 5 (-350 MPa) films depends only on sputtering gas species and oxygen entry point into the chamber. With argon and oxygen bombardment stress in IBS SiO 2 films decreases to -380 MPa and below the stress measurement system resolution, respectively. While Ar + bombardment of Ta 2 O 5 films leads to increase in stress to -490 MPa, the effect of oxygen assistance depends on ion energy. The observed behaviour was related to the total recoil density. In DIBS SiO 2 and Ta 2 O 5 films n 500nm varies in the region of 1.5-1.59 and 2.13-2.20 and k 500nm is below 5.5x10 -3 and 8.5x10 -3 , respectively. The refractive index

Metamorphosis of strain/stress on optical band gap energy of ZAO thin films via manipulation of thermal annealing process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malek, M.F.; Mamat, M.H.; Musa, M.Z.; Soga, T.; Rahman, S.A.; Alrokayan, Salman A.H.; Khan, Haseeb A.; Rusop, M.

2015-01-01

We report on the growth of Al-doped ZnO (ZAO) thin films prepared by the sol–gel technique associated with dip-coating onto Corning 7740 glass substrates. The influence of varying thermal annealing (T a ) temperature on crystallisation behaviour, optical and electrical properties of ZAO films has been systematically investigated. All films are polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure with a preferential orientation according to the direction 〈0 0 2〉. The metamorphosis of strain/stress effects in ZAO thin films has been investigated using X-ray diffraction. The as growth films have a large compressive stress of 0.55 GPa, which relaxed to 0.25 GPa as the T a was increased to 500 °C. Optical parameters such as optical transmittance, absorption coefficient, refractive index and optical band gap energy have been studied and discussed with respect to T a . All films exhibit a transmittance above 80–90% along the visible–NIR range up to 1500 nm and a sharp absorption onset below 400 nm corresponding to the fundamental absorption edge of ZnO. Experimental results show that the tensile stress in the films reveals an incline pattern with the optical band gap energy, while the compressive stress shows opposite relation. - Highlights: • Minimum stress of highly c-axis oriented ZAO was grown at suitable T a temperature. • The ZAO crystal orientation was influenced by strain/stress of the film. • Minimum stress/strain of ZAO film leads to lower defects. • Bandgap and defects were closely intertwined with strain/stress. • We report additional optical and electrical properties based on T a temperature

Metamorphosis of strain/stress on optical band gap energy of ZAO thin films via manipulation of thermal annealing process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Malek, M.F., E-mail: firz_solarzelle@yahoo.com [NANO-ElecTronic Centre (NET), Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia); NANO-SciTech Centre (NST), Institute of Science (IOS), Universiti Teknologi MARA UiTM, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia); Mamat, M.H. [NANO-ElecTronic Centre (NET), Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia); Musa, M.Z. [NANO-ElecTronic Centre (NET), Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia); Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Pulau Pinang, Jalan Permatang Pauh, 13500 Permatang Pauh, Pulau Pinang (Malaysia); Soga, T. [Department of Frontier Materials, Nagoya Institute of Technology (NITech), Nagoya 466-8555 (Japan); Rahman, S.A. [Low Dimensional Materials Research Centre (LDMRC), Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya (UM), 50603 Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia); Alrokayan, Salman A.H.; Khan, Haseeb A. [Department of Biochemistry, College of Science, King Saud University (KSU), Riyadh 11451 (Saudi Arabia); Rusop, M. [NANO-ElecTronic Centre (NET), Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia); NANO-SciTech Centre (NST), Institute of Science (IOS), Universiti Teknologi MARA UiTM, 40450 Shah Alam, Selangor (Malaysia)

2015-04-15

We report on the growth of Al-doped ZnO (ZAO) thin films prepared by the sol–gel technique associated with dip-coating onto Corning 7740 glass substrates. The influence of varying thermal annealing (T{sub a}) temperature on crystallisation behaviour, optical and electrical properties of ZAO films has been systematically investigated. All films are polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure with a preferential orientation according to the direction 〈0 0 2〉. The metamorphosis of strain/stress effects in ZAO thin films has been investigated using X-ray diffraction. The as growth films have a large compressive stress of 0.55 GPa, which relaxed to 0.25 GPa as the T{sub a} was increased to 500 °C. Optical parameters such as optical transmittance, absorption coefficient, refractive index and optical band gap energy have been studied and discussed with respect to T{sub a}. All films exhibit a transmittance above 80–90% along the visible–NIR range up to 1500 nm and a sharp absorption onset below 400 nm corresponding to the fundamental absorption edge of ZnO. Experimental results show that the tensile stress in the films reveals an incline pattern with the optical band gap energy, while the compressive stress shows opposite relation. - Highlights: • Minimum stress of highly c-axis oriented ZAO was grown at suitable T{sub a} temperature. • The ZAO crystal orientation was influenced by strain/stress of the film. • Minimum stress/strain of ZAO film leads to lower defects. • Bandgap and defects were closely intertwined with strain/stress. • We report additional optical and electrical properties based on T{sub a} temperature.

Structure disorder degree of polysilicon thin films grown by different processing: Constant C from Raman spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Quan; Zhang, Yanmin; Hu, Ran; Ren, Naifei; Ge, Daohan

2013-01-01

Flat, low-stress, boron-doped polysilicon thin films were prepared on single crystalline silicon substrates by low pressure chemical vapor deposition. It was found that the polysilicon films with different deposition processing have different microstructure properties. The confinement effect, tensile stresses, defects, and the Fano effect all have a great influence on the line shape of Raman scattering peak. But the effect results are different. The microstructure and the surface layer are two important mechanisms dominating the internal stress in three types of polysilicon thin films. For low-stress polysilicon thin film, the tensile stresses are mainly due to the change of microstructure after thermal annealing. But the tensile stresses in flat polysilicon thin film are induced by the silicon carbide layer at surface. After the thin film doped with boron atoms, the phenomenon of the tensile stresses increasing can be explained by the change of microstructure and the increase in the content of silicon carbide. We also investigated the disorder degree states for three polysilicon thin films by analyzing a constant C. It was found that the disorder degree of low-stress polysilicon thin film larger than that of flat and boron-doped polysilicon thin films due to the phase transformation after annealing. After the flat polysilicon thin film doped with boron atoms, there is no obvious change in the disorder degree and the disorder degree in some regions even decreases

Structure disorder degree of polysilicon thin films grown by different processing: Constant C from Raman spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Quan, E-mail: wangq@mail.ujs.edu.cn [School of mechanical engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Zhang, Yanmin; Hu, Ran; Ren, Naifei [School of mechanical engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Ge, Daohan [School of mechanical engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); State Key Laboratory of Transducer Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China)

2013-11-14

Flat, low-stress, boron-doped polysilicon thin films were prepared on single crystalline silicon substrates by low pressure chemical vapor deposition. It was found that the polysilicon films with different deposition processing have different microstructure properties. The confinement effect, tensile stresses, defects, and the Fano effect all have a great influence on the line shape of Raman scattering peak. But the effect results are different. The microstructure and the surface layer are two important mechanisms dominating the internal stress in three types of polysilicon thin films. For low-stress polysilicon thin film, the tensile stresses are mainly due to the change of microstructure after thermal annealing. But the tensile stresses in flat polysilicon thin film are induced by the silicon carbide layer at surface. After the thin film doped with boron atoms, the phenomenon of the tensile stresses increasing can be explained by the change of microstructure and the increase in the content of silicon carbide. We also investigated the disorder degree states for three polysilicon thin films by analyzing a constant C. It was found that the disorder degree of low-stress polysilicon thin film larger than that of flat and boron-doped polysilicon thin films due to the phase transformation after annealing. After the flat polysilicon thin film doped with boron atoms, there is no obvious change in the disorder degree and the disorder degree in some regions even decreases.

Deposition of stress free c-axis oriented LiNbO{sub 3} thin film grown on (002) ZnO coated Si substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shandilya, Swati; Gupta, Vinay [Department of Physics and Astrophysics, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007 (India); Tomar, Monika [Miranda House, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007 (India)

2012-05-15

C-axis oriented lithium niobate thin films have been deposited on Si substrate using RF sputtering technique. A thin buffer layer of c-axis (002) oriented ZnO on Si substrate has been used as a nucleating layer to promote the growth of (006) oriented LiNbO{sub 3} film. The processing gas composition and pressure are found to be very critical in obtaining stress free LiNbO{sub 3} film having desired (006) orientation. The LiNbO{sub 3} films deposited under unique combination of sputtering pressure (10 mTorr) and argon percentage (80%) in reactive gas (Ar + O{sub 2}) composition become almost stress free having lattice parameter (1.3867 A) close to the bulk value. The observed variation in the structural properties and optical phonon modes observed by Raman spectroscopic studies of the oriented LiNbO{sub 3} thin film with stress has been correlated with growth kinetics.

Passivation Effects in Copper Thin Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wiederhirn, G.; Nucci, J.; Richter, G.; Arzt, E.; Balk, T. J.; Dehm, G.

2006-01-01

We studied the influence of a 10 nm AlxOy passivation on the stress-temperature behavior of 100 nm and 1 μm thick Cu films. At low temperatures, the passivation induces a large tensile stress increase in the 100 nm film; however, its effect on the 1 μm film is negligible. At high temperatures, the opposite behavior is observed; while the passivation does not change the 100 nm film behavior, it strengthens the 1 μm film by driving it deeper into compression. These observations are explained in light of a combination of constrained diffusional creep and dislocation dynamics unique to ultra-thin films

Investigation of phase transformation for ferrite–austenite structure in stainless steel thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Merakeb, Noureddine [Laboratory of Physical Metallurgy and Property of Materials (LM2PM), Metallurgy and Materials Engineering Department, Badji Mokhtar University, P.O. Box 12, Annaba 23000 (Algeria); Messai, Amel [Laboratoire d' Ingénierie et Sciences des Matériaux Avancés (ISMA), Institut des Sciences et Technologie, Abbès Laghrour University, Khenchela 40000 (Algeria); Ayesh, Ahmad I., E-mail: ayesh@qu.edu.qa [Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics, Qatar University, Doha (Qatar)

2016-05-01

In this work we report on phase transformation of 304 stainless steel thin films due to heat treatment. Ex-situ annealing was applied for evaporated 304 stainless steel thin films inside an ultra-high vacuum chamber with a pressure of 3 × 10{sup −7} Pa at temperatures of 500 °C and 600 °C. The structure of thin films was studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) techniques. The results revealed a transformation from α-phase that exhibits a body-centered cubic structure (BCC) to γ-phase that exhibits a face-centered cubic (FCC) due to annealing. In addition, the percentage of γ-phase structure increased with the increase of annealing temperature. Annealing thin films increased the crystal size of both phases (α and γ), however, the increase was nonlinear. The results also showed that phase transformation was produced by recrystallization of α and γ crystals with a temporal evolution at each annealing temperature. The texture degree of thin films was investigated by XRD rocking curve method, while residual stress was evaluated using curvature method. - Highlights: • Stainless steel thin films were fabricated by thermal evaporation on quartz. • Alpha to gamma phase transformation of thin films was investigated. • Annealing of thin films reduces disruption in crystal lattice. • The stress of as-grown thin films was independent on the thin film thickness. • The stress of the thin films was reduced due to annealing.

Origin of high carrier mobility and low residual stress in RF superimposed DC sputtered Al doped ZnO thin film for next generation flexible devices

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Naveen; Dubey, Ashish; Bahrami, Behzad; Venkatesan, S.; Qiao, Qiquan; Kumar, Mukesh

2018-04-01

In this work, the energy and flux of high energetic ions were controlled by RF superimposed DC sputtering process to increase the grain size and suppress grain boundary potential with minimum residual stress in Al doped ZnO (AZO) thin film. AZO thin films were deposited at different RF/(RF + DC) ratios by keeping total power same and were investigated for their electrical, optical, structural and nanoscale grain boundaries potential. All AZO thin film showed high crystallinity and orientation along (002) with peak shift as RF/(RF + DC) ratio increased from 0.0, pure DC, to 1.0, pure RF. This peak shift was correlated with high residual stress in as-grown thin film. AZO thin film grown at mixed RF/(RF + DC) of 0.75 showed high electron mobility, low residual stress and large crystallite size in comparison to other AZO thin films. The nanoscale grain boundary potential was mapped using Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy in all AZO thin film and it was observed that carrier mobility is controlled not only by grains size but also by grain boundary potential. The XPS analysis confirms the variation in oxygen vacancies and zinc interstitials which explain the origin of low grain boundaries potential and high carrier mobility in AZO thin film deposited at 0.75 RF/(RF + DC) ratio. This study proposes a new way to control the grain size and grain boundary potential to further tune the optoelectronic-mechanical properties of AZO thin films for next generation flexible and optoelectronic devices.

Internal stress and opto-electronic properties of ZnO thin films deposited by reactive sputtering in various oxygen partial pressures

Science.gov (United States)

Tuyaerts, Romain; Poncelet, Olivier; Raskin, Jean-Pierre; Proost, Joris

2017-10-01

In this article, we propose ZnO thin films as a suitable material for piezoresistors in transparent and flexible electronics. ZnO thin films have been deposited by DC reactive magnetron sputtering at room temperature at various oxygen partial pressures. All the films have a wurtzite structure with a strong (0002) texture measured by XRD and are almost stoichiometric as measured by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy. The effect of oxygen concentration on grain growth has been studied by in-situ multi-beam optical stress sensor, showing internal stress going from 350 MPa to -1.1 GPa. The transition between tensile and compressive stress corresponds to the transition between metallic and oxidized mode of reactive sputtering. This transition also induces a large variation in optical properties—from absorbent to transparent, and in the resistivity—from 4 × 10 - 2 Ω .cm to insulating. Finally, the piezoresistance of the thin film has been studied and showed a gauge factor (ΔR/R)/ɛ comprised between -5.8 and -8.5.

Tensile stress in hard metal films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssen, G.C.A.M.; Dammers, A.J.; Sivel, V.G.M.; Wang, W.R.

2003-01-01

Thin films on substrates are usually in a stressed state. An important, but trivial, contribution to that stress stems from the difference in thermal expansion coefficient of substrate and film. Much more interesting are the intrinsic stresses, resulting from the growth and/or microstructure of the

The strength limits of ultra-thin copper films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiederhirn, Guillaume

2007-07-02

Elucidating size effects in ultra-thin films is essential to ensure the performance and reliability of MEMS and electronic devices. In this dissertation, the influence of a capping layer on the mechanical behavior of copper (Cu) films was analyzed. Passivation is expected to shut down surface diffusion and thus to alter the contributions of dislocation- and diffusion-based plasticity in thin films. Experiments were carried out on 25 nm to 2 {mu}m thick Cu films magnetron-sputtered onto amorphous-silicon nitride coated silicon (111) substrates. These films were capped with 10 nm of aluminum oxide or silicon nitride passivation without breaking vacuum either directly after Cu deposition or after a 500 C anneal. The evolution of thermal stresses in these films was investigated mainly by the substrate curvature method between -160 C and 500 C. Negligible differences were detected for the silicon nitride vs. the aluminum oxide passivated Cu films. The processing parameters associated with the passivation deposition also had no noticeable effect on the stress-temperature behavior of the Cu. However, the thermomechanical behavior of passivated Cu films strongly depended on the Cu film thickness. For films in the micrometer range, the influence of the passivation layer was not significant, which suggests that the Cu deformed mainly by dislocation plasticity. However, diffusional creep plays an increasing role with decreasing film thickness since it becomes increasingly difficult to nucleate dislocations in smaller grains. Size effects were investigated by plotting the stress at room temperature after thermal cycling as a function of the inverse film thickness. Between 2 {mu}m and 200 nm, the room temperature stress was inversely proportional to the film thickness. The passivation exerted a strong effect on Cu films thinner than 100 nm by effectively shutting down surface diffusion mechanisms. Since dislocation processes were also shut off in these ultra-thin films, they

Effect of substrate on texture and mechanical properties of Mg-Cu-Zn thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Eshaghi, F.; Zolanvari, A.

2018-04-01

In this work, thin films of Mg-Cu-Zn with 60 nm thicknesses have been deposited on the Si(100), Al, stainless steel, and Cu substrates using DC magnetron sputtering. FESEM images displayed uniformity of Mg-Cu-Zn particles on the different substrates. AFM micrograph revealed the roughness of thin film changes due to the different kinds of the substrates. XRD measurements showed the existence of strong Mg (002) reflections and weak Mg (101) peaks. Residual stress and adhesion force have been measured as the mechanical properties of the Mg-Cu-Zn thin films. The residual stresses of thin films which have been investigated by X-ray diffraction method revealed that the thin films sputtered on the Si and Cu substrates endure minimum and maximum stresses, respectively, during the deposition process. However, the force spectroscopy analysis indicated that the films grew on the Si and Cu experienced maximum and minimum adhesion force. The texture analysis has been done using XRD instrument to make pole figures of Mg (002) and Mg (101) reflections. ODFs have been calculated to evaluate the distribution of the orientations within the thin films. It was found that the texture and stress have an inverse relation, while the texture and the adhesion force of the Mg-Cu-Zn thin films have direct relation. A thin film that sustains the lowest residual stresses and highest adhesive force had the strongest {001} basal fiber texture.

Nitrogen incorporation in sputter deposited molybdenum nitride thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stöber, Laura, E-mail: laura.stoeber@tuwien.ac.at; Patocka, Florian, E-mail: florian.patocka@tuwien.ac.at; Schneider, Michael, E-mail: michael.schneider@tuwien.ac.at; Schmid, Ulrich, E-mail: ulrich.e366.schmid@tuwien.ac.at [Institute of Sensor and Actuator Systems, TU Wien, Gußhausstraße 27-29, A-1040 Vienna (Austria); Konrath, Jens Peter, E-mail: jenspeter.konrath@infineon.com; Haberl, Verena, E-mail: verena.haberl@infineon.com [Infineon Technologies Austria AG, Siemensstraße 2, 9500 Villach (Austria)

2016-03-15

In this paper, the authors report on the high temperature performance of sputter deposited molybdenum (Mo) and molybdenum nitride (Mo{sub 2}N) thin films. Various argon and nitrogen gas compositions are applied for thin film synthetization, and the amount of nitrogen incorporation is determined by Auger measurements. Furthermore, effusion measurements identifying the binding conditions of the nitrogen in the thin film are performed up to 1000 °C. These results are in excellent agreement with film stress and scanning electron microscope analyses, both indicating stable film properties up to annealing temperatures of 500 °C.

Residual stress estimation of ceramic thin films by X-ray diffraction and indentation techniques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Atar, Erdem; Sarioglu, Cevat; Demirler, Ugur; Sabri Kayali, E.; Cimenoglu, Huseyin

2003-05-15

The residual stresses in ceramic thin films obtained by the indentation method have been found to be three times higher than those of the X-ray diffraction method. This discrepancy can be eliminated by setting the geometrical factor for the Vickers pyramid indenter to 1 in the relevant equation of the indentation method.

Residual stress estimation of ceramic thin films by X-ray diffraction and indentation techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atar, Erdem; Sarioglu, Cevat; Demirler, Ugur; Sabri Kayali, E.; Cimenoglu, Huseyin

2003-01-01

The residual stresses in ceramic thin films obtained by the indentation method have been found to be three times higher than those of the X-ray diffraction method. This discrepancy can be eliminated by setting the geometrical factor for the Vickers pyramid indenter to 1 in the relevant equation of the indentation method

12. International conference on thin films (ICTF 12). Book of Abstract

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Majkova, E.

2002-09-01

The publication has been set up as a proceedings of the conference dealing with thin films production and study of their properties. The conference was focused on the following topics: (1) Advanced deposition techniques; (2) Thin Film Growth; (3) Diagnostics, Structure - Properties Relationship; (4) Mechanical Properties and Stress; (5) Protective and Functional Coatings; (6) Micropatterning and Nanostructures; (7) EUV and Soft X-Ray Multilayers; (8) Magnetic Thin Films and Multilayers; (9) Organic Thin Films; (10) Thin Films for Electronics and Optics. In this proceedings totally 157 abstracts are published of which 126 are interest for INIS

Flexible magnetic thin films and devices

Science.gov (United States)

Sheng, Ping; Wang, Baomin; Li, Runwei

2018-01-01

Flexible electronic devices are highly attractive for a variety of applications such as flexible circuit boards, solar cells, paper-like displays, and sensitive skin, due to their stretchable, biocompatible, light-weight, portable, and low cost properties. Due to magnetic devices being important parts of electronic devices, it is essential to study the magnetic properties of magnetic thin films and devices fabricated on flexible substrates. In this review, we mainly introduce the recent progress in flexible magnetic thin films and devices, including the study on the stress-dependent magnetic properties of magnetic thin films and devices, and controlling the properties of flexible magnetic films by stress-related multi-fields, and the design and fabrication of flexible magnetic devices. Project supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2016YFA0201102), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51571208, 51301191, 51525103, 11274321, 11474295, 51401230), the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. 2016270), the Key Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KJZD-EW-M05), the Ningbo Major Project for Science and Technology (No. 2014B11011), the Ningbo Science and Technology Innovation Team (No. 2015B11001), and the Ningbo Natural Science Foundation (No. 2015A610110).

Microstrain and residual stress in thin-films made from silver nanoparticles deposited by inkjet-printing technology

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cauchois, R.; Borbély, A.; Gergaud, P.; Saadaoui, M.; Inal, K.

2014-01-01

Colloidal suspensions of nanoparticles are increasingly employed in the fabrication process of electronic devices using inkjet-printing technology and a consecutive thermal treatment. The evolution of internal stresses during the conversion of silver nanoparticle-based ink into a metallic thin-film

Formation and prevention of fractures in sol-gel-derived thin films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kappert, Emiel; Pavlenko, Denys; Malzbender, J.; Nijmeijer, Arian; Benes, Nieck Edwin; Tsai, Peichun Amy

2015-01-01

Sol–gel-derived thin films play an important role as the functional coatings for various applications that require crack-free films to fully function. However, the fast drying process of a standard sol–gel coating often induces mechanical stresses, which may fracture the thin films. An experimental

Molecular dynamics simulation of thin film interfacial strength dependency on lattice mismatch

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Zhou; Lian, Jie; Wang, Junlan

2013-01-01

Laser-induced thin film spallation experiments have been previously developed to characterize the intrinsic interfacial strength of thin films. In order to gain insights of atomic level thin film debonding processes and the interfacial strength dependence on film/substrate lattice structures, in this study, molecular dynamics simulations of thin film interfacial failure under laser-induced stress waves were performed. Various loading amplitudes and pulse durations were employed to identify the optimum simulation condition. Stress propagation as a function of time was revealed in conjunction with the interface structures. Parametric studies confirmed that while the interfacial strength between a thin film and a substrate does not depend on the film thickness and the duration of the laser pulse, a thicker film and a shorter duration do provide advantage to effectively load the interface to failure. With the optimized simulation condition, further studies were focused on bulk Au/Au bi-crystals with mismatched orientations, and Ni/Al, Cu/Al, Cu/Ag and Cu/Au bi-crystals with mismatched lattices. The interfacial strength was found to decrease with increasing orientation mismatch and lattice mismatch but more significantly dominated by the bonding elements' atomic structure and valence electron occupancy. - Highlights: • Molecular dynamics simulation was done on stress wave induced thin film spallation. • Atomic structure was found to be a primary strength determining factor. • Lattice mismatch was found to be a secondary strength determining factor

Cell adhesion to cathodic arc plasma deposited CrAlSiN thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Sun Kyu, E-mail: skim@ulsan.ac.kr [School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Ulsan, Ulsan 680-749 (Korea, Republic of); Pham, Vuong-Hung [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-744 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Chong-Hyun [Department of Food Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 (United States)

2012-07-01

Osteoblast cell response (cell adhesion, actin cytoskeleton and focal contact adhesion as well as cell proliferation) to CrN, CrAlSiN and Ti thin films was evaluated in vitro. Cell adhesion and actin stress fibers organization depended on the film composition significantly. Immunofluorescent staining of vinculin in osteoblast cells showed good focal contact adhesion on the CrAlSiN and Ti thin films but not on the CrN thin films. Cell proliferation was significantly greater on the CrAlSiN thin films as well as on Ti thin films than on the CrN thin films.

Shape memory characteristics of sputter-deposited Ti-Ni thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miyazaki, Shuichi; Ishida, Akira.

1994-01-01

Ti-Ni shape memory alloy thin films were deposited using an RF magnetron sputtering apparatus. The as-sputtered films were heat-treated in order to crystallize and memorize. After the heat treatment, the shape memory characteristics have been investigated using DSC and thermomechanical tests. Upon cooling the thin films, the solution-treated films showed a single peak in the DSC curve indicating a single stage transformation occurring from B2 to the martensitic phase, while the age-treated films showed double peaks indicating a two-stage transformation, i.e., from B2 to the R-phase, then to the martensitic phase. A perfect shape memory effect was achieved in these sputter-deposited Ti-Ni thin films in association both with the R-phase and martensitic transformations. Transformation temperatures increased linearly with increasing applied stress. The transformation strain also increased with increasing stress. The shape memory characteristics were strongly affected by heat-treatment conditions. (author)

Solid-state compound phase formation of TiSi₂ thin films under stress

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Theron

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Different stress situations were created on an Si(100 wafer by depositing either Si₃N₄ or SiO₂ thin films on the back side. Si₃N₄ has a different thermal expansion coefficient from that of SiO2. A thin Ti film was then deposited on the front side of the Si wafer. The structures were then annealed at various high temperatures for different periods of time. Real-time Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, as well as sample curvature measurements, were used to characterise the samples. Different reaction rates were found between Si₃N₄-deposited samples and SiO₂-deposited samples.

Effects of oxygen partial pressure and annealing temperature on the residual stress of hafnium oxide thin-films on silicon using synchrotron-based grazing incidence X-ray diffraction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biswas, Debaleen [Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, 1/AF Bidhannagar, Kolkata 700 064 (India); Sinha, Anil Kumar [ISU, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore 452 013 (India); Homi Bhabha National Institute, BARC, Mumbai 400 094 (India); Chakraborty, Supratic, E-mail: supratic.chakraborty@saha.ac.in [Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, 1/AF Bidhannagar, Kolkata 700 064 (India)

2016-10-30

Highlights: • Residual stress estimation thin hafnium oxide film with thickness of <10 nm. • A mathematical expression is proposed for stress estimation of thin-film using GIXRD. • Residual stress varies with argon content in Ar/O{sub 2} plasma and annealing temperature. • Variation of stress is explained by IL swelling and enhanced structural relaxation. - Abstract: Synchrotron radiation-based grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GI-XRD) technique is employed here to estimate the residual stress of < 10 nm thin hafnium oxide film deposited on Si (100) substrate at different argon/oxygen ratios using reactive rf sputtering. A decrease in residual stress, tensile in nature, is observed at higher annealing temperature for the samples deposited with increasing argon ratio in the Ar/O{sub 2} plasma. The residual stress of the films deposited at higher p{sub Ar} (Ar:O{sub 2} = 4:1) is also found to be decreased with increasing annealing temperature. But the stress is more or less constant with annealing temperature for the films deposited at lower Ar/O{sub 2} (1:4) ratio. All the above phenomena can be explained on the basis of swelling of the interfacial layer and enhanced structural relaxation in the presence of excess Hf in hafnium oxide film during deposition.

Mechanics of Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

1992-02-06

and the second geometry was that of squat cylinders (diameter 6.4 mm, height 6.4 mm). These two geometries were tested in thermal shock tests, and a...milder [13]. More recently, Lau, Rahman and stressa nce ntrati, tha n films of lmalla rat ve spc Delale calculated the free edge singularity for stress...thickness of 3 mm); the second geometry was that As an example of the shielding effect of thin films, we of squat cylinders (diameter 6.4 mm, height 6.4

Effect of stress, strain and optical properties in vacuum and normal annealed ZnO thin films using RF magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, B. Santhosh; Purvaja, K.; Harinee, N.; Venkateswaran, C.

2018-05-01

Zinc oxide thin films have been deposited on quartz substrate using RF magnetron sputtering. The deposited films were subjected to different annealing atmosphere at a fixed temperature of 500 °C for 5h. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns reveals the shift in the peak of both normal annealed and vacuum annealed thin films when compared to as-deposited ZnO film. The crystallite size, intrinsic stress and other parameters were calculated from XRD data. The surface morphology of the obtained films were studied using Atomic force microscopy (AFM). From Uv-Visible spectroscopy, the peak at 374 nm of all the films is characteristics of ZnO. The structural, thermal stability and optical properties of the annealed ZnO films are discussed in detail.

Thin film adhesion by nanoindentation-induced superlayers. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gerberich, William W.; Volinsky, A.A.

2001-06-01

This work has analyzed the key variables of indentation tip radius, contact radius, delamination radius, residual stress and superlayer/film/interlayer properties on nanoindentation measurements of adhesion. The goal to connect practical works of adhesion for very thin films to true works of adhesion has been achieved. A review of this work titled ''Interfacial toughness measurements of thin metal films,'' which has been submitted to Acta Materialia, is included.

Laser process for extended silicon thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hessmann, M.T.; Kunz, T.; Burkert, I.; Gawehns, N.; Schaefer, L.; Frick, T.; Schmidt, M.; Meidel, B.; Auer, R.; Brabec, C.J.

2011-01-01

We present a large area thin film base substrate for the epitaxy of crystalline silicon. The concept of epitaxial growth of silicon on large area thin film substrates overcomes the area restrictions of an ingot based monocrystalline silicon process. Further it opens the possibility for a roll to roll process for crystalline silicon production. This concept suggests a technical pathway to overcome the limitations of silicon ingot production in terms of costs, throughput and completely prevents any sawing losses. The core idea behind these thin film substrates is a laser welding process of individual, thin silicon wafers. In this manuscript we investigate the properties of laser welded monocrystalline silicon foils (100) by micro-Raman mapping and spectroscopy. It is shown that the laser beam changes the crystalline structure of float zone grown silicon along the welding seam. This is illustrated by Raman mapping which visualizes compressive stress as well as tensile stress in a range of - 147.5 to 32.5 MPa along the welding area.

A multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field framework to modeling stressed grain growth in polycrystalline thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jamshidian, M., E-mail: jamshidian@cc.iut.ac.ir [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Institute of Structural Mechanics, Bauhaus-University Weimar, Marienstrasse 15, 99423 Weimar (Germany); Thamburaja, P., E-mail: prakash.thamburaja@gmail.com [Department of Mechanical & Materials Engineering, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600 (Malaysia); Rabczuk, T., E-mail: timon.rabczuk@tdt.edu.vn [Division of Computational Mechanics, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam); Faculty of Civil Engineering, Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam)

2016-12-15

A previously-developed finite-deformation- and crystal-elasticity-based constitutive theory for stressed grain growth in cubic polycrystalline bodies has been augmented to include a description of excess surface energy and grain-growth stagnation mechanisms through the use of surface effect state variables in a thermodynamically-consistent manner. The constitutive theory was also implemented into a multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field computational framework. With the material parameters in the constitutive theory suitably calibrated, our three-dimensional numerical simulations show that the constitutive model is able to accurately predict the experimentally-determined evolution of crystallographic texture and grain size statistics in polycrystalline copper thin films deposited on polyimide substrate and annealed at high-homologous temperatures. In particular, our numerical analyses show that the broad texture transition observed in the annealing experiments of polycrystalline thin films is caused by grain growth stagnation mechanisms. - Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • Developing a theory for stressed grain growth in polycrystalline thin films. • Implementation into a multiscale coupled finite-element and phase-field framework. • Quantitative reproduction of the experimental grain growth data by simulations. • Revealing the cause of texture transition to be due to the stagnation mechanisms.

Failure and fracture of thin film materials for MEMS

Science.gov (United States)

Jonnalagadda, Krishna Nagasai

Design and reliable operation of Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) depend on the material parameters that influence the failure and fracture properties of brittle and metallic thin films. Failure in brittle materials is quantified by the onset of catastrophic fracture, while in metals, the onset of inelastic deformation is considered as failure as it increases the material compliance. This dissertation research developed new experimental methods to address three aspects on the failure response of these two categories of materials: (a) the role of microstructure and intrinsic stress gradients in the opening mode fracture of mathematically sharp pre-cracks in amorphous and polycrystalline brittle thin films, (b) the critical conditions for mixed mode I/II pre-cracks and their comparison with linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM) criteria for crack initiation in homogeneous materials, and (c) the strain rate sensitivity of textured nanocrystalline Au and Pt films with grain sizes of 38 nm and 25 nm respectively. One of the technical objectives of this research was to develop experimental methods and tools that could become standards in MEMS and thin film experimental mechanics. In this regard, a new method was introduced to conduct mode I and mixed mode I/II fracture studies with microscale thin film specimens containing sharp edge pre-cracks. The mode I experiments permitted the direct application of LEFM handbook solutions. On the other hand, the newly introduced mixed mode I/II experiments in thin films were conducted by establishing a new protocol that employs non-standard oblique edge pre-cracks and a numerical analysis based on the J-integral to calculate the stress intensity factors. Similarly, a new experimental protocol has been implemented to carry out experiments with metallic thin films at strain rates that vary by more than six orders of magnitude. The results of mode I fracture experiments concluded that grain inhomogeneity in polycrystalline

Optical properties of the c-axis oriented LiNbO3 thin film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shandilya, Swati; Sharma, Anjali; Tomar, Monika; Gupta, Vinay

2012-01-01

C-axis oriented Lithium Niobate (LiNbO 3 ) thin films have been deposited onto epitaxially matched (001) sapphire substrate using pulsed laser deposition technique. Structural and optical properties of the thin films have been studied using the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and UV–Visible spectroscopy respectively. Raman spectroscopy has been used to study the optical phonon modes and defects in the c-axis oriented LiNbO 3 thin films. XRD analysis indicates the presence of stress in the as-grown LiNbO 3 thin films and is attributed to the small lattice mismatch between LiNbO 3 and sapphire. Refractive index (n = 2.13 at 640 nm) of the (006) LiNbO 3 thin films was found to be slightly lower from the corresponding bulk value (n = 2.28). Various factors responsible for the deviation in the refractive index of (006) LiNbO 3 thin films from the corresponding bulk value are discussed and the deviation is mainly attributed to the lattice contraction due to the presence of stress in deposited film.

Characterization of Sucrose Thin Films for Biomedical Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. L. Iconaru

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Sucrose is a natural osmolyte accumulated in the cells of organisms as they adapt to environmental stress. In vitro sucrose increases protein stability and forces partially unfolded structures to refold. Thin films of sucrose (C12H22O11 were deposited on thin cut glass substrates by the thermal evaporation technique (P∼10−5 torr. Characteristics of thin films were put into evidence by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS, scanning electron microscopy (SEM, and differential thermal analysis and thermal gravimetric analysis (TG/DTA. The experimental results confirm a uniform deposition of an adherent layer. In this paper we present a part of the characteristics of sucrose thin films deposited on glass in medium vacuum conditions, as a part of a culture medium for osteoblast cells. Osteoblast cells were used to determine proliferation, viability, and cytotoxicity interactions with sucrose powder and sucrose thin films. The osteoblast cells have been provided from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC Centre. The outcome of this study demonstrated the effectiveness of sucrose thin films as a possible nontoxic agent for biomedical applications.

Significant questions in thin liquid film heat transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bankoff, S.G.

1994-01-01

Thin liquid films appear in many contexts, such as the cooling of gas turbine blade tips, rocket engines, microelectronics arrays, and hot fuel element surfaces in hypothetical nuclear reactor accidents. Apart from these direct cooling applications of thin liquid layers, thin films form a crucial element in determining the allowable heat flux limits in boiling. This is because the last stages of dryout almost invariably involve the rupture of a residual liquid film, either as a microlayer underneath the bubbles, or a thin annular layer in a high-quality burnout scenario. The destabilization of these thin films under the combined actions of shear stress, evaporation, and thermocapillary effects is quite complex. The later stages of actual rupture to form dry regions, which then expand, resulting in possible overheating, are even more complex and less well understood. However, significant progress has been made in understanding the behavior of these thin films, which are subject to competing instabilities prior to actual rupture. This will be reviewed briefly. Recent work on the advance, or recession, of contact lines will also be described briefly, and significant questions that still remain to be answered will be discussed. 68 refs., 7 figs

Absence of surface stress change during pentacene thin film growth on the Si(111)-(7 x 7) surface: a buried reconstruction interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kury, P; Horn von Hoegen, M; Heringdorf, F-J Meyer zu; Roos, K R

2008-01-01

We use high-resolution surface stress measurements to monitor the surface stress during the growth of pentacene (C 22 H 14 ) on the (7x7) reconstructed silicon (111) surface. No significant change in the surface stress is observed during the pentacene growth. Compared to the changes in the surface stress observed for Si and Ge deposition on the Si(111)-(7x7) surface, the insignificant change in the surface stress observed for the pentacene growth suggests that the pentacene molecules of the first adsorbate layer, although forming strong covalent bonds with the Si adatoms, do not alter the structure of the (7x7) reconstruction. The (7x7) reconstruction remains intact and, with subsequent deposition of pentacene, eventually becomes buried under the growing film. This failure of the pentacene to affect the structure of the reconstruction may represent a fundamental difference between the growth of organic thin films and that of inorganic thin films on semiconductor surfaces

Low temperature ITO thin film deposition on PES substrate using pulse magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Y.C.; Li, J.Y.; Yen, W.T.

2008-01-01

Experiments were conducted using pulse magnetron sputtering (PMS) to deposit transparent conducting indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film onto flexible polyethersulfone (PES) plastic substrates. The thin film microstructure, optoelectronic and residual stress were analyzed using the modulating PMS power, work pressure, pulse frequency, duty cycle and cycle time process parameters. The residual stress of the thin film was determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) combined with the Sony equation. The experimental results show that PMS has a lower process temperature, higher deposition rate and lower resistivity compared with the radio frequency process at the same output power. The duty cycle increase produces the optimum optoelectronic characteristics. When the pressure, power, duty cycle and sputter time are increased, the thin film stress will also increase, causing flexural distortion in the PES plastic substrate. When the deposition thickness reaches 1.5 μm, ITO thin film will appear with a distinct split. Under 5 mtorr work pressure, 60 W power, 33 μs duty time and 2 μs pulse reverse time at duty cycle 95%, thin film with an optimized electrical 3.0 x 10 -4 Ω-cm, RMS surface roughness of 0.85 nm and visible region optical transmittance will be achieved with acquisition of over 85%

Solid thin film materials for use in thin film charge-coupled devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lynch, S.J.

1983-01-01

Solid thin films deposited by vacuum deposition were evaluated to ascertain their effectiveness for use in the manufacturing of charge-coupled devices (CCDs). Optical and electrical characteristics of tellurium and Bi 2 Te 3 solid thin films were obtained in order to design and to simulate successfully the operation of thin film (TF) CCDs. In this article some of the material differences between single-crystal material and the island-structured thin film used in TFCCDs are discussed. The electrical parameters were obtained and tabulated, e.g. the mobility, conductivity, dielectric constants, permittivity, lifetime of holes and electrons in the thin films and drift diffusion constants. The optical parameters were also measured and analyzed. After the design was complete, experimental TFCCDs were manufactured and were successfully operated utilizing the aforementioned solid thin films. (Auth.)

Thin-film photovoltaic technology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhattacharya, R.N. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO (United States)

2010-07-01

The high material and processing costs associated with single-crystal and polycrystalline silicon wafers that are commonly used in photovoltaic cells render these modules expensive. This presentation described thin-film solar cell technology as a promising alternative to silicon solar cell technology. Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin films along with copper, indium, gallium, and selenium (CIGS) thin films have become the leaders in this field. Their large optical absorption coefficient can be attributed to a direct energy gap that allows the use of thin layers (1-2 {mu}m) of active material. The efficiency of thin-film solar cell devices based on CIGS is 20 per cent, compared to 16.7 per cent for thin-film solar cell devices based on CdTe. IBM recently reported an efficiency of 9.7 per cent for a new type of inorganic thin-film solar cell based on a Cu{sub 2}ZnSn(S, Se){sub 4} compound. The efficiency of an organic thin-film solar cell is 7.9 per cent. This presentation included a graph of PV device efficiencies and discussed technological advances in non-vacuum deposited, CIGS-based thin-film solar cells. 1 fig.

Thin film processes II

CERN Document Server

Kern, Werner

1991-01-01

This sequel to the 1978 classic, Thin Film Processes, gives a clear, practical exposition of important thin film deposition and etching processes that have not yet been adequately reviewed. It discusses selected processes in tutorial overviews with implementation guide lines and an introduction to the literature. Though edited to stand alone, when taken together, Thin Film Processes II and its predecessor present a thorough grounding in modern thin film techniques.Key Features* Provides an all-new sequel to the 1978 classic, Thin Film Processes* Introduces new topics, and sever

Effect of process temperature on structure, microstructure, residual stresses and soft magnetic properties of sputtered Fe{sub 70}Co{sub 30} thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Inamdar, Swaleha; Ramudu, M.; Raja, M. Manivel, E-mail: mraja@dmrl.drdo.in; Kamat, S.V.

2016-11-15

The effect of substrate and post-annealing temperatures on the structure, microstructure, residual stresses and soft magnetic properties of Fe{sub 70}Co{sub 30} thin films was systematically investigated. Microstructural studies reveal that the films are continuous and undergo changes in shape of grain from plate like to spherical resulting in an increase in grain size with the increase in substrate temperature, whereas the post-annealed films show small pores and no significant grain growth till 500 °C. Coercivity (H{sub c}) was found decreasing with both the substrate and post-annealing temperatures; however, the best H{sub c} value of 26 Oe was obtained for the films deposited at substrate temperature of 500 °C. The post-annealed films exhibited relatively higher H{sub c} values. A good combination of high saturation magnetization 4πM{sub s} of ~23.2 kG and low coercivity H{sub c} of 26–65 Oe was obtained for the films deposited at substrate temperature of 450–500 °C. Residual stress analysis on films with different substrate temperatures shows the presence of tensile stress. The decrease in tensile stress is attributed to the relaxation of thermal stresses in the films. - Highlights: • The properties of Fe{sub 70}Co{sub 30} thin films with substrate and post-annealing temperatures are studied. • Good combination of M{sub s} and H{sub c} were observed in the films with different substrate temperatures. • Coercivity decrease is attributed to the increased grain size and smaller residual stresses.

Transitions of bandgap and built-in stress for sputtered HfZnO thin films after thermal treatments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Chih-Hung; Chen, Jian-Zhang [Institute of Applied Mechanics, National Taiwan University, Taipei City 10617, Taiwan (China); Cheng, I-Chun [Graduate Institute of Photonics and Optoelectronics and Department of Electrical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei City 10617, Taiwan (China)

2013-08-28

HfZnO thin films with various Hf contents are sputter-deposited on glass substrates from Hf{sub x}Zn{sub 1−x}O (x = 0, 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 at. %) targets at room temperature. The incorporation of Hf in the ZnO film leads to the amorphorization of the materials. The amorphous structures of high-Hf-content films remain after annealing at 600 °C for 30 min. The built-in stresses of as-deposited films are compressive. As the annealing temperature increases, the stresses are relaxed and even become tensile. The films exhibit a high transmission of 80% in the visible region. The optical bandgap increases with the Hf content, but it decreases with the annealing temperature. This can be attributed to the alteration of strain (stress) status in the films and atomic substitution. The reduction of bandgap partly results from the grain growth, which is due to the quantum confinement effect of the small grains. Hf doping increases the resistivity of ZnO owing to the disorder of the material structure and the higher bandgap, which result in more carrier traps and less thermally excited carriers in the conduction bands.

Thermal expansion coefficient and thermomechanical properties of SiN(x) thin films prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition.

Science.gov (United States)

Tien, Chuen-Lin; Lin, Tsai-Wei

2012-10-20

We present a new method based on fast Fourier transform (FFT) for evaluating the thermal expansion coefficient and thermomechanical properties of thin films. The silicon nitride thin films deposited on Corning glass and Si wafers were prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition in this study. The anisotropic residual stress and thermomechanical properties of silicon nitride thin films were studied. Residual stresses in thin films were measured by a modified Michelson interferometer associated with the FFT method under different heating temperatures. We found that the average residual-stress value increases when the temperature increases from room temperature to 100°C. Increased substrate temperature causes the residual stress in SiN(x) film deposited on Si wafers to be more compressive, but the residual stress in SiN(x) film on Corning glass becomes more tensile. The residual-stress versus substrate-temperature relation is a linear correlation after heating. A double substrate technique is used to determine the thermal expansion coefficients of the thin films. The experimental results show that the thermal expansion coefficient of the silicon nitride thin films is 3.27×10(-6)°C(-1). The biaxial modulus is 1125 GPa for SiN(x) film.

Comparative study of the mechanical properties of nanostructured thin films on stretchable substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Djaziri, S. [Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH, Max-Planck-Straße 1, 40237 Düsseldorf (Germany); Institut P' (UPR 3346 CNRS), Université de Poitiers, ENSMA, Bd Pierre et Marie Curie, 86962 Futuroscope Cedex (France); Renault, P.-O.; Le Bourhis, E.; Goudeau, Ph., E-mail: Philippe.goudeau@univ-poitiers.fr [Institut P' (UPR 3346 CNRS), Université de Poitiers, ENSMA, Bd Pierre et Marie Curie, 86962 Futuroscope Cedex (France); Faurie, D. [LSPM, (UPR 3407 CNRS), Université Paris 13, Institut Galilée, 99 avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, 93430 Villetaneuse (France); Geandier, G. [Institut Jean Lamour (UMR 3079 CNRS), Université de Lorraine, Parc de Saurupt, CS 50840, 54011 NANCY Cedex (France); Mocuta, C.; Thiaudière, D. [Synchrotron SOLEIL, L' Orme des Merisiers, Saint-Aubin, BP 48, 91192 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex (France)

2014-09-07

Comparative studies of the mechanical behavior between copper, tungsten, and W/Cu nanocomposite based on copper dispersoïd thin films were performed under in-situ controlled tensile equi-biaxial loadings using both synchrotron X-ray diffraction and digital image correlation techniques. The films first deform elastically with the lattice strain equal to the true strain given by digital image correlation measurements. The Cu single thin film intrinsic elastic limit of 0.27% is determined below the apparent elastic limit of W and W/Cu nanocomposite thin films, 0.30% and 0.49%, respectively. This difference is found to be driven by the existence of as-deposited residual stresses. Above the elastic limit on the lattice strain-true strain curves, we discriminate two different behaviors presumably footprints of plasticity and fracture. The Cu thin film shows a large transition domain (0.60% true strain range) to a plateau with a smooth evolution of the curve which is associated to peak broadening. In contrast, W and W/Cu nanocomposite thin films show a less smooth and reduced transition domain (0.30% true strain range) to a plateau with no peak broadening. These observations indicate that copper thin film shows some ductility while tungsten/copper nanocomposites thin films are brittle. Fracture resistance of W/Cu nanocomposite thin film is improved thanks to the high compressive residual stress and the elimination of the metastable β-W phase.

Pyrolyzed thin film carbon

Science.gov (United States)

Tai, Yu-Chong (Inventor); Liger, Matthieu (Inventor); Harder, Theodore (Inventor); Konishi, Satoshi (Inventor); Miserendino, Scott (Inventor)

2010-01-01

A method of making carbon thin films comprises depositing a catalyst on a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon in contact with the catalyst and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon. A method of controlling a carbon thin film density comprises etching a cavity into a substrate, depositing a hydrocarbon into the cavity, and pyrolyzing the hydrocarbon while in the cavity to form a carbon thin film. Controlling a carbon thin film density is achieved by changing the volume of the cavity. Methods of making carbon containing patterned structures are also provided. Carbon thin films and carbon containing patterned structures can be used in NEMS, MEMS, liquid chromatography, and sensor devices.

Ion Beam Assisted Deposition of Thin Epitaxial GaN Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Rauschenbach, Bernd; Lotnyk, Andriy; Neumann, Lena; Poppitz, David; Gerlach, Jürgen W

2017-06-23

The assistance of thin film deposition with low-energy ion bombardment influences their final properties significantly. Especially, the application of so-called hyperthermal ions (energy GaN thin films on (0001)-oriented 6H-SiC substrates at 700 °C. The films are studied in situ by reflection high energy electron diffraction, ex situ by X-ray diffraction, scanning tunnelling microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. It is demonstrated that the film growth mode can be controlled by varying the ion to atom ratio, where 2D films are characterized by a smooth topography, a high crystalline quality, low biaxial stress, and low defect density. Typical structural defects in the GaN thin films were identified as basal plane stacking faults, low-angle grain boundaries forming between w-GaN and z-GaN and twin boundaries. The misfit strain between the GaN thin films and substrates is relieved by the generation of edge dislocations in the first and second monolayers of GaN thin films and of misfit interfacial dislocations. It can be demonstrated that the low-energy nitrogen ion assisted molecular beam epitaxy is a technique to produce thin GaN films of high crystalline quality.

thin films

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

microscopy (SEM) studies, respectively. The Fourier transform ... Thin films; chemical synthesis; hydrous tin oxide; FTIR; electrical properties. 1. Introduction ... dehydrogenation of organic compounds (Hattori et al 1987). .... SEM images of (a) bare stainless steel and (b) SnO2:H2O thin film on stainless steel substrate at a ...

Molecular dynamics simulation of Cu/Au thin films under temperature gradient

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Qibin; Peng, Xianghe; Peng, Tiefeng; Tang, Qizhong; Zhang, Xiaomin; Huang, Cheng

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: Heat transportation in the thin films. - Highlights: • The coherent lattice interface is found at thin films after annealing. • The vacancies are observed clearly in the deposit thin films. • The defect and component will influence the energy transportation in the coatings. • The vacancies and lattice mismatch can enlarge the mobility of atoms. • The phonon transportation in thin films has no apparent rule. - Abstract: Three modulation period thin films, 1.8 nm Cu/3.6 nm Au, 2.7 nm Cu/2.7 nm Au and 3.6 nm Cu/1.8 nm Au, are obtained from deposition method and ideal modeling based on lattice constant, to examine their structures and thermophysical characteristics under temperature gradient. The coherent lattice interface is found both at deposit and ideal thin films after annealing. Also, the vacancies are observed clearly in the deposit thin films. The defect and component of thin films will influence the energy transportation in the coatings. The vacancies and lattice mismatch can enlarge the mobility of atoms and result in the failure of coating under the thermal stress. The power spectrum of atoms’ movement has no apparent rule for phonon transportation in thin films. The results are helpful to reveal the micro-mechanism and provide reasonable basis for the failure of metallic coatings.

Molecular dynamics simulation of Cu/Au thin films under temperature gradient

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Qibin, E-mail: qibinli@cqu.edu.cn [College of Aerospace Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Chongqing Key Laboratory of Heterogeneous Material Mechanics, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Peng, Xianghe [College of Aerospace Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Peng, Tiefeng, E-mail: pengtiefeng@cqu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Tang, Qizhong [College of Aerospace Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Zhang, Xiaomin [College of Aerospace Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Chongqing Key Laboratory of Heterogeneous Material Mechanics, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China); Huang, Cheng [College of Aerospace Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400030 (China)

2015-12-01

Graphical abstract: Heat transportation in the thin films. - Highlights: • The coherent lattice interface is found at thin films after annealing. • The vacancies are observed clearly in the deposit thin films. • The defect and component will influence the energy transportation in the coatings. • The vacancies and lattice mismatch can enlarge the mobility of atoms. • The phonon transportation in thin films has no apparent rule. - Abstract: Three modulation period thin films, 1.8 nm Cu/3.6 nm Au, 2.7 nm Cu/2.7 nm Au and 3.6 nm Cu/1.8 nm Au, are obtained from deposition method and ideal modeling based on lattice constant, to examine their structures and thermophysical characteristics under temperature gradient. The coherent lattice interface is found both at deposit and ideal thin films after annealing. Also, the vacancies are observed clearly in the deposit thin films. The defect and component of thin films will influence the energy transportation in the coatings. The vacancies and lattice mismatch can enlarge the mobility of atoms and result in the failure of coating under the thermal stress. The power spectrum of atoms’ movement has no apparent rule for phonon transportation in thin films. The results are helpful to reveal the micro-mechanism and provide reasonable basis for the failure of metallic coatings.

Optical properties of the c-axis oriented LiNbO{sub 3} thin film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shandilya, Swati; Sharma, Anjali [Department of Physics and Astrophysics, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 (India); Tomar, Monika [Miranda House, University of Delhi, Delhi 110007 (India); Gupta, Vinay, E-mail: drguptavinay@gmail.com [Department of Physics and Astrophysics, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 (India)

2012-01-01

C-axis oriented Lithium Niobate (LiNbO{sub 3}) thin films have been deposited onto epitaxially matched (001) sapphire substrate using pulsed laser deposition technique. Structural and optical properties of the thin films have been studied using the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and UV-Visible spectroscopy respectively. Raman spectroscopy has been used to study the optical phonon modes and defects in the c-axis oriented LiNbO{sub 3} thin films. XRD analysis indicates the presence of stress in the as-grown LiNbO{sub 3} thin films and is attributed to the small lattice mismatch between LiNbO{sub 3} and sapphire. Refractive index (n = 2.13 at 640 nm) of the (006) LiNbO{sub 3} thin films was found to be slightly lower from the corresponding bulk value (n = 2.28). Various factors responsible for the deviation in the refractive index of (006) LiNbO{sub 3} thin films from the corresponding bulk value are discussed and the deviation is mainly attributed to the lattice contraction due to the presence of stress in deposited film.

Stress measurement in thin films by geometrical optics

Science.gov (United States)

Rossnagel, S. M.; Gilstrap, P.; Rujkorakarn, R.

1982-01-01

A variation of Newton's rings experiment is proposed for measuring film stress. The procedure described, the geometrical optics method, is used to measure radii of curvature for a series of film depositions with Ta, Al, and Mo films. The method has a sensitivity of 1 x 10 to the 9th dyn/sq cm, corresponding to the practical radius limit of about 50 m, and a repeatability usually within five percent. For the purposes of comparison, radii are also measured by Newton's rings method and the Talysurf method; all results are found to be in general agreement. Measurement times are also compared: the geometrical optics method requires only 1/2-1 minute. It is concluded that the geometrical optics method provides an inexpensive, fast, and a reasonably correct technique with which to measure stresses in film.

Thin Film Microbatteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dudney, Nancy J.

2008-01-01

Thin film batteries are built layer by layer by vapor deposition. The resulting battery is formed of parallel plates, much as an ordinary battery construction, just much thinner. The figure (Fig. 1) shows an example of a thin film battery layout where films are deposited symmetrically onto both sides of a supporting substrate. The full stack of films is only 10 to 15 (micro)m thick, but including the support at least doubles the overall battery thickness. When the support is thin, the entire battery can be flexible. At least six companies have commercialized or are very close to commercializing such all-solid-state thin film batteries and market research predicts a growing market and a variety of applications including sensors, RFID tags, and smarter cards. In principle with a large deposition system, a thin film battery might cover a square meter, but in practice, most development is targeting individual cells with active areas less than 25 cm 2 . For very small battery areas, 2 , microfabrication processes have been developed. Typically the assembled batteries have capacities from 0.1 to 5 mAh. The operation of a thin film battery is depicted in the schematic diagram (Fig. 2). Very simply, when the battery is allowed to discharge, a Li + ion migrates from the anode to the cathode film by diffusing through the solid electrolyte. When the anode and cathode reactions are reversible, as for an intercalation compound or alloy, the battery can be recharged by reversing the current. The difference in the electrochemical potential of the lithium determines the cell voltage. Most of the thin films used in current commercial variations of this thin film battery are deposited in vacuum chambers by RF and DC magnetron sputtering and by thermal evaporation onto unheated substrates. In addition, many publications report exploring a variety of other physical and chemical vapor deposition processes, such as pulsed laser deposition, electron cyclotron resonance sputtering, and

Highly stable thin film transistors using multilayer channel structure

KAUST Repository

Nayak, Pradipta K.; Wang, Zhenwei; Anjum, Dalaver H.; Hedhili, Mohamed N.; Alshareef, Husam N.

2015-01-01

We report highly stable gate-bias stress performance of thin film transistors (TFTs) using zinc oxide (ZnO)/hafnium oxide (HfO2) multilayer structure as the channel layer. Positive and negative gate-bias stress stability of the TFTs was measured

A computational study of the piezoelectric response due to the material effect in periodic, single island thin films and the geometric effect in periodic, bi-island thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, B.; Bhattacharyya, A.

2010-01-01

The electromechanical response of a square-periodic array of circular piezoelectric (PE) thin films alternating with non-piezoelectric (NPE) films is studied in this paper. The material effects are studied for four film/substrate combinations in absence of NPE films for which it is found that if d zxx zzz (z-axis being normal to the interfacial plane between the film and the substrate), it results in reduced substrate bending leading to reduced degradation in the electromechanical response of the thin film. The bi-island structure is studied for zinc oxide on strontium titanate, and, in general, it is seen that the NPE films not only reduce degradation of the electromechanical response of the PE films but also increase their internal stresses; the effect on the former is less than the latter. These effects are most prominent when the circular NPE thin films fill the space between the PE thin films and are elastically very stiff compared to the substrate.

Driving forces for texture transformation in thin Ag films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ellis, Elizabeth A.; Chmielus, Markus; Lin, Ming-Tzer; Joress, Howie; Visser, Kyle; Woll, Arthur; Vinci, Richard P.; Brown, Walter L.; Baker, Shefford P.

2016-01-01

The well-known thickness-dependent (111)-to-(100) texture transformation in thin FCC films is usually attributed to a competition between interface and strain energies. In this model, thin films retain their (111) texture due to the lower energy of the (111) interface, while thick films transform to (100) due to the lower stiffness and thus strain energy of a (100) film. However, recent work has called this model into question, suggesting that neither the stress nor the interface energy play a dominant role in texture transformation. We investigated the driving forces involved in this transformation by using a bulge test apparatus to induce different stresses in thin Ag films under identical annealing conditions. In situ synchrotron XRD measurements show the change in texture during annealing, and reveal that applied stresses have no effect on the transformation. Stress analysis shows that differences in driving forces for texture transformation due to applied bulge pressure were significant (≈200 kJ/m 3 ), suggesting that a different, much larger driving force must be responsible. Reduction in defect energy has been proposed as an alternative. However, vacancy and dislocation densities must be exceptionally high to significantly exceed the strain energy and do not provide obvious orientation selection mechanisms. Nanotwins in reported densities are shown to provide greater driving force (≈1000 kJ/m 3 ) and may account for orientation selection. The large difference between the calculated strain and defect energies and the driving force for grain growth (21,100 kJ/m 3 ) casts doubt on the applicability of a simple thermodynamic model of texture transformation.

Aluminum nitride and nanodiamond thin film microstructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Knoebber, Fabian; Bludau, Oliver; Roehlig, Claus-Christian; Williams, Oliver; Sah, Ram Ekwal; Kirste, Lutz; Cimalla, Volker; Lebedev, Vadim; Nebel, Christoph; Ambacher, Oliver [Fraunhofer-Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Freiburg (Germany)

2010-07-01

In this work, aluminum nitride (AlN) and nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) thin film microstructures have been developed. Freestanding NCD membranes were coated with a piezoelectrical AlN layer in order to build tunable micro-lens arrays. For the evaluation of the single material quality, AlN and NCD thin films on silicon substrates were fabricated using RF magnetron sputtering and microwave chemical vapor deposition techniques, respectively. The crystal quality of AlN was investigated by X-ray diffraction. The piezoelectric constant d{sub 33} was determined by scanning laser vibrometry. The NCD thin films were optimized with respect to surface roughness, mechanical stability, intrinsic stress and transparency. To determine the mechanical properties of the materials, both, micromechanical resonator and membrane structures were fabricated and measured by magnetomotive resonant frequency spectroscopy and bulging experiments, respectively. Finally, the behavior of AlN/NCD heterostructures was modeled using the finite element method and the first structures were characterized by piezoelectrical measurements.

Ceramic Composite Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Ruoff, Rodney S. (Inventor); Stankovich, Sasha (Inventor); Dikin, Dmitriy A. (Inventor); Nguyen, SonBinh T. (Inventor)

2013-01-01

A ceramic composite thin film or layer includes individual graphene oxide and/or electrically conductive graphene sheets dispersed in a ceramic (e.g. silica) matrix. The thin film or layer can be electrically conductive film or layer depending the amount of graphene sheets present. The composite films or layers are transparent, chemically inert and compatible with both glass and hydrophilic SiOx/silicon substrates. The composite film or layer can be produced by making a suspension of graphene oxide sheet fragments, introducing a silica-precursor or silica to the suspension to form a sol, depositing the sol on a substrate as thin film or layer, at least partially reducing the graphene oxide sheets to conductive graphene sheets, and thermally consolidating the thin film or layer to form a silica matrix in which the graphene oxide and/or graphene sheets are dispersed.

Dense zig-zag microstructures in YSZ thin films by pulsed laser deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Stender, Dieter; Schäuble, Nina; Weidenkaff, Anke; Montagne, Alex; Ghisleni, Rudy; Michler, Johann; Schneider, Christof W.; Wokaun, Alexander; Lippert, Thomas

2015-01-01

The very brittle oxygen ion conductor yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is a typical solid electrolyte for miniaturized thin film fuel cells. In order to decrease the fuel cell operating temperature, the thickness of yttria stabilized zirconia thin films is reduced. Often, these thin membranes suffer from mechanical failure and gas permeability. To improve these mechanical issues, a glancing angle deposition approach is used to grow yttria stabilized zirconia thin films with tilted columnar structures. Changes of the material flux direction during the deposition result in a dense, zigzag-like structure with columnar crystallites. This structure reduces the elastic modulus of these membranes as compared to columnar yttria stabilized zirconia thin films as monitored by nano-indentation which makes them more adaptable to applied stress.

Dense zig-zag microstructures in YSZ thin films by pulsed laser deposition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dieter Stender

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The very brittle oxygen ion conductor yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ is a typical solid electrolyte for miniaturized thin film fuel cells. In order to decrease the fuel cell operating temperature, the thickness of yttria stabilized zirconia thin films is reduced. Often, these thin membranes suffer from mechanical failure and gas permeability. To improve these mechanical issues, a glancing angle deposition approach is used to grow yttria stabilized zirconia thin films with tilted columnar structures. Changes of the material flux direction during the deposition result in a dense, zigzag-like structure with columnar crystallites. This structure reduces the elastic modulus of these membranes as compared to columnar yttria stabilized zirconia thin films as monitored by nano-indentation which makes them more adaptable to applied stress.

Cyclic testing of thin Ni films on a pre-tensile compliant substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wei, He [Department of Mechanics, Tianjin University, 135 Yaguan Rd, Jinnan, 300350 Tianjin (China); Département Physique et Mécanique d es Matériaux, Institut Pprime, CNRS–Université de Poitiers, Bd Marie et Pierre Curie, Futuroscope, 86962 (France); Renault, Pierre-Olivier, E-mail: pierre.olivier.renault@univ-poitiers.fr [Département Physique et Mécanique d es Matériaux, Institut Pprime, CNRS–Université de Poitiers, Bd Marie et Pierre Curie, Futuroscope, 86962 (France); Bourhis, Eric Le [Département Physique et Mécanique d es Matériaux, Institut Pprime, CNRS–Université de Poitiers, Bd Marie et Pierre Curie, Futuroscope, 86962 (France); Wang, Shibin [Department of Mechanics, Tianjin University, 135 Yaguan Rd, Jinnan, 300350 Tianjin (China); Goudeau, Philippe [Département Physique et Mécanique d es Matériaux, Institut Pprime, CNRS–Université de Poitiers, Bd Marie et Pierre Curie, Futuroscope, 86962 (France)

2017-05-17

A novel experimental approach to study the cyclic plastic deformation of thin metallic films is presented. 300 nm thick Ni films are deposited on both sides of a pre-tensile soft substrate which allows to deform the films alternately in tension and compression (approximately from +2.7 GPa down to −2 GPa) relative to the as-deposited residual stress state. Nanocrystalline thin films' intrinsic elastic strains (or stresses) and true strains have been measured step by step during two loading/unloading cycles thanks to the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and digital image correlation (DIC) techniques respectively. From the first cyclic deformation, a significant Bauschinger effect is evidenced in the films, however, little or no cyclic hardening is observed during the two cyclic tests.

Implanted ZnO thin films: Microstructure, electrical and electronic properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.; Metson, J.; Evans, P.J.; Kinsey, R.; Bhattacharyya, D.

2007-01-01

Magnetron sputtered polycrystalline ZnO thin films were implanted using Al, Ag, Sn, Sb and codoped with TiN in order to improve the conductivity and to attempt to achieve p-type behaviour. Structural and electrical properties of the implanted ZnO thin films were examined with X-ray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and conductivity measurements. Depth profiles of the implanted elements varied with the implant species. Implantation causes a partial amorphisation of the crystalline structure and decreases the effective grain size of the films. One of the findings is the improvement, as a consequence of implantation, in the conductivity of initially poorly conductive samples. Heavy doping may help for the conversion of conduction type of ZnO thin films. Annealing in vacuum mitigated structural damage and stress caused by implantation, and improved the conductivity of the implanted ZnO thin films

The Characterization of Thin Film Nickel Titanium Shape Memory Alloys

Science.gov (United States)

Harris Odum, Nicole Latrice

Shape memory alloys (SMA) are able to recover their original shape through the appropriate heat or stress exposure after enduring mechanical deformation at a low temperature. Numerous alloy systems have been discovered which produce this unique feature like TiNb, AgCd, NiAl, NiTi, and CuZnAl. Since their discovery, bulk scale SMAs have undergone extensive material property investigations and are employed in real world applications. However, its thin film counterparts have been modestly investigated and applied. Researchers have introduced numerous theoretical microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices; yet, the research community's overall unfamiliarity with the thin film properties has delayed growth in this area. In addition, it has been difficult to outline efficient thin film processing techniques. In this dissertation, NiTi thin film processing and characterization techniques will be outlined and discussed. NiTi thin films---1 mum thick---were produced using sputter deposition techniques. Substrate bound thin films were deposited to analysis the surface using Scanning Electron Microscopy; the film composition was obtained using Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy; the phases were identified using X-ray diffraction; and the transformation temperatures acquired using resistivity testing. Microfabrication processing and sputter deposition were employed to develop tensile membranes for membrane deflection experimentation to gain insight on the mechanical properties of the thin films. The incorporation of these findings will aid in the movement of SMA microactuation devices from theory to fruition and greatly benefit industries such as medicinal and aeronautical.

Inhomogeneous strain states in sputter deposited tungsten thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noyan, I.C.; Shaw, T.M.; Goldsmith, C.C.

1997-01-01

The results of an x-ray diffraction study of dc-magnetron sputtered tungsten thin films are reported. It is shown that the phase transformation from the β to α W can cause multilayered single-phase films where the layers have very different stress states even if the films are in the 500 nm thickness range. copyright 1997 American Institute of Physics

Stress, microstructure and evolution under ion irradiation in thin films grown by ion beam sputtering: modelling and application to interfacial effects in metallic multilayers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Debelle, A.

2006-09-01

We have investigated the formation of the interfacial chemical mixing in Mo/Ni multilayers, and particularly the influence of ballistic effects during the growth. For this purpose, hetero-epitaxial b.c.c./f.c.c. Mo(110)/Ni(111) multilayers were grown by two deposition methods: thermal evaporation and direct ion beam sputtering. As a preliminary, an accurate description of the stress state in pure sputtered Mo thin films was required. Microstructural and stress state analyses were essentially carried out by X-ray diffraction, and ion irradiation was used as a powerful tool to control the stress level. We showed that thermal evaporated thin films exhibit a weak tensile growth stress (∼ 0.6 GPa) that can be accounted for by the grain boundary relaxation model, whereas sputtered thin films develop large compressive growth stress (- 2 to - 4 GPa). This latter results from the bombardment of the growing film by the energetic particles involved during the sputtering process (atomic peening phenomenon), which induces the formation of defects in the layers, generating volume distortions. We thus developed a stress model that includes a hydrostatic stress component to account for these volume strains. This model allowed us to determine the 'unstressed and free of defects lattice parameter' a 0 , solely linked to chemical effects. For epitaxial Mo layers, it was possible to separate coherency stress from growth stress due to their distinct kinetic evolution during ion irradiation. Therefore, the stress analysis enabled us to determine the a 0 values in Mo sub-layers of Mo/Ni superlattices. A tendency to the formation of an interfacial alloy is observed independently of the growth conditions, which suggests that thermodynamic forces favour the exchange mechanism. However, the extent of the intermixing effect is clearly enhanced by ballistic effects. (author)

Host thin films incorporating nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Qureshi, Uzma

The focus of this research project was the investigation of the functional properties of thin films that incorporate a secondary nanoparticulate phase. In particular to assess if the secondary nanoparticulate material enhanced a functional property of the coating on glass. In order to achieve this, new thin film deposition methods were developed, namely use of nanopowder precursors, an aerosol assisted transport technique and an aerosol into atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition system. Aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) was used to deposit 8 series of thin films on glass. Five different nanoparticles silver, gold, ceria, tungsten oxide and zinc oxide were tested and shown to successfully deposit thin films incorporating nanoparticles within a host matrix. Silver nanoparticles were synthesised and doped within a titania film by AACVD. This improved solar control properties. A unique aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) into atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition (APCVD) system was used to deposit films of Au nanoparticles and thin films of gold nanoparticles incorporated within a host titania matrix. Incorporation of high refractive index contrast metal oxide particles within a host film altered the film colour. The key goal was to test the potential of nanopowder forms and transfer the suspended nanopowder via an aerosol to a substrate in order to deposit a thin film. Discrete tungsten oxide nanoparticles or ceria nanoparticles within a titanium dioxide thin film enhanced the self-cleaning and photo-induced super-hydrophilicity. The nanopowder precursor study was extended by deposition of zinc oxide thin films incorporating Au nanoparticles and also ZnO films deposited from a ZnO nanopowder precursor. Incorporation of Au nanoparticles within a VO: host matrix improved the thermochromic response, optical and colour properties. Composite VC/TiC and Au nanoparticle/V02/Ti02 thin films displayed three useful

Annealing dependence of residual stress and optical properties of TiO2 thin film deposited by different deposition methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Hsi-Chao; Lee, Kuan-Shiang; Lee, Cheng-Chung

2008-05-01

Titanium oxide (TiO(2)) thin films were prepared by different deposition methods. The methods were E-gun evaporation with ion-assisted deposition (IAD), radio-frequency (RF) ion-beam sputtering, and direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering. Residual stress was released after annealing the films deposited by RF ion-beam or DC magnetron sputtering but not evaporation, and the extinction coefficient varied significantly. The surface roughness of the evaporated films exceeded that of both sputtered films. At the annealing temperature of 300 degrees C, anatase crystallization occurred in evaporated film but not in the RF ion-beam or DC magnetron-sputtered films. TiO(2) films deposited by sputtering were generally more stable during annealing than those deposited by evaporation.

Stress-Induced Cubic-to-Hexagonal Phase Transformation in Perovskite Nanothin Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Shi-Gu; Li, Yunsong; Wu, Hong-Hui; Wang, Jie; Huang, Baoling; Zhang, Tong-Yi

2017-08-09

The strong coupling between crystal structure and mechanical deformation can stabilize low-symmetry phases from high-symmetry phases or induce novel phase transformation in oxide thin films. Stress-induced structural phase transformation in oxide thin films has drawn more and more attention due to its significant influence on the functionalities of the materials. Here, we discovered experimentally a novel stress-induced cubic-to-hexagonal phase transformation in the perovskite nanothin films of barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ) with a special thermomechanical treatment (TMT), where BaTiO 3 nanothin films under various stresses are annealed at temperature of 575 °C. Both high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy show a higher density of hexagonal phase in the perovskite thin film under higher tensile stress. Both X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy does not detect any change in the valence state of Ti atoms, thereby excluding the mechanism of oxygen vacancy induced cubic-to-hexagonal (c-to-h) phase transformation. First-principles calculations show that the c-to-h phase transformation can be completed by lattice shear at elevated temperature, which is consistent with the experimental observation. The applied bending plus the residual tensile stress produces shear stress in the nanothin film. The thermal energy at the elevated temperature assists the shear stress to overcome the energy barriers during the c-to-h phase transformation. The stress-induced phase transformation in perovskite nanothin films with TMT provides materials scientists and engineers a novel approach to tailor nano/microstructures and properties of ferroelectric materials.

NMR characterization of thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Gerald II, Rex E.; Klingler, Robert J.; Rathke, Jerome W.; Diaz, Rocio; Vukovic, Lela

2010-06-15

A method, apparatus, and system for characterizing thin film materials. The method, apparatus, and system includes a container for receiving a starting material, applying a gravitational force, a magnetic force, and an electric force or combinations thereof to at least the starting material, forming a thin film material, sensing an NMR signal from the thin film material and analyzing the NMR signal to characterize the thin film of material.

NMR characterization of thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Gerald, II, Rex E.; Klingler, Robert J.; Rathke, Jerome W.; Diaz, Rocio; Vukovic, Lela

2008-11-25

A method, apparatus, and system for characterizing thin film materials. The method, apparatus, and system includes a container for receiving a starting material, applying a gravitational force, a magnetic force, and an electric force or combinations thereof to at least the starting material, forming a thin film material, sensing an NMR signal from the thin film material and analyzing the NMR signal to characterize the thin film of material.

Effect of extrapolation length on the phase transformation of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu, Z.S.; Tang, M.H.; Wang, J.B.; Zheng, X.J.; Zhou, Y.C.

2008-01-01

Effects of extrapolation length on the phase transformation of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films on dissimilar cubic substrates have been studied on the basis of the mean-field Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire (LGD) thermodynamic theory by taking an uneven distribution of the interior stress with thickness into account. It was found that the polarization of epitaxial ferroelectric thin films is strongly dependent on the extrapolation length of films. The physical origin of the extrapolation length during the phase transformation from paraelectric to ferroelectric was revealed in the case of ferroelectric thin films

Molecular doping for control of gate bias stress in organic thin film transistors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hein, Moritz P., E-mail: hein@iapp.de; Lüssem, Björn; Jankowski, Jens; Tietze, Max L.; Riede, Moritz K. [Institut für Angewandte Photophysik, Technische Universität Dresden, George-Bähr-Straße 1, 01069 Dresden (Germany); Zakhidov, Alexander A. [Fraunhofer COMEDD, Maria-Reiche-Str. 2, 01109 Dresden (Germany); Leo, Karl [Institut für Angewandte Photophysik, Technische Universität Dresden, George-Bähr-Straße 1, 01069 Dresden (Germany); Fraunhofer COMEDD, Maria-Reiche-Str. 2, 01109 Dresden (Germany)

2014-01-06

The key active devices of future organic electronic circuits are organic thin film transistors (OTFTs). Reliability of OTFTs remains one of the most challenging obstacles to be overcome for broad commercial applications. In particular, bias stress was identified as the key instability under operation for numerous OTFT devices and interfaces. Despite a multitude of experimental observations, a comprehensive mechanism describing this behavior is still missing. Furthermore, controlled methods to overcome these instabilities are so far lacking. Here, we present the approach to control and significantly alleviate the bias stress effect by using molecular doping at low concentrations. For pentacene and silicon oxide as gate oxide, we are able to reduce the time constant of degradation by three orders of magnitude. The effect of molecular doping on the bias stress behavior is explained in terms of the shift of Fermi Level and, thus, exponentially reduced proton generation at the pentacene/oxide interface.

Molecular doping for control of gate bias stress in organic thin film transistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hein, Moritz P.; Lüssem, Björn; Jankowski, Jens; Tietze, Max L.; Riede, Moritz K.; Zakhidov, Alexander A.; Leo, Karl

2014-01-01

The key active devices of future organic electronic circuits are organic thin film transistors (OTFTs). Reliability of OTFTs remains one of the most challenging obstacles to be overcome for broad commercial applications. In particular, bias stress was identified as the key instability under operation for numerous OTFT devices and interfaces. Despite a multitude of experimental observations, a comprehensive mechanism describing this behavior is still missing. Furthermore, controlled methods to overcome these instabilities are so far lacking. Here, we present the approach to control and significantly alleviate the bias stress effect by using molecular doping at low concentrations. For pentacene and silicon oxide as gate oxide, we are able to reduce the time constant of degradation by three orders of magnitude. The effect of molecular doping on the bias stress behavior is explained in terms of the shift of Fermi Level and, thus, exponentially reduced proton generation at the pentacene/oxide interface

Handbook of thin film technology

CERN Document Server

Frey, Hartmut

2015-01-01

“Handbook of Thin Film Technology” covers all aspects of coatings preparation, characterization and applications. Different deposition techniques based on vacuum and plasma processes are presented. Methods of surface and thin film analysis including coating thickness, structural, optical, electrical, mechanical and magnetic properties of films are detailed described. The several applications of thin coatings and a special chapter focusing on nanoparticle-based films can be found in this handbook. A complete reference for students and professionals interested in the science and technology of thin films.

Pulsed laser deposited Al-doped ZnO thin films for optical applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gurpreet Kaur

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Highly transparent and conducting Al-doped ZnO (Al:ZnO thin films were grown on glass substrates using pulsed laser deposition technique. The profound effect of film thickness on the structural, optical and electrical properties of Al:ZnO thin films was observed. The X-ray diffraction depicts c-axis, plane (002 oriented thin films with hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure. Al-doping in ZnO introduces a compressive stress in the films which increase with the film thickness. AFM images reveal the columnar grain formation with low surface roughness. The versatile optical properties of Al:ZnO thin films are important for applications such as transparent electromagnetic interference (EMI shielding materials and solar cells. The obtained optical band gap (3.2–3.08 eV was found to be less than pure ZnO (3.37 eV films. The lowering in the band gap in Al:ZnO thin films could be attributed to band edge bending phenomena. The photoluminescence spectra gives sharp visible emission peaks, enables Al:ZnO thin films for light emitting devices (LEDs applications. The current–voltage (I–V measurements show the ohmic behavior of the films with resistivity (ρ~10−3 Ω cm.

Stress assisted selective ablation of ITO thin film by picosecond laser

Science.gov (United States)

Farid, Nazar; Chan, Helios; Milne, David; Brunton, Adam; M. O'Connor, Gerard

2018-01-01

Fast selective pattering with high precession on 175 nm ITO thin film with IR ps lasers is investigated. Ablation parameters are optimized with detailed studies on the scribed depth, topography, and particle generation using AFM and SEM. A comparison of 10 and 150 ps laser revealed that the shorter pulse (10 ps) laser is more appropriate in selective and partial ablation; up to 20 nm resolution for controlled depth with multipulses having energy below the damage threshold is demonstrated. The experimental results are interpreted to involve stress assisted ablation mechanism for the 10 ps laser while thermal ablation along with intense melting occurs for 150 ps laser. The transition between these regimes is estimated to occur at approximately 30 ps.

Rare Earth Oxide Thin Films

CERN Document Server

Fanciulli, Marco

2007-01-01

Thin rare earth (RE) oxide films are emerging materials for microelectronic, nanoelectronic, and spintronic applications. The state-of-the-art of thin film deposition techniques as well as the structural, physical, chemical, and electrical properties of thin RE oxide films and of their interface with semiconducting substrates are discussed. The aim is to identify proper methodologies for the development of RE oxides thin films and to evaluate their effectiveness as innovative materials in different applications.

Thin-film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aberle, Armin G.

2009-01-01

The rapid progress that is being made with inorganic thin-film photovoltaic (PV) technologies, both in the laboratory and in industry, is reviewed. While amorphous silicon based PV modules have been around for more than 20 years, recent industrial developments include the first polycrystalline silicon thin-film solar cells on glass and the first tandem solar cells based on stacks of amorphous and microcrystalline silicon films ('micromorph cells'). Significant thin-film PV production levels are also being set up for cadmium telluride and copper indium diselenide.

Process for forming thin film, heat treatment process of thin film sheet, and heat treatment apparatus therefor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanabe, S.

1984-01-01

The invention provides a process for forming a magnetic thin film on a base film, a heat treatment process of a thin film sheet consisting of the base film and the magnetic thin film, and an apparatus for performing heat treatment of the thin film sheet. Tension applied to the thin film sheet is substantially equal to that applied to the base film when the magnetic thin film is formed thereon. Then, the thin film sheet is treated with heat. The thin film sheet is heated with a given temperature gradient to a reactive temperature at which heat shrinkage occurs, while the tension is being applied thereto. Thereafter, the thin film sheet to which the tension is still applied is cooled with substantially the same temperature gradient as applied in heating. The heat treatment apparatus has a film driving unit including a supply reel, a take-up reel, a drive source and guide rollers; a heating unit including heating plates, heater blocks and a temperature controller for heating the sheet to the reactive temperature; and a heat insulating unit including a thermostat and another temperature controller for maintaining the sheet at the nonreactive temperature which is slightly lower than the reactive temperature

Stress and piezoelectric properties of aluminum nitride thin films deposited onto metal electrodes by pulsed direct current reactive sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dubois, Marc-Alexandre; Muralt, Paul

2001-01-01

Polycrystalline aluminum nitride thin films were deposited onto platinum, aluminum, and titanium electrodes by reactive magnetron sputtering in the pulsed direct current mode. The films exhibited all a columnar microstructure and a c-axis texture. The built-in stress and the piezoelectric properties of these films were studied as a function of both the processing conditions and the electrode material. Stress was found to be very much dependent on the growth conditions, and values ranging from strong compression to high tension were observed. The piezoelectric d 33,f coefficient was shown to rely on substrate quality and ionic bombardment: The nucleation surface must be stable with regard to the nitrogen plasma and present a hexagonal symmetry and, on the other hand, enough energy must be delivered to the growing film through ionic bombardment. [copyright] 2001 American Institute of Physics

Ion irradiation-induced stress relaxation in thin films and multilayers deposited using energetic PVD techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abadias, Gregory; Michel, Anny; Debelle, Aurelien; Jaouen, Christiane; Djemia Philippe

2009-01-01

The aim of the present work is to understand the stress build-up during energetic PVD film growth and the stress relaxation during subsequent ion irradiation at low dose (typically in the range 0.1-1.0 displacement per atom). Monolithic Mo thin films and Mo/Ni multilayers were grown using Dual Ion Beam Sputtering and Magnetron Sputtering at room temperature. Due to the high energy of incoming species (sputtered atoms, backscattered Ar), growth defects of interstitial-type are created during growth. The defect density can reach up to 1.4 % (far from equilibrium) in these Mo refractory layers. These defects act as misfitting particles, inducing a hydrostatic stress component and an associated in-plane compressive stress component. However, after Ar ion irradiation at low dose (∼0.2 dpa), most of the stress is relieved, showing that the growth induced defects are highly unstable. For Ni layers, the compressive stress is much lower due to the higher bulk atom mobility in this metal, making annihilation of defects more effective. An intermixing occurring mainly at the Mo/Ni interfaces is revealed from a complete strain-stress analysis using X-ray Diffraction. The magnitude of this interfacial alloying is found to increase with the energetics of the PVD process and is at the origin of the huge softening of the C 4 4 elastic constant, as measured using Brillouin light scattering. (authors)

Ion beam-based characterization of multicomponent oxide thin films and thin film layered structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krauss, A.R.; Rangaswamy, M.; Lin, Yuping; Gruen, D.M.; Schultz, J.A.; Schmidt, H.K.; Chang, R.P.H.

1992-01-01

Fabrication of thin film layered structures of multi-component materials such as high temperature superconductors, ferroelectric and electro-optic materials, and alloy semiconductors, and the development of hybrid materials requires understanding of film growth and interface properties. For High Temperature Superconductors, the superconducting coherence length is extremely short (5--15 Angstrom), and fabrication of reliable devices will require control of film properties at extremely sharp interfaces; it will be necessary to verify the integrity of thin layers and layered structure devices over thicknesses comparable to the atomic layer spacing. Analytical techniques which probe the first 1--2 atomic layers are therefore necessary for in-situ characterization of relevant thin film growth processes. However, most surface-analytical techniques are sensitive to a region within 10--40 Angstrom of the surface and are physically incompatible with thin film deposition and are typically restricted to ultra high vacuum conditions. A review of ion beam-based analytical methods for the characterization of thin film and multi-layered thin film structures incorporating layers of multicomponent oxides is presented. Particular attention will be paid to the use of time-of-flight techniques based on the use of 1- 15 key ion beams which show potential for use as nondestructive, real-time, in-situ surface diagnostics for the growth of multicomponent metal and metal oxide thin films

Fixation of the stressed state of glass plates by coating them with thin films using a plasma focus installation

Science.gov (United States)

Kolokoltsev, V. N.; Degtiarev, V. F.; Borovitskaya, I. V.; Nikulin, V. Ya.; Peregudova, E. N.; Silin, P. V.; Eriskin, A. A.

2018-01-01

Elastic deformation in transparent mediums is usually studied by the photoelasticity method. For opaque mediums the method of film coating and strain gauge method are used. After the external load was removed, the interference pattern corresponding to elastic deformation of the material disappears. It is found that the elastic deformation state of the thin glass plate under the action of concentrated load can be fixed during the deposition of a thin metal film. Deposition of thin copper films was carried out by passing of plasma through the copper tube installed inside the Plasma Focus installation. After removing of the load, interference pattern on the glass plates was observed in the form of Newton’s rings and isogers in non-monochromatic light on the CCD scanners which uses uorescent lamps with cold cathode. It is supposed that the copper film fixes the relief of the surface of the glass plate at the time of deformation and saves it when the load is removed. In the case of a concentrated load, this relief has the shape of a thin lens of large radius. For this reason, the interference of coherent light rays in a thin air gap between the glass of the scanners atbed and the lens surface has the shape of Newton's rings. In this case, when scanning the back side of the plate, isogyres are observed. The presented method can be used in the analysis of the mechanical stress in a various optical elements.

Morphology and stress study of nanostructured porous silicon as a substrate for PbTe thin films growth by electrochemical process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudia Renata Borges Miranda

2004-12-01

Full Text Available Porous silicon layers (PSL were produced by stain etching from a HF:HNO3 500:1 mixture with etching time varying in the range of 1 up to 10 min. The samples have presented nanometric porosity as a function of etching time, characteristic of heavily doped p type silicon. The residual stress and the correlation length of the layers were obtained through the analysis of the micro-Raman spectra using a phonon confinement model including a term to account for the amorphous phase. The residual compressive stress tends to increase as expected due to the contribution of smaller crystallites to be more representative as the etching time increases. PbTe thin films were electrodeposited on PSL from aqueous alkaline solutions of Pb(CH3COO2, disodium salt of ethylendiaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA and TeO2 by galvanostatic and potentiostatic method. It was also obtained nanostructured PbTe thin films with polycrystalline morphology evidenced by X-ray Diffraction (XRD spectra. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM analysis has demonstrated good films reproducibility with an average grain size of 100 nm.

About some practical aspects of X-ray diffraction : From powder to thin film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valvoda, V [Charles Univ. Prague (Czech Republic). Faculty of Mathematics and Physics

1996-09-01

Structure of thin films can be amorphous, polycrystalline or epitaxial, and the films can be prepared as a single layer films, multilayers or as graded films. A complete structure analysis of thin films by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) usually needs more than one diffraction geometry to be used. Their principles, advantages and disadvantages will be shortly described, especially with respect to their different sampling depth and different response to orientation of diffracting crystallographic planes. Main differences in structure of thin films with respect to powder samples are given by a singular direction of their growth, by their adhesion to a substrate and often also by a simultaneous bombardment by atomic species during the growth. It means that a thermodynamically unstable atomic structures can be found too. These special features of growth of thin polycrystalline films are reflected in often found strong preferred orientation of grains and in residual stresses conserved in the films. The methods of structure analysis of thin films by XRD will be compared with other techniques which can supply structure images on different scales.

Role of thermal stresses on pulsed laser irradiation of thin films under conditions of microbump formation and nonvaporization forward transfer

Science.gov (United States)

Meshcheryakov, Yuri P.; Shugaev, Maxim V.; Mattle, Thomas; Lippert, Thomas; Bulgakova, Nadezhda M.

2013-11-01

This paper presents a theoretical analysis of the processes in thin solid films irradiated by short and ultrashort laser pulses in the regimes of film structuring and laser-induced forward transfer. The regimes are considered at which vaporization of the film materials is insignificant and film dynamics is governed mainly by mechanical processes. Thermoelastoplastic modeling has been performed for a model film in one- and two-dimensional geometries. A method has been proposed to estimate the height of microbumps produced by nanosecond laser irradiation of solid films. Contrary to femtosecond laser pulses, in nanosecond pulse regimes, stress waves across the film are weak and cannot induce film damage. The main role in laser-induced dynamics of irradiated films is played by radial thermal stresses which lead to the formation of a bending wave propagating along the film and drawing the film matter to the center of the irradiation spot. The bending wave dynamics depends on the hardness of the substrate underlying the film. The causes of the receiver substrate damage sometimes observed upon laser-induced forward transfer in the scheme of the direct contact between the film and the receiver are discussed.

In-situ Observation of Cross-Sectional Microstructural Changes and Stress Distributions in Fracturing TiN Thin Film during Nanoindentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeilinger, Angelika; Todt, Juraj; Krywka, Christina; Müller, Martin; Ecker, Werner; Sartory, Bernhard; Meindlhumer, Michael; Stefenelli, Mario; Daniel, Rostislav; Mitterer, Christian; Keckes, Jozef

2016-03-07

Load-displacement curves measured during indentation experiments on thin films depend on non-homogeneous intrinsic film microstructure and residual stress gradients as well as on their changes during indenter penetration into the material. To date, microstructural changes and local stress concentrations resulting in plastic deformation and fracture were quantified exclusively using numerical models which suffer from poor knowledge of size dependent material properties and the unknown intrinsic gradients. Here, we report the first in-situ characterization of microstructural changes and multi-axial stress distributions in a wedge-indented 9 μm thick nanocrystalline TiN film volume performed using synchrotron cross-sectional X-ray nanodiffraction. During the indentation, needle-like TiN crystallites are tilted up to 15 degrees away from the indenter axis in the imprint area and strongly anisotropic diffraction peak broadening indicates strain variation within the X-ray nanoprobe caused by gradients of giant compressive stresses. The morphology of the multiaxial stress distributions with local concentrations up to -16.5 GPa correlate well with the observed fracture modes. The crack growth is influenced decisively by the film microstructure, especially by the micro- and nano-scopic interfaces. This novel experimental approach offers the capability to interpret indentation response and indenter imprint morphology of small graded nanostructured features.

Engineering stress in thin films for the field of bistable MEMS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ratnayake, Dilan; Gowrishetty, Usha R; McNamara, Shamus P; Walsh, Kevin M; Martin, Michael D; Porter, Daniel A; Berfield, Thomas A

2015-01-01

While stress-free and tensile films are well-suited for released in-plane MEMS designs, compressive films are needed for released out-of-plane MEMS structures such as buckled beams and diaphragms. This study presents a characterization of stress on a variety of sputtered and plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD)-deposited films, including titanium tungsten, invar, silicon nitride and amorphous silicon, appropriate for the field of bistable MEMS. Techniques and strategies are presented (including varying substrate bias, pressure, temperature, and frequency multiplexing) for tuning internal stress across the spectrum from highly compressive (−2300 MPa) to highly tensile (1500 MPa). Conditions for obtaining stress-free films are also presented in this work. Under certain conditions during the PECVD deposition of amorphous silicon, interesting ‘micro-bubbles’ formed within the deposited films. Strategies to mitigate their formation are presented, resulting in a dramatic improvement in surface roughness quality from 667 nm root mean square (RMS) to 16 nm RMS. All final deposited films successfully passed the traditional ‘tape test’ for adhesion. (paper)

Tantalum oxide thin films as protective coatings for sensors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Carsten; Reus, Roger De; Bouwstra, Siebe

1999-01-01

Reactively sputtered tantalum oxide thin films have been investigated as protective coatings for aggressive media exposed sensors. Tantalum oxide is shown to be chemically very robust. The etch rate in aqueous potassium hydroxide with pH 11 at 140°C is lower than 0.008 Å h-l. Etching in liquids...... with pH values in the range from pH 2 to 11 have generally given etch rates below 0.04 Å h-l. On the other hand patterning is possible in hydrofluoric acid. Further, the passivation behaviour of amorphous tantalum oxide and polycrystalline Ta2O5 is different in buffered hydrofluoric acid. By ex situ...... annealing O2 in the residual thin-film stress can be altered from compressive to tensile and annealing at 450°C for 30 minutes gives a stress-free film. The step coverage of the sputter deposited amorphous tantalum oxide is reasonable, but metallization lines are hard to cover. Sputtered tantalum oxide...

Tantalum oxide thin films as protective coatings for sensors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Carsten; Reus, Roger De; Bouwstra, Siebe

1999-01-01

Reactively sputtered tantalum oxide thin-films have been investigated as protective coating for aggressive media exposed sensors. Tantalum oxide is shown to be chemically very robust. The etch rate in aqueous potassium hydroxide with pH 11 at 140°C is lower than 0.008 Å/h. Etching in liquids with p......H values in the range from pH 2-11 have generally given etch rates below 0.04 Å/h. On the other hand patterning is possible in hydrofluoric acid. Further, the passivation behaviour of amorphous tantalum oxide and polycrystalline Ta2O5 is different in buffered hydrofluoric acid. By ex-situ annealing in O2...... the residual thin-film stress can be altered from compressive to tensile and annealing at 450°C for 30 minutes gives a stress-free film. The step coverage of the sputter deposited amorphous tantalum oxide is reasonable, but metallisation lines are hard to cover. Sputtered tantalum oxide exhibits high...

Nano-Impact (Fatigue Characterization of As-Deposited Amorphous Nitinol Thin Film

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rehan Ahmed

2012-08-01

Full Text Available This paper presents nano-impact (low cycle fatigue behavior of as-deposited amorphous nitinol (TiNi thin film deposited on Si wafer. The nitinol film was 3.5 µm thick and was deposited by the sputtering process. Nano-impact tests were conducted to comprehend the localized fatigue performance and failure modes of thin film using a calibrated nano-indenter NanoTest™, equipped with standard diamond Berkovich and conical indenter in the load range of 0.5 mN to 100 mN. Each nano-impact test was conducted for a total of 1000 fatigue cycles. Depth sensing approach was adapted to understand the mechanisms of film failure. Based on the depth-time data and surface observations of films using atomic force microscope, it is concluded that the shape of the indenter test probe is critical in inducing the localized indentation stress and film failure. The measurement technique proposed in this paper can be used to optimize the design of nitinol thin films.

DC magnetron sputtering prepared Ag-C thin film anode for thin film lithium ion microbatteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Y.; Tu, J.P.; Shi, D.Q.; Huang, X.H.; Wu, H.M.; Yuan, Y.F.; Zhao, X.B.

2007-01-01

An Ag-C thin film was prepared by DC magnetron co-sputtering, using pure silver and graphite as the targets. The microstructure and morphology of the deposited thin film were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Electrochemical performances of the Ag-C thin film anode were investigated by means of discharge/charge and cyclic voltammogram (CV) tests in model cells. The electrochemical impedance spectrum (EIS) characteristics and the chemical diffusion coefficient, D Li of the Ag-C thin film electrode at different discharging states were discussed. It was believed that the excellent cycling performance of the Ag-C electrode was ascribed to the good conductivity of silver and the volume stability of the thin film

Capillary bending of a thin polymer film floating on a liquid bath

Science.gov (United States)

Twohig, Timothy; Croll, Andrew B.

Thin elastic films and shells are very important in schemes for the encapsulation and protection of fluids from their environment. Capillary origami is a particularly poignant example of how useful fluid/film structures can be formed. The interactions of fluids on thin-films which themselves lie on another surface (fluid or low friction solid) need to be studied if the differences from fluid-fluid and fluid-solid film interfaces are to be fully appreciated. In this experiment, we examine the triple line that occurs when a fluid is resting on a thin polymer film which is itself floating on a second fluid. The top fluid has a high-energy air/fluid interface which can be minimized by deforming the film in a manner that reduces the total air/fluid interface. We create a one-dimensional experiment in order to isolate the basic physics that occurs as the tension of the top fluid pulls on the thin film. Notably, the 1D geometry removes all the complexity incurred by thin films in biaxial stress states (such as wrinkling, folding and crumpling) from the problem. AFOSR under the Young Investigator Program (FA9550-15-1-0168).

Thin film metal-oxides

CERN Document Server

Ramanathan, Shriram

2009-01-01

Presents an account of the fundamental structure-property relations in oxide thin films. This title discusses the functional properties of thin film oxides in the context of applications in the electronics and renewable energy technologies.

Microstructure factor and mechanical and electronic properties of hydrogenated amorphous and nanocrystalline silicon thin-films for microelectromechanical systems applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mouro, J.; Gualdino, A.; Chu, V.; Conde, J. P.

2013-01-01

Thin-film silicon allows the fabrication of MEMS devices at low processing temperatures, compatible with monolithic integration in advanced electronic circuits, on large-area, low-cost, and flexible substrates. The most relevant thin-film properties for applications as MEMS structural layers are the deposition rate, electrical conductivity, and mechanical stress. In this work, n + -type doped hydrogenated amorphous and nanocrystalline silicon thin-films were deposited by RF-PECVD, and the influence of the hydrogen dilution in the reactive mixture, the RF-power coupled to the plasma, the substrate temperature, and the deposition pressure on the structural, electrical, and mechanical properties of the films was studied. Three different types of silicon films were identified, corresponding to three internal structures: (i) porous amorphous silicon, deposited at high rates and presenting tensile mechanical stress and low electrical conductivity, (ii) dense amorphous silicon, deposited at intermediate rates and presenting compressive mechanical stress and higher values of electrical conductivity, and (iii) nanocrystalline silicon, deposited at very low rates and presenting the highest compressive mechanical stress and electrical conductivity. These results show the combinations of electromechanical material properties available in silicon thin-films and thus allow the optimized selection of a thin silicon film for a given MEMS application. Four representative silicon thin-films were chosen to be used as structural material of electrostatically actuated MEMS microresonators fabricated by surface micromachining. The effect of the mechanical stress of the structural layer was observed to have a great impact on the device resonance frequency, quality factor, and actuation force

Microstructure factor and mechanical and electronic properties of hydrogenated amorphous and nanocrystalline silicon thin-films for microelectromechanical systems applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mouro, J.; Gualdino, A.; Chu, V. [Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores – Microsistemas e Nanotecnologias (INESC-MN) and IN – Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 1000-029 Lisbon (Portugal); Conde, J. P. [Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores – Microsistemas e Nanotecnologias (INESC-MN) and IN – Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 1000-029 Lisbon (Portugal); Department of Bioengineering, Instituto Superior Técnico (IST), 1049-001 Lisbon (Portugal)

2013-11-14

Thin-film silicon allows the fabrication of MEMS devices at low processing temperatures, compatible with monolithic integration in advanced electronic circuits, on large-area, low-cost, and flexible substrates. The most relevant thin-film properties for applications as MEMS structural layers are the deposition rate, electrical conductivity, and mechanical stress. In this work, n{sup +}-type doped hydrogenated amorphous and nanocrystalline silicon thin-films were deposited by RF-PECVD, and the influence of the hydrogen dilution in the reactive mixture, the RF-power coupled to the plasma, the substrate temperature, and the deposition pressure on the structural, electrical, and mechanical properties of the films was studied. Three different types of silicon films were identified, corresponding to three internal structures: (i) porous amorphous silicon, deposited at high rates and presenting tensile mechanical stress and low electrical conductivity, (ii) dense amorphous silicon, deposited at intermediate rates and presenting compressive mechanical stress and higher values of electrical conductivity, and (iii) nanocrystalline silicon, deposited at very low rates and presenting the highest compressive mechanical stress and electrical conductivity. These results show the combinations of electromechanical material properties available in silicon thin-films and thus allow the optimized selection of a thin silicon film for a given MEMS application. Four representative silicon thin-films were chosen to be used as structural material of electrostatically actuated MEMS microresonators fabricated by surface micromachining. The effect of the mechanical stress of the structural layer was observed to have a great impact on the device resonance frequency, quality factor, and actuation force.

Thin films and nanomaterials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jayakumar, S.; Kannan, M.D.; Prasanna, S.

2012-01-01

The objective of this book is to disseminate the most recent research in Thin Films, Nanomaterials, Corrosion and Metallurgy presented at the International Conference on Advanced Materials (ICAM 2011) held in PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore, India during 12-16 December 2011. The book is a compilation of 113 chapters written by active researchers providing information and critical insights into the recent advancements that have taken place. Important new applications are possible today in the fields of microelectronics, opto-electronics, metallurgy and energy by the application of thin films on solid surfaces. Recent progress in high vacuum technology and new materials has a remarkable effect in thin film quality and cost. This has led to the development of new single or multi-layered thin film devices with diverse applications in a multitude of production areas, such as optics, thermal barrier coatings and wear protections, enhancing service life of tools and to protect materials against thermal and atmospheric influence. On the other hand, thin film process techniques and research are strongly related to the basic research activities in nano technology, an increasingly important field with countless opportunities for applications due to the emergence of new properties at the nanoscale level. Materials and structures that are designed and fabricated at the nano scale level, offer the potential to produce new devices and processes that may enhance efficiencies and reduce costs in many areas, as photovoltaic systems, hydrogen storage, fuel cells and solar thermal systems. In the book, the contributed papers are classified under two sections i) thin films and ii) nanomaterials. The thin film section includes single or multi layer conducting, insulating or semiconducting films synthesized by a wide variety of physical or chemical techniques and characterized or analyzed for different applications. The nanomaterials section deals with novel or exciting materials

Niobium Pentoxide thin films employ simple colloidal suspension at low preparation temperature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abood M. K.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In this work a nano-colloidal suspension is used to prepare Nb2O5 thin films. The effect of different substrates on structural properties of niobium pentoxide thin film deposited by spin coating technique on silicon and quartz substrates are presented. We observed that the obtained structure is monocline in both substrates. The diffraction peaks in both substrates ensured the successful formation of Nb2O5 thin films with a clear polymorphous structure. However, the structure became more crystalline with additional distinguished peaks on silicon substrate comparing to quartz substrate. The extracted structural parameters from X-Ray diffraction show that the grain size of the thin films on quartz is smaller than silicon with the values of 16.47 nm and 20.98 nm respectively. The stress measurement records the values of 0.19 and 0.00719 for the thin films deposited on silicon and quartz substrates respectively. Effects of film thickness depicted increment in the absorbance and reduction in the band gap. Energy gaps of 2.7, 2.58 and, 2.5 eV are measured as a result of increasing the film thicknesses of 325, 420 and 450 nm respectively.

A study for anticorrosion and tribological behaviors of thin/thick diamond-like carbon films in seawater

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Yewei; Jia, Shujuan; Zhang, Dawei; Liu, Wei; Zhao, Haichao

2018-03-01

The thin and thick diamond-like carbon (DLC) films were prepared by unbalanced magnetron sputtering technique on 304L stainless steels and (100) silicon wafers. Microstructure, mechanical, corrosion and tribological properties were systematically investigated by SEM, Raman, nanoindenter, scratch tester, modulab electrochemical workstation and R-tec multifunctional tribological tester. Results showed that the adhesion force presented a descending trend with the growth in soaking time. The adhesion force of the thin DLC film with high residual compressive stress (‑3.72 GPa) was higher than that of the thick DLC film (‑2.96 GPa). During the corrosion test, the thick DLC film showed a higher impendence and a lower corrosion current density than the thin DLC film, which is attributed to the barrier action of large thickness. Compared to bare 304L substrate, the friction coefficients and wear rates of DLC films in seawater were obviously decreased. Meanwhile, the thin DLC film with ideal residual compressive stress, super adhesion force and good plastic deformation resistance revealed an excellent anti-wear ability in seawater.

Nanomechanical characterization of multilayered thin film structures for digital micromirror devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei Guohua; Bhushan, Bharat; Joshua Jacobs, S.

2004-01-01

The digital micromirror device (DMD), used for digital projection displays, comprises a surface-micromachined array of up to 2.07 million aluminum micromirrors (14 μm square and 15 μm pitch), which switch forward and backward thousands of times per second using electrostatic attraction. The nanomechanical properties of the thin-film structures used are important to the performance of the DMD. In this paper, the nanomechanical characterization of the single and multilayered thin film structures, which are of interest in DMDs, is carried out. The hardness, Young's modulus and scratch resistance of TiN/Si, SiO 2 /Si, Al alloy/Si, TiN/Al alloy/Si and SiO 2 /TiN/Al alloy/Si thin-film structures were measured using nanoindentation and nanoscratch techniques, respectively. The residual (internal) stresses developed during the thin film growth were estimated by measuring the radius of curvature of the sample before and after deposition. To better understand the nanomechanical properties of these thin film materials, the surface and interface analysis of the samples were conducted using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The nanomechanical properties of these materials are analyzed and the impact of these properties on micromirror performance is discussed

Effect of thickness on structure, microstructure, residual stress and soft magnetic properties of DC sputtered Fe65Co35 soft magnetic thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prasanna Kumari, T.; Manivel Raja, M.; Kumar, Atul; Srinath, S.; Kamat, S.V.

2014-01-01

The effect of film thickness on structure, microstructure, residual stress and soft magnetic properties of Fe 65 Co 35 thin films deposited on Si(001) and MgO(001) substrates was investigated by varying film thickness from 30 to 600 nm. X-ray diffraction studies showed that the FeCo films are polycrystalline in the as-deposited condition irrespective of deposition on Si or MgO substrate. The microstructure of films consisted of spherical grains for 30 nm film thickness and columnar grains for all other film thicknesses. The grain size for the films was found to increase from 15 to 50 nm with increasing film thickness. The sputtered films also exhibited tensile residual stresses with the magnitude of stress decreasing with increasing film thickness. The Fe 65 Co 35 films deposited on both substrates also exhibited very good in-plane soft magnetic properties with a saturation magnetization 4πM s of ∼23.6–23.8 kG and coercivity of ∼27–30 Oe without any under-layer only for films with thickness of 30 nm. For all other thicknesses, these films exhibited a significantly higher coercivity. The observed variations in soft magnetic properties with film thickness were explained in terms of residual stress and microstructure of the films. - Highlights: • Spherical grain morphology transformed to columnar above 30 nm film thickness. • Sputtered films exhibited tensile residual stresses decreasing with film thickness. • An in-plane coercivity of ∼27–30 Oe was achieved without any under-layer

Thin film device applications

CERN Document Server

Kaur, Inderjeet

1983-01-01

Two-dimensional materials created ab initio by the process of condensation of atoms, molecules, or ions, called thin films, have unique properties significantly different from the corresponding bulk materials as a result of their physical dimensions, geometry, nonequilibrium microstructure, and metallurgy. Further, these characteristic features of thin films can be drasti­ cally modified and tailored to obtain the desired and required physical characteristics. These features form the basis of development of a host of extraordinary active and passive thin film device applications in the last two decades. On the one extreme, these applications are in the submicron dimensions in such areas as very large scale integration (VLSI), Josephson junction quantum interference devices, magnetic bubbles, and integrated optics. On the other extreme, large-area thin films are being used as selective coatings for solar thermal conversion, solar cells for photovoltaic conver­ sion, and protection and passivating layers. Ind...

Electrodeposited Ni-W magnetic thin films with columnar nanocrystallites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sulitanu, N.; Brinza, F.

2002-01-01

Nanocrystalline Ni-W thin films (140 nm) containing from zero to 18 wt % W were electrolytically prepared and structural and magnetic characterized. XRD, SEM and TEM investigations have revealed that all segregated Ni columns are fcc-type whose [111] axis is oriented perpendicular to the film plane and have 140 nm in height and 6-27 nm in diameter. Depending on film composition, two types of nanostructures were observed: (a) single-phase nanostructure ( i nterphases , namely W enriched particles boundaries, and (b) two-phase nanostructure (7-18 wt %) in which a second Ni-W amorphous phase or even amorphous-disordered mixture separates the magnetic columnar Ni nanocrystallites (d = 6-14 nm). The columnar crystallites have an easy magnetization direction along their long axis mainly due to the in-plane internal biaxial stresses. Magnetic characteristics of prepared thin films are presented. (Authors)

Characterization of Hf/Mg co-doped ZnO thin films after thermal treatments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Chih-Hung; Chung, Hantsun [Graduate Institute of Applied Mechanics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Chen, Jian-Zhang, E-mail: jchen@ntu.edu.tw [Graduate Institute of Applied Mechanics, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Cheng, I-Chun, E-mail: iccheng@ntu.edu.tw [Graduate Institute of Photonics and Optoelectronics, Department of Electrical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China)

2014-11-03

Rf-sputtered Mg{sub 0.05}Zn{sub 0.95}O thin films become amorphous/nanocrystalline with the addition of hafnium oxide. All films (thickness: ∼ 100 nm) sputter-deposited from Hf{sub x}Mg{sub 0.05}Zn{sub 0.95−x}O targets are highly transparent (> 80%) from 400 to 800 nm. The Tauc bandgap ΔE (eV) increases with the Hf content. However, the bandgap decreases after thermal treatment. The reduction in the bandgap is positively correlated with the Hf content and annealing temperature. The residual stresses of films sputtered from Mg{sub 0.05}Zn{sub 0.95}O and Hf{sub 0.025}Mg{sub 0.05}Zn{sub 0.925}O targets are determined based on X-ray diffraction (XRD) data using a bi-axial stress model. The residual stresses of as-deposited films are compressive. As the annealing temperature increases, the residual stresses are relaxed and even become tensile. The bandgap narrowing after thermal treatment is attributed to the stress relaxation that changes the repulsion between the oxygen 2p and zinc 4s bands. Slight grain growth may also result in bandgap reduction because bandgap modification caused by the quantum confinement effect becomes significant in amorphous/nanocrystalline materials. The amorphous thin films reveal good thermal stability after 600 °C annealing for up to 2 h, as evidenced by the XRD and transmission spectra. - Highlights: • Thin films are sputtered from Hf{sub x}Mg{sub 0.05}Zn{sub 0.95−x}O targets at room temperature. • Bandgap increases with Hf content but decreases with post-annealing temperature. • Bandgap narrowing after annealing partly results from the relaxation of stresses. • Bandgap narrowing partly results from quantum confinement effect by nanomaterials. • Hf doping increases resistivity due to the lattice disorder and enlarged bandgap.

Effects of Post Heat Treatments on ZnO Thin-Films Grown on Zn-coated Teflon Substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Ikhyun; Nam, Giwoong; Lee, Cheoleon; Kim, Dongwhan; Choi, Hyonkwang; Kim, Yangsoo; Leem, Jae-Young [Inje University, Gimhae (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jin Soo [Chonbuk National University, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jong Su [Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan (Korea, Republic of); Son, Jeong-Sik [Kyungwoon University, Gumi (Korea, Republic of)

2015-06-15

ZnO thin films were first grown on Zn-coated Teflon substrates using a spin-coating method, with various post-heating temperatures. The structural and optical properties of the ZnO thin films were then investigated using field-effect scanning-electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The surface morphology of these ZnO thin films exhibited dendritic structures. With increasing post-heating temperature, all samples preferentially exhibited preferential c-axis orientation and increased residual tensile stress. All of the films exhibited preferential c-axis orientation, and the residual tensile stress of those increased with increasing post-heating temperature. The near-band-edge emission (NBE) peaks were red-shifted after post-heating treatment at 400 ℃. The intensity of the deep-level emission (DLE) peaks gradually decreased with increasing post- heating temperature. Moreover, the narrowest ‘full width at half maximum’ (FWHM) and the highest intensity ratio of the NBE to the DLE for thin films, were observed after post-heating at 400 ℃. The ZnO thin films fabricated with the 400 ℃ post-heating process provided the highest crystallinity and optical properties.

Biomimetic thin film synthesis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Graff, G.L.; Campbell, A.A.; Gordon, N.R.

1995-05-01

The purpose of this program is to develop a new process for forming thin film coatings and to demonstrate that the biomimetic thin film technology developed at PNL is useful for industrial applications. In the biomimetic process, mineral deposition from aqueous solution is controlled by organic functional groups attached to the underlying substrate surface. The coatings process is simple, benign, inexpensive, energy efficient, and particularly suited for temperature sensitive substrate materials (such as polymers). In addition, biomimetic thin films can be deposited uniformly on complex shaped and porous substrates providing a unique capability over more traditional line-of-sight methods.

Thin film heat flux sensor for Space Shuttle Main Engine turbine environment

Science.gov (United States)

Will, Herbert

1991-01-01

The Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) turbine environment stresses engine components to their design limits and beyond. The extremely high temperatures and rapid temperature cycling can easily cause parts to fail if they are not properly designed. Thin film heat flux sensors can provide heat loading information with almost no disturbance of gas flows or of the blade. These sensors can provide steady state and transient heat flux information. A thin film heat flux sensor is described which makes it easier to measure small temperature differences across very thin insulating layers.

Investigation of the optical property and structure of WO3 thin films with different sputtering depositions

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Hsi-Chao; Jan, Der-Jun; Chen, Chien-Han; Huang, Kuo-Ting; Lo, Yen-Ming; Chen, Sheng-Hui

2011-09-01

The purpose of this research was to compare the optical properties and structure of tungsten oxide (WO3) thin films that was deposited by different sputtering depositions. WO3 thin films deposited by two different depositions of direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering and pulsed DC sputtering. A 99.95% WO3 target was used as the starting material for these depositions. These WO3 thin films were deposited on the ITO glass, PET and silicon substrate by different ratios of oxygen and argon. A shadow moiré interferometer would be introduced to measure the residual stress for PET substrate. RF magnetron sputtering had the large residual stress than the other's depositions. A Raman spectrum could exhibit the phase of oxidation of WO3 thin film by different depositions. At the ratio of oxygen and argon was about 1:1, and the WO3 thin films had the best oxidation. However, it was important at the change of the transmittance (ΔT = Tbleached - Tcolored) between the coloring and bleaching for the smart window. Therefore, we also found the WO3 thin films had the large variation of transmittance between the coloring and bleaching at the gas ratios of oxygen and argon of 1:1.

Thin Film Photovoltaic Partnership Project | Photovoltaic Research | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Thin Film Photovoltaic Partnership Project Thin Film Photovoltaic Partnership Project NREL's Thin Film Photovoltaic (PV) Partnership Project led R&D on emerging thin-film solar technologies in the United States from 1994 to 2009. The project made many advances in thin-film PV technologies that allowed

Micromachined thin-film sensors for SOI-CMOS co-integration

CERN Document Server

Laconte, Jean; Raskin, Jean-Pierre

2006-01-01

Co-integration of MEMS and MOS in SOI technology is promising and well demonstrated hereThe impact of Micromachining on SOI devices is deeply analyzed for the first timeInclude extensive TMAH etching, residual stress, microheaters, gas-flow sensors reviewResidual stresses in thin films need to be more and more monitored in MEMS designsTMAH micromachining is an attractive alternative to KOH.

Thin Film & Deposition Systems (Windows)

Data.gov (United States)

Federal Laboratory Consortium — Coating Lab: Contains chambers for growing thin film window coatings. Plasma Applications Coating Lab: Contains chambers for growing thin film window coatings. Solar...

Effect of SiO2 passivation overlayers on hillock formation in Al thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Deok-kee

2012-01-01

Hillock formation in Al thin films with varying thicknesses of SiO 2 as a passivation layer was investigated during thermal cycling. Based on the stress measurements and the number of hillocks, 250 nm thick SiO 2 was thick enough to suppress the hillock formation and the suppression of hillock at 250 nm passivation and the lack of suppression at thinner passivation is related to the presence/absence of protection against the diffusive flow of atoms from the surrounding area to the surface due to the biaxial compressive stresses present in the film through the weak spots in the passivation layer. The stress state of Al films measured during annealing (the driving force for hillock formation) did not vary much with SiO 2 thickness. A small number of hillocks formed during the plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition of SiO 2 overlayers at 300 °C. - Highlights: ► We examined the effect of SiO 2 overlayers on hillock formation in Al thin films. ► Thin overlayers were not effective in suppressing diffusive flow to the surface. ► A thick overlayer suppressed the diffusive flow from the interior to the surface. ► The stress state of Al films did not vary much with SiO 2 passivation thickness. ► High mechanical strength provided a large driving force for the large grain growth.

Molecular tailoring of interfaces for thin film on substrate systems

Science.gov (United States)

Grady, Martha Elizabeth

Thin film on substrate systems appear most prevalently within the microelectronics industry, which demands that devices operate in smaller and smaller packages with greater reliability. The reliability of these multilayer film systems is strongly influenced by the adhesion of each of the bimaterial interfaces. During use, microelectronic components undergo thermo-mechanical cycling, which induces interfacial delaminations leading to failure of the overall device. The ability to tailor interfacial properties at the molecular level provides a mechanism to improve thin film adhesion, reliability and performance. This dissertation presents the investigation of molecular level control of interface properties in three thin film-substrate systems: photodefinable polyimide films on passivated silicon substrates, self-assembled monolayers at the interface of Au films and dielectric substrates, and mechanochemically active materials on rigid substrates. For all three materials systems, the effect of interfacial modifications on adhesion is assessed using a laser-spallation technique. Laser-induced stress waves are chosen because they dynamically load the thin film interface in a precise, noncontacting manner at high strain rates and are suitable for both weak and strong interfaces. Photodefinable polyimide films are used as dielectrics in flip chip integrated circuit packages to reduce the stress between silicon passivation layers and mold compound. The influence of processing parameters on adhesion is examined for photodefinable polyimide films on silicon (Si) substrates with three different passivation layers: silicon nitride (SiNx), silicon oxynitride (SiOxNy), and the native silicon oxide (SiO2). Interfacial strength increases when films are processed with an exposure step as well as a longer cure cycle. Additionally, the interfacial fracture energy is assessed using a dynamic delamination protocol. The high toughness of this interface (ca. 100 J/m2) makes it difficult

Microbridge tests on gallium nitride thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Hai-You; Li, Zhi-Ying; Lu, Jun-Yong; Wang, Zhi-Jia; Zhang, Tong-Yi; Wang, Chong-Shun; Lau, Kei-May; Chen, Kevin Jing

2009-01-01

In this work, we develop further the microbridge testing method by deriving a closed formula of deflection versus load, which is applied at an arbitrary position on the microbridge beam. Testing a single beam at various positions allows us to characterize simultaneouslyYoung's modulus and residual stress of the beam. The developed method was then used to characterize the mechanical properties of GaN thin films on patterned-Si (1 1 1) substrates grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The microbridge samples were fabricated by using the microelectromechanical fabrication technique and tested with a nanoindentation system. Young's modulus and residual stress of the GaN films were determined to be 287 ± 190 GPa and 851 ± 155 MPa, respectively. In addition, alternative measurements of the residual stress, Young's modulus and hardness of the GaN films, were conducted with micro-Raman spectroscopy and the nanoindentation test, yielding the corresponding values of 847 ± 46 MPa, 269.0 ± 7.0 GPa and 17.8 ± 1.1 GPa

Studies of internal stress in diamond films prepared by DC plasma chemical vapour deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Wanlu; Gao Jinying; Liao Kejun; Liu Anmin

1992-01-01

The internal stress in diamond thin films deposited by DC plasma CVD was studied as a function of methane concentration and deposited temperature. Experimental results have shown that total stress in diamond thin films is sensitive to the deposition conditions. The results also indicate that the compressive stress can be explained in terms of amorphous state carbon and hydrogen, and tensile stress is ascribed to the grain boundary relaxation model due to high internal surface area and microstructure with voids

Characterization of organic thin films

CERN Document Server

Ulman, Abraham; Evans, Charles A

2009-01-01

Thin films based upon organic materials are at the heart of much of the revolution in modern technology, from advanced electronics, to optics to sensors to biomedical engineering. This volume in the Materials Characterization series introduces the major common types of analysis used in characterizing of thin films and the various appropriate characterization technologies for each. Materials such as Langmuir-Blodgett films and self-assembled monolayers are first introduced, followed by analysis of surface properties and the various characterization technologies used for such. Readers will find detailed information on: -Various spectroscopic approaches to characterization of organic thin films, including infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy -X-Ray diffraction techniques, High Resolution EELS studies, and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy -Concise Summaries of major characterization technologies for organic thin films, including Auger Electron Spectroscopy, Dynamic Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, and Tra...

Reliability assessment of ultra-thin HfO2 films deposited on silicon wafer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu, Wei-En; Chang, Chia-Wei; Chang, Yong-Qing; Yao, Chih-Kai; Liao, Jiunn-Der

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Nano-mechanical properties on annealed ultra-thin HfO 2 film are studied. ► By AFM analysis, hardness of the crystallized HfO 2 film significantly increases. ► By nano-indention, the film hardness increases with less contact stiffness. ► Quality assessment on the annealed ultra-thin films can thus be achieved. - Abstract: Ultra-thin hafnium dioxide (HfO 2 ) is used to replace silicon dioxide to meet the required transistor feature size in advanced semiconductor industry. The process integration compatibility and long-term reliability for the transistors depend on the mechanical performance of ultra-thin HfO 2 films. The criteria of reliability including wear resistance, thermal fatigue, and stress-driven failure rely on film adhesion significantly. The adhesion and variations in mechanical properties induced by thermal annealing of the ultra-thin HfO 2 films deposited on silicon wafers (HfO 2 /SiO 2 /Si) are not fully understood. In this work, the mechanical properties of an atomic layer deposited HfO 2 (nominal thickness ≈10 nm) on a silicon wafer were characterized by the diamond-coated tip of an atomic force microscope and compared with those of annealed samples. The results indicate that the annealing process leads to the formation of crystallized HfO 2 phases for the atomic layer deposited HfO 2 . The HfSi x O y complex formed at the interface between HfO 2 and SiO 2 /Si, where the thermal diffusion of Hf, Si, and O atoms occurred. The annealing process increases the surface hardness of crystallized HfO 2 film and therefore the resistance to nano-scratches. In addition, the annealing process significantly decreases the harmonic contact stiffness (or thereafter eliminate the stress at the interface) and increases the nano-hardness, as measured by vertically sensitive nano-indentation. Quality assessments on as-deposited and annealed HfO 2 films can be thereafter used to estimate the mechanical properties and adhesion of ultra-thin HfO 2

Synthesis of electro-active manganese oxide thin films by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Merritt, Anna R. [Energetics Research Division, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, CA 93555 (United States); Rajagopalan, Ramakrishnan [Department of Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Dubois, PA 15801 (United States); Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Carter, Joshua D. [Energetics Research Division, Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, CA 93555 (United States)

2014-04-01

The good stability, cyclability and high specific capacitance of manganese oxide (MnO{sub x}) has recently promoted a growing interest in utilizing MnO{sub x} in asymmetric supercapacitor electrodes. Several literature reports have indicated that thin film geometries of MnO{sub x} provide specific capacitances that are much higher than bulk MnO{sub x} powders. Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) is a versatile technique for the production of metal oxide thin films with high purity and controllable thickness. In this work, MnO{sub x} thin films deposited by PECVD from a methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl precursor are presented and the effect of processing conditions on the quality of MnO{sub x} films is described. The film purity and oxidation state of the MnO{sub x} films were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Preliminary electrochemical testing of MnO{sub x} films deposited on carbon fiber electrodes in aqueous electrolytes indicates that the PECVD synthesized films are electrochemically active. - Highlights: • Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition of manganese oxide thin films. • Higher plasma power and chamber pressure increase deposition rate. • Manganese oxide thin films are electrochemically active. • Best electrochemical performance observed for pure film with low stress • Lower capacitance observed at higher scan rates despite thin film geometry.

Compositionally graded SiCu thin film anode by magnetron sputtering for lithium ion battery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Polat, B.D., E-mail: bpolat@itu.edu.tr [Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, Istanbul 34469 (Turkey); Eryilmaz, O.L. [Energy Systems Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Keleş, O., E-mail: ozgulkeles@itu.edu.tr [Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, Istanbul 34469 (Turkey); Erdemir, A. [Energy Systems Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Amine, K. [Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)

2015-12-01

Compositionally graded and non-graded composite SiCu thin films were deposited by magnetron sputtering technique on Cu disks for investigation of their potentials in lithium ion battery applications. The compositionally graded thin film electrodes with 30 at.% Cu delivered a 1400 mAh g{sup −1} capacity with 80% Coulombic efficiency in the first cycle and still retained its capacity at around 600 mAh g{sup −1} (with 99.9% Coulombic efficiency) even after 100 cycles. On the other hand, the non-graded thin film electrodes with 30 at.% Cu exhibited 1100 mAh g{sup −1} as the first discharge capacity with 78% Coulombic efficiency but the cycle life of this film degraded very quickly, delivering only 250 mAh g{sup −1} capacity after 100th cycles. Not only the Cu content but also the graded film thickness were believed to be the main contributors to the much superior performance of the compositionally graded SiCu films. We also believe that the Cu-rich region of the graded film helped reduce internal stress build-up and thus prevented film delamination during cycling. In particular, the decrease of Cu content from interface region to the top of the coating reduced the possibility of stress build-up across the film during cycling, thus leading to a high electrochemical performance.b - Highlights: • Highly adherent SiCu films are deposited by magnetron sputtering. • Compositionally graded SiCu film is produced and characterized. • Decrease of Cu content diverted the propagation of stress in the anode. • Cu rich layer at the bottom improves the adherence of the film.

Preparation and properties of low resistivity molybdenum silicide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beddies, G.; Hofmann, K.; Bretschneider, W.; Zscheile, H.D.; Bogdanowa, P.; Helms, H.; Wickleder, K.H.

1983-01-01

Using different sputtering methods and target variants Mo/Si mixed films are prepared. After the deposition these thin films are amorphous. Isothermal annealing in vacuum leads to the formation of crystalline phases. The crystallization of the hexagonal phase of MoSi 2 is connected with an increase in stress. The formation of the tetragonal phase causes a great decrease of the specific resistance

Self-Limited Growth in Pentacene Thin Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Pachmajer, Stefan; Jones, Andrew O F; Truger, Magdalena; Röthel, Christian; Salzmann, Ingo; Werzer, Oliver; Resel, Roland

2017-04-05

Pentacene is one of the most studied organic semiconducting materials. While many aspects of the film formation have already been identified in very thin films, this study provides new insight into the transition from the metastable thin-film phase to bulk phase polymorphs. This study focuses on the growth behavior of pentacene within thin films as a function of film thickness ranging from 20 to 300 nm. By employing various X-ray diffraction methods, combined with supporting atomic force microscopy investigations, one crystalline orientation for the thin-film phase is observed, while three differently tilted bulk phase orientations are found. First, bulk phase crystallites grow with their 00L planes parallel to the substrate surface; second, however, crystallites tilted by 0.75° with respect to the substrate are found, which clearly dominate the former in ratio; third, a different bulk phase polymorph with crystallites tilted by 21° is found. The transition from the thin-film phase to the bulk phase is rationalized by the nucleation of the latter at crystal facets of the thin-film-phase crystallites. This leads to a self-limiting growth of the thin-film phase and explains the thickness-dependent phase behavior observed in pentacene thin films, showing that a large amount of material is present in the bulk phase much earlier during the film growth than previously thought.

Highly stable thin film transistors using multilayer channel structure

KAUST Repository

Nayak, Pradipta K.

2015-03-09

We report highly stable gate-bias stress performance of thin film transistors (TFTs) using zinc oxide (ZnO)/hafnium oxide (HfO2) multilayer structure as the channel layer. Positive and negative gate-bias stress stability of the TFTs was measured at room temperature and at 60°C. A tremendous improvement in gate-bias stress stability was obtained in case of the TFT with multiple layers of ZnO embedded between HfO2 layers compared to the TFT with a single layer of ZnO as the semiconductor. The ultra-thin HfO2 layers act as passivation layers, which prevent the adsorption of oxygen and water molecules in the ZnO layer and hence significantly improve the gate-bias stress stability of ZnO TFTs.

Mechanical properties of ultra thin metallic films revealed by synchrotron techniques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gruber, Patric Alfons

2007-07-20

A prerequisite for the study of the scaling behavior of mechanical properties of ultra thin films is a suitable testing technique. Therefore synchrotron-based in situ testing techniques were developed and optimized in order to characterize the stress evolution in ultra thin metallic films on compliant polymer substrates during isothermal tensile tests. Experimental procedures for polycrystalline as well as single crystalline films were established. These techniques were used to systematically investigate the influence of microstructure, film thickness (20 to 1000 nm) and temperature (-150 to 200 C) on the mechanical properties. Passivated and unpassivated Au and Cu films as well as single crystalline Au films on polyimide substrates were tested. Special care was also dedicated to the microstructural characterization of the samples which was very important for the correct interpretation of the results of the mechanical tests. Down to a film thickness of about 100 to 200 nm the yield strength increased for all film systems (passivated and unpassivated) and microstructures (polycrystalline and singlecrystalline). The influence of different interfaces was smaller than expected. This could be explained by a dislocation source model based on the nucleation of perfect dislocations. For polycrystalline films the film thickness as well as the grain size distribution had to be considered. For smaller film thicknesses the increase in flow stress was weaker and the deformation behavior changed because the nucleation of perfect dislocations became unfavorable. Instead, the film materials used alternative mechanisms to relieve the high stresses. For regular and homogeneous deformation the total strain was accommodated by the nucleation and motion of partial dislocations. If the deformation was localized due to initial cracks in a brittle interlayer or local delamination, dislocation plasticity was not effective enough to relieve the stress concentration and the films showed

Mechanisms of fatigue in LIGA Ni MEMS thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Y.; Imasogie, B.I.; Allameh, S.M.; Boyce, B.; Lian, K.; Lou, J.; Soboyejo, W.O.

2007-01-01

This paper presents the results of an experimental study of the mechanisms of fatigue in LIGA Ni micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) thin films with micro-scale columnar and nano-scale equiaxed grains. Stress-life behavior is reported for films with thicknesses of 70 and 270 μm. The stress-life data are compared with previously reported data for Ni MEMS films and bulk Ni. The films with the nano-scale grains (15 nm average grain size) are shown to have higher strength and fatigue resistance (stress-life data) than those with columnar grain structures. The thicker films (with a columnar microstructure) are also shown to have comparable fatigue life to annealed Ni, while the thinner films (with a columnar microstructure) have comparable fatigue life to wrought Ni. The underlying mechanisms of crack nucleation and growth are elucidated via scanning and transmission electron microscopy. These reveal the formation of slip bands and surface oxides and crystallographic surface/sub-surface crack nucleation and growth in the films with the columnar structures. Surface and corner crack nucleations (from pre-existing defects) are observed in the nanostructured films. The implications of the results are discussed for the analyses of fatigue in nickel MEMS structures

Origin of thermally stable ferroelectricity in a porous barium titanate thin film synthesized through block copolymer templating

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Norihiro Suzuki

2017-07-01

Full Text Available A porous barium titanate (BaTiO3 thin film was chemically synthesized using a surfactant-assisted sol-gel method in which micelles of amphipathic diblock copolymers served as structure-directing agents. In the Raman spectrum of the porous BaTiO3 thin film, a peak corresponding to the ferroelectric tetragonal phase was observed at around 710 cm−1, and it remained stable at much higher temperature than the Curie temperature of bulk single-crystal BaTiO3 (∼130 °C. Measurements revealed that the ferroelectricity of the BaTiO3 thin film has high thermal stability. By analyzing high-resolution transmission electron microscope images of the BaTiO3 thin film by the fast Fourier transform mapping method, the spatial distribution of stress in the BaTiO3 framework was clearly visualized. Careful analysis also indicated that the porosity in the BaTiO3 thin film introduced anisotropic compressive stress, which deformed the crystals. The resulting elongated unit cell caused further displacement of the Ti4+ cation from the center of the lattice. This displacement increased the electric dipole moment of the BaTiO3 thin film, effectively enhancing its ferro(piezoelectricity.

Metal-semiconductor transition materials. FeS and VO2 thin films by RF reactive sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu, Ganhua

2007-06-01

In the present work, two MST systems, FeS and VO 2 thin films were investigated. Iron sulfide thin films over a range of composition were prepared by reactive sputtering. The influence of the substrate, sputter power, substrate temperature and stoichiometry on the structure and MST of iron sulfide films was investigated. Iron sulfide films deposited at different temperatures show temperature dependent structure and MST. FeS films on float glass show (110) and (112) orientations when the substrate temperature is 200 and 500 C, respectively. The transition temperature and width of the hysteresis loop determined from the temperature dependent conductivity curves of iron sulfide films decrease with the substrate temperature. Fe and S excess in FeS films both result in the decrease of the transition temperature and width of the hysteresis loop. The vacuum-annealing affects the MST of FeS films significantly. When FeS films were annealed below the deposition temperature, the transition temperature decreases; otherwise increases. The residual stress plays an important role during the annealing process. The higher the residual stress inside the FeS films is, the higher the transition temperature of FeS films. With the increase of the annealing temperature, the residual stress in FeS films is first released and then enhances, which gives rise first to the decrease and then increase of the transition temperature of FeS films. At high substrate temperatures, the residual stress is higher. In addition, the MST of FeS films was influenced by the ambient aging. With the increase of the aging time, the transition temperature first increases and then decreases. FeS films with different thicknesses were prepared. The correlation between the film thickness (grain size) and the MST switching characteristics of FeS films was established. With the decrease of the grain size, the density of grain boundaries increases, causing the increase of the conductivity of the semiconducting phase

Chemically robust carbon nanotube–PTFE superhydrophobic thin films with enhanced ability of wear resistance

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Kewei Wang; Pan Xiong; Xiuping Xu; Kan Wang; YanLong Li; Yufeng Zheng

2017-01-01

A chemically robust superhydrophobic nanocomposite thin film with enhanced wear resistance is prepared from a composite comprising polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and carbon nanotubes. The superhydrophobic thin films with hierarchical structure are fabricated by spraying an environmentally friendly aqueous dispersion containing carbon nanotubes and PTFE resin on silicon wafer. Thin films with a contact angle of 154.1° ± 2° and a sliding angle less than 2° remain superhydrophobic after abrading over 500 times under a pressure of 50 g/cm2. The thin film is also extremely stable even under much stress conditions. To further the understanding of the enhancement of wear resistance, we investigated the formation of microsized structure and their effects. The growth of microbumps is caused by attracting solution droplet to the hydrophilic islands on hydrophobic surface.

Osteoblast Adhesion on Cathodic Arc Plasma Deposited Nano-Multilayered TiCrAlSiN Thin Films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Sun Kyu [University of Ulsan, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of); Pham, Vuong Hung [Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST), Hanoi (Viet Nam)

2014-03-15

Adhesion of osteoblast cells to TiCrAlSiN thin films was evaluated in vitro. Ti and TiCrAlSiN thin films were deposited on glass substrates by cathodic arc deposition. Surface roughness and chemistry of the TiCrAlSiN thin films was characterized by AFM and EPMA, respectively. Ti and TiCrAlSiN thin films and glass coverslips were cultured with human osteoblast cells (hFOB 1.19). The cell cytoskeleton was analyzed by observing the organization of actin stress fibers and microtubules. Cell proliferation was investigated by MTT assay and visualization. Focal contact adhesion was studied by observing the vinculin density. The results indicated that the TiCrAlSiN coating significantly influenced the actin cytoskeleton and microtubule organization. Human osteoblasts hFOB attached and proliferated better on TiCrAlSiN thin films with more focal contact adhesions than on Ti thin films or glass surfaces. These results suggest that TiCrAlSiN thin films can be an implantable material where the maximum cell adhesion is required.

Thin films for precision optics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Araujo, J.F.; Maurici, N.; Castro, J.C. de

1983-01-01

The technology of producing dielectric and/or metallic thin films for high precision optical components is discussed. Computer programs were developed in order to calculate and register, graphically, reflectance and transmittance spectra of multi-layer films. The technology of vacuum evaporation of several materials was implemented in our thin-films laboratory; various films for optics were then developed. The possibility of first calculate film characteristics and then produce the film is of great advantage since it reduces the time required to produce a new type of film and also reduces the cost of the project. (C.L.B.) [pt

Quantitative characterization of the composition, thickness and orientation of thin films in the analytical electron microscope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williams, D.B.; Watanabe, M.; Papworth, A.J.; Li, J.C.

2003-01-01

Compositional variations in thin films can introduce lattice-parameter changes and thus create stresses, in addition to the more usual stresses introduced by substrate-film mismatch, differential thermal expansion, etc. Analytical electron microscopy comprising X-ray energy-dispersive spectrometry within a probe-forming field-emission gun scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is one of the most powerful methods of composition measurement on the nanometer scale, essential for thin-film analysis. Recently, with the development of improved X-ray collection efficiencies and quantitative computation methods it has proved possible to map out composition variations in thin films with a spatial resolution approaching 1-2 nm. Because the absorption of X-rays is dependent on the film thickness, concurrent composition and film thickness determination is another advantage of X-ray microanalysis, thus correlating thickness and composition variations, either of which may contribute to stresses in the film. Specific phenomena such as segregation to interfaces and boundaries in the film are ideally suited to analysis by X-ray mapping. This approach also permits multiple boundaries to be examined, giving some statistical certainty to the analysis particularly in nano-crystalline materials with grain sizes greater than the film thickness. Boundary segregation is strongly affected by crystallographic misorientation and it is now possible to map out the orientation between many different grains in the (S)TEM

Analysis of Hard Thin Film Coating

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Dashen

1998-01-01

MSFC is interested in developing hard thin film coating for bearings. The wearing of the bearing is an important problem for space flight engine. Hard thin film coating can drastically improve the surface of the bearing and improve the wear-endurance of the bearing. However, many fundamental problems in surface physics, plasma deposition, etc, need further research. The approach is using electron cyclotron resonance chemical vapor deposition (ECRCVD) to deposit hard thin film an stainless steel bearing. The thin films in consideration include SiC, SiN and other materials. An ECRCVD deposition system is being assembled at MSFC.

Thin-film solar cell

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Metselaar, J.W.; Kuznetsov, V.I.

1998-01-01

The invention relates to a thin-film solar cell provided with at least one p-i-n junction comprising at least one p-i junction which is at an angle alpha with that surface of the thin-film solar cell which collects light during operation and at least one i-n junction which is at an angle beta with

Thin-Film Material Science and Processing | Materials Science | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Thin-Film Material Science and Processing Thin-Film Material Science and Processing Photo of a , a prime example of this research is thin-film photovoltaics (PV). Thin films are important because cadmium telluride thin film, showing from top to bottom: glass, transparent conducting oxide (thin layer

PZT Thin-Film Micro Probe Device with Dual Top Electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Chuan

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) thin-film actuators have been studied intensively for years because of their potential applications in many fields. In this dissertation, a PZT thin-film micro probe device is designed, fabricated, studied, and proven to be acceptable as an intracochlear acoustic actuator. The micro probe device takes the form of a cantilever with a PZT thin-film diaphragm at the tip of the probe. The tip portion of the probe will be implanted in cochlea later in animal tests to prove its feasibility in hearing rehabilitation. The contribution of the dissertation is three-fold. First, a dual top electrodes design, consisting of a center electrode and an outer electrode, is developed to improve actuation displacement of the PZT thin-film diaphragm. The improvement by the dual top electrodes design is studied via a finite element model. When the dimensions of the dual electrodes are optimized, the displacement of the PZT thin-film diaphragm increases about 30%. A PZT thin-film diaphragm with dual top electrodes is fabricated to prove the concept, and experimental results confirm the predictions from the finite element analyses. Moreover, the dual electrode design can accommodate presence of significant residual stresses in the PZT thin-film diaphragm by changing the phase difference between the two electrodes. Second, a PZT thin-film micro probe device is fabricated and tested. The fabrication process consists of PZT thin-film deposition and deep reactive ion etching (DRIE). The uniqueness of the fabrication process is an automatic dicing mechanism that allows a large number of probes to be released easily from the wafer. Moreover, the fabrication is very efficient, because the DRIE process will form the PZT thin-film diaphragm and the special dicing mechanism simultaneously. After the probes are fabricated, they are tested with various possible implantation depths (i.e., boundary conditions). Experimental results show that future implantation depths

Nanocrystal thin film fabrication methods and apparatus

Science.gov (United States)

Kagan, Cherie R.; Kim, David K.; Choi, Ji-Hyuk; Lai, Yuming

2018-01-09

Nanocrystal thin film devices and methods for fabricating nanocrystal thin film devices are disclosed. The nanocrystal thin films are diffused with a dopant such as Indium, Potassium, Tin, etc. to reduce surface states. The thin film devices may be exposed to air during a portion of the fabrication. This enables fabrication of nanocrystal-based devices using a wider range of techniques such as photolithography and photolithographic patterning in an air environment.

Acoustically Triggered Disassembly of Multilayered Polyelectrolyte Thin Films through Gigahertz Resonators for Controlled Drug Release Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhixin Zhang

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Controlled drug release has a high priority for the development of modern medicine and biochemistry. To develop a versatile method for controlled release, a miniaturized acoustic gigahertz (GHz resonator is designed and fabricated which can transfer electric supply to mechanical vibrations. By contacting with liquid, the GHz resonator directly excites streaming flows and induces physical shear stress to tear the multilayered polyelectrolyte (PET thin films. Due to the ultra-high working frequency, the shear stress is greatly intensified, which results in a controlled disassembling of the PET thin films. This technique is demonstrated as an effective method to trigger and control the drug release. Both theory analysis and controlled release experiments prove the thin film destruction and the drug release.

Analyses of edge effects on residual stresses in film strip/substrate systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hsueh, Chun-Hway

2000-01-01

The residual stress distribution in a thin-film strip overlaid on a substrate is influenced by the edges of the strip. An analytical model is developed to derive a closed-form solution for the stress distribution along the film width. Because the film is much thinner than the substrate, the stress variation through the film thickness is ignored; however, the stress variation through the substrate thickness is considered in the analysis. Compared to the existing analytical models, the present model is more rigorous and the analytical results agree better with both finite element results and experimental measurements. (c) 2000 American Institute of Physics

Characterizations of photoconductivity of graphene oxide thin films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shiang-Kuo Chang-Jian

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Characterizations of photoresponse of a graphene oxide (GO thin film to a near infrared laser light were studied. Results showed the photocurrent in the GO thin film was cathodic, always flowing in an opposite direction to the initial current generated by the preset bias voltage that shows a fundamental discrepancy from the photocurrent in the reduced graphene oxide thin film. Light illumination on the GO thin film thus results in more free electrons that offset the initial current. By examining GO thin films reduced at different temperatures, the critical temperature for reversing the photocurrent from cathodic to anodic was found around 187°C. The dynamic photoresponse for the GO thin film was further characterized through the response time constants within the laser on and off durations, denoted as τon and τoff, respectively. τon for the GO thin film was comparable to the other carbon-based thin films such as carbon nanotubes and graphenes. τoff was, however, much larger than that of the other's. This discrepancy was attributable to the retardation of exciton recombination rate thanks to the existing oxygen functional groups and defects in the GO thin films.

Controlling the competing magnetic anisotropy energies in FineMET amorphous thin films with ultra-soft magnetic properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ansar Masood

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Thickness dependent competing magnetic anisotropy energies were investigated to explore the global magnetic behaviours of FineMET amorphous thin films. A dominant perpendicular magnetization component in the as-deposited state of thinner films was observed due to high magnetoelastic anisotropy energy which arises from stresses induced at the substrate-film interface. This perpendicular magnetization component decreases with increasing film thickness. Thermal annealing at elevated temperature revealed a significant influence on the magnetization state of the FineMET thin films and controlled annealing steps leads to ultra-soft magnetic properties, making these thin films alloys ideal for a wide range of applications.

Universal Method for Creating Hierarchical Wrinkles on Thin-Film Surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Woo-Bin; Cho, Kyeong Min; Lee, Won-Kyu; Odom, Teri W; Jung, Hee-Tae

2018-01-10

One of the most interesting topics in physical science and materials science is the creation of complex wrinkled structures on thin-film surfaces because of their several advantages of high surface area, localized strain, and stress tolerance. In this study, a significant step was taken toward solving limitations imposed by the fabrication of previous artificial wrinkles. A universal method for preparing hierarchical three-dimensional wrinkle structures of thin films on a multiple scale (e.g., nanometers to micrometers) by sequential wrinkling with different skin layers was developed. Notably, this method was not limited to specific materials, and it was applicable to fabricating hierarchical wrinkles on all of the thin-film surfaces tested thus far, including those of metals, two-dimensional and one-dimensional materials, and polymers. The hierarchical wrinkles with multiscale structures were prepared by sequential wrinkling, in which a sacrificial layer was used as the additional skin layer between sequences. For example, a hierarchical MoS 2 wrinkle exhibited highly enhanced catalytic behavior because of the superaerophobicity and effective surface area, which are related to topological effects. As the developed method can be adopted to a majority of thin films, it is thought to be a universal method for enhancing the physical properties of various materials.

Development of neutron diffuse scattering analysis code by thin film and multilayer film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soyama, Kazuhiko

2004-01-01

To research surface structure of thin film and multilayer film by neutron, a neutron diffuse scattering analysis code using DWBA (Distorted-Wave Bron Approximation) principle was developed. Subjects using this code contain the surface and interface properties of solid/solid, solid/liquid, liquid/liquid and gas/liquid, and metal, magnetism and polymer thin film and biomembran. The roughness of surface and interface of substance shows fractal self-similarity and its analytical model is based on DWBA theory by Sinha. The surface and interface properties by diffuse scattering are investigated on the basis of the theoretical model. The calculation values are proved to be agreed with the experimental values. On neutron diffuse scattering by thin film, roughness of surface of thin film, correlation function, neutron propagation by thin film, diffuse scattering by DWBA theory, measurement model, SDIFFF (neutron diffuse scattering analysis program by thin film) and simulation results are explained. On neutron diffuse scattering by multilayer film, roughness of multilayer film, principle of diffuse scattering, measurement method and simulation examples by MDIFF (neutron diffuse scattering analysis program by multilayer film) are explained. (S.Y.)To research surface structure of thin film and multilayer film by neutron, a neutron diffuse scattering analysis code using DWBA (Distorted-Wave Bron Approximation) principle was developed. Subjects using this code contain the surface and interface properties of solid/solid, solid/liquid, liquid/liquid and gas/liquid, and metal, magnetism and polymer thin film and biomembran. The roughness of surface and interface of substance shows fractal self-similarity and its analytical model is based on DWBA theory by Sinha. The surface and interface properties by diffuse scattering are investigated on the basis of the theoretical model. The calculation values are proved to be agreed with the experimental values. On neutron diffuse scattering

Mechanical characterization of YBCO thin films using nanoindentation and finite element method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Weixing [The Ministry of Education of China (China). Key Lab. of Mechanics on Environment and Disaster in Western China; Lanzhou Univ. (China). College of Civil Engineering and Mechanics

2017-09-15

The mechanical properties of YBCO thin film deposited on SrTiO{sub 3} (100) substrates by magnetron sputtering were determined using Berkovich nanoindentation and scanning electron microscopy. Hardness and elastic modulus were determined via the Oliver-Pharr method from indentation load-depth curves. The hardness values of the YBCO thin film show depth dependence, i. e., indentation size effect, which arose from the surface roughness as detected by scanning electron microscopy. Multiple pop-in events were observed on the loading curves, however, no obvious pop-out takes place during the elastic recovery. In addition, an effective analytical method accommodating the indenter imperfection was proposed and validated against experimental data in terms of elastic modulus, yield stress and friction angle using the Drucker-Prager yield criterion for the YBCO thin film.

Thin film tritium dosimetry

Science.gov (United States)

Moran, Paul R.

1976-01-01

The present invention provides a method for tritium dosimetry. A dosimeter comprising a thin film of a material having relatively sensitive RITAC-RITAP dosimetry properties is exposed to radiation from tritium, and after the dosimeter has been removed from the source of the radiation, the low energy electron dose deposited in the thin film is determined by radiation-induced, thermally-activated polarization dosimetry techniques.

Effects of ion irradiation on the residual stresses in Cr thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Misra, A.; Fayeulle, S.; Kung, H.; Mitchell, T.E.; Nastasi, M.

1998-01-01

Cr films sputtered onto {100}thinspSi substrates at room temperature were found to be under residual tension, as revealed by wafer curvature measurements. A 150 nm thick Cr film was bombarded with 300 keV Ar ions after deposition. The intrinsic residual tensile stress increased slightly and then decreased with further increase in the ion dose. For ion doses >1x10 15 thinspions/cm 2 , the stress in the film became compressive and increased with increasing dose. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the grain boundaries in as-deposited Cr have columnar porosity. A Cr film, ion irradiated to a dose of 5x10 15 thinspions/cm 2 , showed no grain boundary porosity. The changes in the residual stress during ion irradiation are explained by considering Ar incorporation in the film and the manner in which irradiation may change the interatomic distances and forces. copyright 1998 American Institute of Physics

Temporal and voltage stress stability of high performance indium-zinc-oxide thin film transistors

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Yang; Katsman, Alexander; Butcher, Amy L.; Paine, David C.; Zaslavsky, Alexander

2017-10-01

Thin film transistors (TFTs) based on transparent oxide semiconductors, such as indium zinc oxide (IZO), are of interest due to their improved characteristics compared to traditional a-Si TFTs. Previously, we reported on top-gated IZO TFTs with an in-situ formed HfO2 gate insulator and IZO active channel, showing high performance: on/off ratio of ∼107, threshold voltage VT near zero, extracted low-field mobility μ0 = 95 cm2/V·s, and near-perfect subthreshold slope at 62 mV/decade. Since device stability is essential for technological applications, in this paper we report on the temporal and voltage stress stability of IZO TFTs. Our devices exhibit a small negative VT shift as they age, consistent with an increasing carrier density resulting from an increasing oxygen vacancy concentration in the channel. Under gate bias stress, freshly annealed TFTs show a negative VT shift during negative VG gate bias stress, while aged (>1 week) TFTs show a positive VT shift during negative VG stress. This indicates two competing mechanisms, which we identify as the field-enhanced generation of oxygen vacancies and the field-assisted migration of oxygen vacancies, respectively. A simplified kinetic model of the vacancy concentration evolution in the IZO channel under electrical stress is provided.

Thin films for emerging applications v.16

CERN Document Server

Francombe, Maurice H

1992-01-01

Following in the long-standing tradition of excellence established by this serial, this volume provides a focused look at contemporary applications. High Tc superconducting thin films are discussed in terms of ion beam and sputtering deposition, vacuum evaporation, laser ablation, MOCVD, and other deposition processes in addition to their ultimate applications. Detailed treatment is also given to permanent magnet thin films, lateral diffusion and electromigration in metallic thin films, and fracture and cracking phenomena in thin films adhering to high-elongation substrates.

Metal-semiconductor transition materials. FeS and VO{sub 2} thin films by RF reactive sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fu Ganhua

2007-06-15

In the present work, two MST systems, FeS and VO{sub 2} thin films were investigated. Iron sulfide thin films over a range of composition were prepared by reactive sputtering. The influence of the substrate, sputter power, substrate temperature and stoichiometry on the structure and MST of iron sulfide films was investigated. Iron sulfide films deposited at different temperatures show temperature dependent structure and MST. FeS films on float glass show (110) and (112) orientations when the substrate temperature is 200 and 500 C, respectively. The transition temperature and width of the hysteresis loop determined from the temperature dependent conductivity curves of iron sulfide films decrease with the substrate temperature. Fe and S excess in FeS films both result in the decrease of the transition temperature and width of the hysteresis loop. The vacuum-annealing affects the MST of FeS films significantly. When FeS films were annealed below the deposition temperature, the transition temperature decreases; otherwise increases. The residual stress plays an important role during the annealing process. The higher the residual stress inside the FeS films is, the higher the transition temperature of FeS films. With the increase of the annealing temperature, the residual stress in FeS films is first released and then enhances, which gives rise first to the decrease and then increase of the transition temperature of FeS films. At high substrate temperatures, the residual stress is higher. In addition, the MST of FeS films was influenced by the ambient aging. With the increase of the aging time, the transition temperature first increases and then decreases. FeS films with different thicknesses were prepared. The correlation between the film thickness (grain size) and the MST switching characteristics of FeS films was established. With the decrease of the grain size, the density of grain boundaries increases, causing the increase of the conductivity of the semiconducting

Interfaces and thin films physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Equer, B.

1988-01-01

The 1988 progress report of the Interfaces and Thin Film Physics laboratory (Polytechnic School France) is presented. The research program is focused on the thin films and on the interfaces of the amorphous semiconductor materials: silicon and silicon germanium, silicon-carbon and silicon-nitrogen alloys. In particular, the following topics are discussed: the basic processes and the kinetics of the reactive gas deposition, the amorphous materials manufacturing, the physico-chemical characterization of thin films and interfaces and the electron transport in amorphous semiconductors. The construction and optimization of experimental devices, as well as the activities concerning instrumentation, are also described [fr

Buckling of Thin Films in Nano-Scale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li L.A.

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Investigation of thin film buckling is important for life prediction of MEMS device which are damaged mainly by the delamination and buckling of thin films. In this paper the mechanical and thermal properties of compressed thin film titanium films with 150 nm thickness deposited on an organic glass substrate under mechanical and thermal loads were measured and characterized. In order to simulate the thin films which subjected to compound loads and the buckle modes the external uniaxial compression and thermal loading were subjected to the specimen by the symmetric loading device and the electrical film in this experiment. The temperature of the thin film deposited on substrate was measured using thermoelectric couple. The range of temperature accords with the temperature range of the MEMS. It is found that the size and number of the delamination and buckling of the film are depended upon the pre-fixed mechanical loading and thermal temperature. The thermal transient conduction and thermal stability of the film and substrate was studied with finite element method.

Operating method of amorphous thin film semiconductor element

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mori, Koshiro; Ono, Masaharu; Hanabusa, Akira; Osawa, Michio; Arita, Takashi

1988-05-31

The existing technologies concerning amorphous thin film semiconductor elements are the technologies concerning the formation of either a thin film transistor or an amorphous Si solar cell on a substrate. In order to drive a thin film transistor for electronic equipment control by the output power of an amorphous Si solar cell, it has been obliged to drive the transistor weth an amorphous solar cell which was formed on a substrate different from that for the transistor. Accordingly, the space for the amorphous solar cell, which was formed on the different substrate, was additionally needed on the substrate for the thin film transistor. In order to solve the above problem, this invention proposes an operating method of an amorphous thin film semiconductor element that after forming an amorphous Si solar cell through lamination on the insulation coating film which covers the thin film transistor formed on the substrate, the thin film transistor is driven by the output power of this solar cell. The invention eliminates the above superfluous space and reduces the size of the amorphous thin film semiconductor element including the electric source. (3 figs)

Temperature dependence of LRE-HRE-TM thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zuoyi; Cheng, Xiaomin; Lin, Gengqi; Li, Zhen; Huang, Zhixin; Jin, Fang; Wang, Xianran; Yang, Xiaofei

2003-04-01

Temperature dependence of the properties of RE-TM thin films is very important for MO recording. In this paper, we studied the temperature dependence of the magnetic and magneto-optical properties of the amorphous LRE-HRE-TM single layer thin films and LRE-HRE-TM/HRE-TM couple-bilayered thin films. For LRE-HRE-TM single layer thin films, the temperature dependence of the magnetization was investigated by using the mean field theory. The experimental and theoretical results matched very well. With the LRE substitution in HRE-TM thin film, the compensation temperature Tcomp decreased and the curie temperature Tc remained unchanged. Kerr rotation angle became larger and the saturation magnetization Ms at room temperature increased. For LRE-HRE-TM/HRE-TM couple-bilayered thin films, comparisons of the temperature dependences of the coercivities and Kerr rotation angles were made between isolated sublayers and couple-bilayered thin film.

Residual stress analysis of a multi-layer thin film structure by destructive (curvature) and non-destructive (x-ray) methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, P.C.; Oshida, Y.

1989-01-01

Multi-layer thin film which has structure of Cu/Cr/K/Cr/Cu prepared by sputtering process was analyzed for interfacial stresses for as-deposited conditions. This structure was also annealed at 150 degrees C, and 350 degrees C for around 15 min. in a vacuum and cooled slowly down for stress analyses. Equations for residual stress estimations for homogeneous material system using layer removal technique (stress relief) is now applied for inhomogeneous system (multi-layer structure). The results are compared with the data obtained from x-ray diffraction technique by using sin 2 Ψ - 2 θ method, for Cu layer. From the present analyses, the data obtained using layer removal seem to be qualitatively consistent with but not quantitatively in agreement with x-ray method

Focused ion beam induced deflections of freestanding thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Y.-R.; Chen, P.; Aziz, M. J.; Branton, D.; Vlassak, J. J.

2006-01-01

Prominent deflections are shown to occur in freestanding silicon nitride thin membranes when exposed to a 50 keV gallium focused ion beam for ion doses between 10 14 and 10 17 ions/cm 2 . Atomic force microscope topographs were used to quantify elevations on the irradiated side and corresponding depressions of comparable magnitude on the back side, thus indicating that what at first appeared to be protrusions are actually the result of membrane deflections. The shape in high-stress silicon nitride is remarkably flat-topped and differs from that in low-stress silicon nitride. Ion beam induced biaxial compressive stress generation, which is a known deformation mechanism for other amorphous materials at higher ion energies, is hypothesized to be the origin of the deflection. A continuum mechanical model based on this assumption convincingly reproduces the profiles for both low-stress and high-stress membranes and provides a family of unusual shapes that can be created by deflection of freestanding thin films under beam irradiation

Stresses evolution at high temperature (200°C on the interface of thin films in magnetic components

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Doumit Nicole

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In the field of electronics, the increase of operating temperatures is a major industrial and scientific challenge because it allows reducing mass and volume of components especially in the aeronautic domain. So minimizing our components reduce masses and the use of cooling systems. For that, the behaviours and interface stresses of our components (in particular magnetic inductors and transformers that are constituted of one magnetic layer (YIG or an alumina substrate (Al2O3 representing the substrate and a thin copper film are studied at high temperature (200°C. COMSOL Multiphysics is used to simulate our work and to validate our measurements results. In this paper, we will present stresses results according to the geometrical copper parameters necessary for the component fabrication. Results show that stresses increase with temperature and copper’s thickness while remaining always lower than 200MPa which is the rupture stress value.

Prediction of residual stress distribution in multi-stacked thin film by curvature measurement and iterative FEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Hyeon Chang; Park, Jun Hyub

2005-01-01

In this study, residual stress distribution in multi-stacked film by MEMS (Micro-Electro Mechanical System) process is predicted using Finite Element Method (FEM). We develop a finite element program for REsidual Stress Analysis (RESA) in multi-stacked film. The RESA predicts the distribution of residual stress field in multi-stacked film. Curvatures of multi-stacked film and single layers which consist of the multi-stacked film are used as the input to the RESA. To measure those curvatures is easier than to measure a distribution of residual stress. To verify the RESA, mean stresses and stress gradients of single and multilayers are measured. The mean stresses are calculated from curvatures of deposited wafer by using Stoney's equation. The stress gradients are calculated from the vertical deflection at the end of cantilever beam. To measure the mean stress of each layer in multi-stacked film, we measure the curvature of wafer with the film after etching layer by layer in multi-stacked film

Texture, residual stress and structural analysis of thin films using a combined X-ray analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lutterotti, L.; Chateigner, D.; Ferrari, S.; Ricote, J.

2004-01-01

Advanced thin films for today's industrial and research needs require highly specialized methodologies for a successful quantitative characterization. In particular, in the case of multilayer and/or unknown phases a global approach is necessary to obtain some or all the required information. A full approach has been developed integrating novel texture and residual stress methodologies with the Rietveld method (Acta Cryst. 22 (1967) 151) (for crystal structure analysis) and it has been coupled with the reflectivity analysis. The complete analysis can be done at once and offers several benefits: the thicknesses obtained from reflectivity can be used to correct the diffraction spectra, the phase analysis help to identify the layers and to determine the electron density profile for reflectivity; quantitative texture is needed for quantitative phase and residual stress analyses; crystal structure determination benefits of the previous. To achieve this result, it was necessary to develop some new methods, especially for texture and residual stresses. So it was possible to integrate them in the Rietveld, full profile fitting of the patterns. The measurement of these spectra required a special reflectometer/diffractometer that combines a thin parallel beam (for reflectivity) and a texture/stress goniometer with a curved large position sensitive detector. This new diffraction/reflectivity X-ray machine has been used to test the combined approach. Several spectra and the reflectivity patterns have been collected at different tilting angles and processed at once by the special software incorporating the aforementioned methodologies. Some analysis examples will be given to show the possibilities offered by the method

Influence of surface defects in ZnO thin films on its biosensing response characteristic

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saha, Shibu; Gupta, Vinay [Department of Physics and Astrophysics, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 (India)

2011-09-15

Highly c-axis oriented zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering under varying processing pressure (20-50 mT) in a reactive gas mixture of argon and oxygen were studied for biosensing application. The as-deposited ZnO thin films were in a state of compressive stress having defects related to interstitial Zn and antisite oxygen. Glucose oxidase has been chosen as the model enzyme in the present study and was immobilized on the surface of ZnO thin films deposited on indium tin oxide coated Corning Glass substrate. The studies reveal a correlation between the biosensing characteristic and the presence of defects in the ZnO films. The ZnO films deposited under high pressure (50 mT) are found to be more sensitive for biosensing application due to availability of more surface area for effective immobilization of biomolecules and exhibits a suitable microenvironment with good electron transfer characteristic. The obtained results highlight the importance of desired microstate besides availability of suitable native defects in the ZnO thin film for exhibiting enhanced biosensing response.

Influence of surface defects in ZnO thin films on its biosensing response characteristic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saha, Shibu; Gupta, Vinay

2011-01-01

Highly c-axis oriented zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering under varying processing pressure (20-50 mT) in a reactive gas mixture of argon and oxygen were studied for biosensing application. The as-deposited ZnO thin films were in a state of compressive stress having defects related to interstitial Zn and antisite oxygen. Glucose oxidase has been chosen as the model enzyme in the present study and was immobilized on the surface of ZnO thin films deposited on indium tin oxide coated Corning Glass substrate. The studies reveal a correlation between the biosensing characteristic and the presence of defects in the ZnO films. The ZnO films deposited under high pressure (50 mT) are found to be more sensitive for biosensing application due to availability of more surface area for effective immobilization of biomolecules and exhibits a suitable microenvironment with good electron transfer characteristic. The obtained results highlight the importance of desired microstate besides availability of suitable native defects in the ZnO thin film for exhibiting enhanced biosensing response.

Measurement of Young’s modulus and residual stress of atomic layer deposited Al2O3 and Pt thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Purkl, Fabian; Daus, Alwin; English, Timothy S.; Provine, J.; Feyh, Ando; Urban, Gerald; Kenny, Thomas W.

2017-08-01

The accurate measurement of mechanical properties of thin films is required for the design of reliable nano/micro-electromechanical devices but is increasingly challenging for thicknesses approaching a few nanometers. We apply a combination of resonant and static mechanical test structures to measure elastic constants and residual stresses of 8-27 nm thick Al2O3 and Pt layers which have been fabricated through atomic layer deposition. Young’s modulus of poly-crystalline Pt films was found to be reduced by less than 15% compared to the bulk value, whereas for amorphous Al2O3 it was reduced to about half of its bulk value. We observed no discernible dependence of the elastic constant on thickness or deposition method for Pt, but the use of plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition was found to increase Young’s modulus of Al2O3 by 10% compared to a thermal atomic layer deposition. As deposited, the Al2O3 layers had an average tensile residual stress of 131 MPa. The stress was found to be higher for thinner layers and layers deposited without the help of a remote plasma. No residual stress values could be extracted for Pt due to insufficient adhesion of the film without an underlying layer to promote nucleation.

Stress release during cyclic loading of 20 nm palladium films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lukáč, František; Vlček, Marián; Vlach, Martin; Wagner, Stefan; Uchida, Helmut; Pundt, Astrid; Bell, Anthony; Čížek, Jakub

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Repeated hydrogenation of 20 nm Pd films was investigated by in situ X-ray diffraction. • Hydride precipitates form coherent interfaces with matrix in nanocrystalline and epitaxial thin films. • Grain boundaries affect precipitation of the hydride phase in the nanocrystalline film. • Stress in epitaxial film is tensile due to different thermal expansion of Pd and sapphire. • After hydrogen absorption/desorption cycle the stress in both films becomes tensile. - Abstract: Gas phase loading of nanocrystalline and epitaxial 20 nm Pd films deposited on single crystalline sapphire substrates was studied in this work. The nanocrystalline film was deposited at room temperature and the epitaxial film deposited at 800 °C. The nanocrystalline film suffers from in-plane compressive stress imposed by atomic peening processes. The epitaxial film exhibits tensile stress caused by the different thermal expansion coefficients of Pd and sapphire substrate. Coherent phase transition into the hydride phase was observed both for the nanocrystalline and for the epitaxial film. For both films, the lattice parameters continuously increase during the phase transition to the hydride phase. Both films exhibit enhanced hydride formation pressure compared to bulk Pd. Misfit dislocations are formed at interface between Pd film and substrate during hydrogenation. This leads to irreversible change of stress state of the films subjected to sorption and desorption cycle with hydrogen

Thin film structures and phase stability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clemens, B.M.; Johnson, W.L.

1990-01-01

This was a two day symposium, with invited and contributed papers as well as an evening poster session. The first day concentrated on solid state reactions with invited talks by Lindsay Greer from the University of Cambridge, King Tu from IBM Yorktown Heights, and Carl Thompson from MIT. Professor Greer observed that the diffusion of Zr is 10 6 times slower than that of Ni in amorphous NiZr, confirming that Ni is the mobile species in solid state amorphization. King Tu explained the formation of metastable phases in this film diffusion couples by the concept of maximum rate of free energy change. Carl Thompson discussed the formation of amorphous phases in metal silicon systems, and discussed a two stage nucleation and growth process. The contributed papers also generated discussion on topics such as phase segregation, amorphous silicide formation, room temperature oxidation of silicon, and nucleation during ion beam irradiation. There was a lively poster session on Monday evening with papers on a wide variety of topics covering the general area of thin film science. The second day had sessions Epitaxy and Multilayer Structure I and II, with the morning focussing on epitaxial and heteroepitaxial growth of thin films. Robin Farrow of IBM Almaden led off with an invited talk where he reported on some remarkable success he and his co-workers have had in growing single crystal epitaxial thin films and superlattices of silver, iron, cobalt and platinum on GaAs. This was followed by several talks on epitaxial growth and characterization. The afternoon focused on interfaces and structure of multilayered materials. A session on possible stress origins of the supermodulus effect was highlighted by lively interaction from the audience. Most of the papers presented at the symposium are presented in this book

Influence of ion irradiation on internal residual stress in DLC films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karaseov, Platon A., E-mail: platon.karaseov@rphf.spbstu.r [St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Polytechnicheskaya St. 29, 195251 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Podsvirov, Oleg A.; Karabeshkin, Konstantin V. [St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Polytechnicheskaya St. 29, 195251 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Vinogradov, Andrei Ya. [Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute RAS, Polytechnicheskaya 26, 195252 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Azarov, Alexander Yu. [St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Polytechnicheskaya St. 29, 195251 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Karasev, Nikita N. [State University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics, Sablinskaya Str. 14, 197101 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation); Titov, Andrei I.; Smirnov, Alexander S. [St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University, Polytechnicheskaya St. 29, 195251 St. Petersburg (Russian Federation)

2010-10-01

The dependence of internal residual stress in thin diamond-like carbon films grown on Si substrate by PECVD technique on most important growth parameters, namely RF-power, DC bias voltage and substrate temperature, is described. Results show that compressive stress reaches the highest value of 2.7 GPa at low RF-power and DC bias. Increase of substrate temperature from 250 to 350 {sup o}C leads to nonlinear increase of stress value. Inhomogeneity of residual stress along the film surface disappears when film is deposited at temperatures above 275 {sup o}C. Post-growth film irradiation by P{sup +} and In{sup +} ions cause decrease of compressive stress followed by its inversion to tensile. For all ion energy combinations used residual stress changes linearly with normalized fluence up to 0.2 DPA with slope (8.7 {+-} 1.3) GPa/DPA.

Preparation of LiMn2O4 cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries by a mist CVD process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tadanaga, Kiyoharu; Yamaguchi, Akihiro; Sakuda, Atsushi; Hayashi, Akitoshi; Tatsumisago, Masahiro; Duran, Alicia; Aparacio, Mario

2014-01-01

Highlights: • LiMn 2 O 4 thin films were prepared by using the mist CVD process. • An aqueous solution of lithium and manganese acetates is used for the precursor solution. • The cell with the LiMn 2 O 4 thin films exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g. • The cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles. - Abstract: LiMn 2 O 4 cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries were prepared by using so-called the “mist CVD process”, employing an aqueous solution of lithium acetate and manganese acetate, as the source of Li and Mn, respectively. The aqueous solution of starting materials was ultrasonically atomized to form mist particles, and mists were transferred by nitrogen gas to silica glass substrate to form thin films. FE-SEM observation revealed that thin films obtained by this process were dense and smooth, and thin films with a thickness of about 750 nm were obtained. The electrochemical cell with the thin films obtained by sintering at 700 °C exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g, and the cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles

P-type CuxS thin films: Integration in a thin film transistor structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nunes de Carvalho, C.; Parreira, P.; Lavareda, G.; Brogueira, P.; Amaral, A.

2013-01-01

Cu x S thin films, 80 nm thick, are deposited by vacuum thermal evaporation of sulfur-rich powder mixture, Cu 2 S:S (50:50 wt.%) with no intentional heating of the substrate. The process of deposition occurs at very low deposition rates (0.1–0.3 nm/s) to avoid the formation of Cu or S-rich films. The evolution of Cu x S films surface properties (morphology/roughness) under post deposition mild annealing in air at 270 °C and their integration in a thin film transistor (TFT) are the main objectives of this study. Accordingly, Scanning Electron Microscopy studies show Cu x S films with different surface morphologies, depending on the post deposition annealing conditions. For the shortest annealing time, the Cu x S films look to be constructed of grains with large dimension at the surface (approximately 100 nm) and consequently, irregular shape. For the longest annealing time, films with a fine-grained surface are found, with some randomly distributed large particles bound to this fine-grained surface. Atomic Force Microscopy results indicate an increase of the root-mean-square roughness of Cu x S surface with annealing time, from 13.6 up to 37.4 nm, for 255 and 345 s, respectively. The preliminary integration of Cu x S films in a TFT bottom-gate type structure allowed the study of the feasibility and compatibility of this material with the remaining stages of a TFT fabrication as well as the determination of the p-type characteristic of the Cu x S material. - Highlights: • Surface properties of annealed Cu x S films. • Variation of conductivity with annealing temperatures of Cu x S films. • Application of evaporated Cu x S films in a thin film transistor (TFT) structure. • Determination of Cu x S p-type characteristic from TFT behaviour

Semiconductor-nanocrystal/conjugated polymer thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Alivisatos, A. Paul; Dittmer, Janke J.; Huynh, Wendy U.; Milliron, Delia

2014-06-17

The invention described herein provides for thin films and methods of making comprising inorganic semiconductor-nanocrystals dispersed in semiconducting-polymers in high loading amounts. The invention also describes photovoltaic devices incorporating the thin films.

Thin liquid films dewetting and polymer flow

CERN Document Server

Blossey, Ralf

2012-01-01

This book is a treatise on the thermodynamic and dynamic properties of thin liquid films at solid surfaces and, in particular, their rupture instabilities. For the quantitative study of these phenomena, polymer thin films haven proven to be an invaluable experimental model system.   What is it that makes thin film instabilities special and interesting, warranting a whole book? There are several answers to this. Firstly, thin polymeric films have an important range of applications, and with the increase in the number of technologies available to produce and to study them, this range is likely to expand. An understanding of their instabilities is therefore of practical relevance for the design of such films.   Secondly, thin liquid films are an interdisciplinary research topic. Interdisciplinary research is surely not an end to itself, but in this case it leads to a fairly heterogeneous community of theoretical and experimental physicists, engineers, physical chemists, mathematicians and others working on the...

Self-assembly of dodecaphenyl POSS thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Handke, Bartosz; Klita, Łukasz; Niemiec, Wiktor

2017-12-01

The self-assembly abilities of Dodecaphenyl Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane thin films on Si(1 0 0) surfaces were studied. Due to their thermal properties - relatively low sublimation temperature and preservation of molecular structure - cage type silsesquioxanes are ideal material for the preparation of a thin films by Physical Vapor Deposition. The Ultra-High Vacuum environment and the deposition precision of the PVD method enable the study of early stages of thin film growth and its molecular organization. X-ray Reflectivity and Atomic Force Microscopy measurements allow to pursuit size-effects in the structure of thin films with thickness ranges from less than a single molecular layer up to several tens of layers. Thermal treatment of the thin films triggered phase change: from a poorly ordered polycrystalline film into a well-ordered multilayer structure. Self-assembly of the layers is the effect of the π-stacking of phenyl rings, which force molecules to arrange in a superlattice, forming stacks of alternating organic-inorganic layers.

Reliability assessment of ultra-thin HfO{sub 2} films deposited on silicon wafer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fu, Wei-En [Center for Measurement Standards, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Room 216, Building 8, 321 Kuang Fu Road Sec. 2, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Chang, Chia-Wei [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan 70101, Taiwan (China); Chang, Yong-Qing [Center for Measurement Standards, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Room 216, Building 8, 321 Kuang Fu Road Sec. 2, Hsinchu, Taiwan (China); Yao, Chih-Kai [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan 70101, Taiwan (China); Liao, Jiunn-Der, E-mail: jdliao@mail.ncku.edu.tw [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, 1 University Road, Tainan 70101, Taiwan (China)

2012-09-01

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Nano-mechanical properties on annealed ultra-thin HfO{sub 2} film are studied. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer By AFM analysis, hardness of the crystallized HfO{sub 2} film significantly increases. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer By nano-indention, the film hardness increases with less contact stiffness. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Quality assessment on the annealed ultra-thin films can thus be achieved. - Abstract: Ultra-thin hafnium dioxide (HfO{sub 2}) is used to replace silicon dioxide to meet the required transistor feature size in advanced semiconductor industry. The process integration compatibility and long-term reliability for the transistors depend on the mechanical performance of ultra-thin HfO{sub 2} films. The criteria of reliability including wear resistance, thermal fatigue, and stress-driven failure rely on film adhesion significantly. The adhesion and variations in mechanical properties induced by thermal annealing of the ultra-thin HfO{sub 2} films deposited on silicon wafers (HfO{sub 2}/SiO{sub 2}/Si) are not fully understood. In this work, the mechanical properties of an atomic layer deposited HfO{sub 2} (nominal thickness Almost-Equal-To 10 nm) on a silicon wafer were characterized by the diamond-coated tip of an atomic force microscope and compared with those of annealed samples. The results indicate that the annealing process leads to the formation of crystallized HfO{sub 2} phases for the atomic layer deposited HfO{sub 2}. The HfSi{sub x}O{sub y} complex formed at the interface between HfO{sub 2} and SiO{sub 2}/Si, where the thermal diffusion of Hf, Si, and O atoms occurred. The annealing process increases the surface hardness of crystallized HfO{sub 2} film and therefore the resistance to nano-scratches. In addition, the annealing process significantly decreases the harmonic contact stiffness (or thereafter eliminate the stress at the interface) and increases the nano-hardness, as measured by vertically

Determination of young's modulus of PZT and CO80Ni20 thin films by means of micromachined cantilevers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nazeer, H.; Abelmann, Leon; Tas, Niels Roelof; van Honschoten, J.W.; Siekman, Martin Herman; Elwenspoek, Michael Curt

2009-01-01

This paper presents a technique to determine the Young’s modulus and residual stress of thin films using a simple micromachined silicon cantilever as the test structure. An analytical relation was developed based on the shift in resonance frequency caused by the addition of a thin film on the

Organic thin films and surfaces directions for the nineties

CERN Document Server

Ulman, Abraham

1995-01-01

Physics of Thin Films has been one of the longest running continuing series in thin film science consisting of 20 volumes since 1963. The series contains some of the highest quality studies of the properties ofvarious thin films materials and systems.In order to be able to reflect the development of todays science and to cover all modern aspects of thin films, the series, beginning with Volume 20, will move beyond the basic physics of thin films. It will address the most important aspects of both inorganic and organic thin films, in both their theoretical as well as technological aspects. Ther

Internal friction study of microplasticity of aluminum thin films on silicon substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nishio, Y.; Tanahashi, K.; Asano, S. [Nagoya Institute of Technology, Nagoya (Japan)

1995-12-01

Internal friction in aluminum thin films 0.2 to 2.0 {mu}m thick on silicon substrates has been investigated between 180 and 360 K as a function of strain amplitude by means of a free-decay method of flexural vibration. According to the constitutive equation, the internal friction in the film alone can be evaluated separately from the data on the film/substrate composite. The amplitude-dependent part of internal friction in aluminum films is found in the strain range approximately two orders of magnitude higher than that for bulk aluminum. On the basis of the microplasticity theory, the amplitude-dependent internal friction can be converted into the plastic strain as a function of the effective stress on dislocation motion. The mechanical responses thus obtained for aluminum films show that the plastic strain of the order of 10-9 in creases nonlinearly with increasing stress. These curves tend to shift to a higher stress with decreasing film thickness and also with decreasing temperature, both indicating a suppression of the microplastic deformation. At all temperatures examined, the microflow stress at a constant level of the plastic strain varies inversely with the film thickness, which qualitatively agrees with the variation in macroscopic yield stress. 36 refs., 7 figs.

Indenting a Thin Floating Film: Force and First-fold Formation

Science.gov (United States)

Ripp, Monica; Paulsen, Joseph

2017-11-01

When a thin elastic sheet is gently pushed into a liquid bath, a pattern of radial wrinkles is generated where the film is locally compressed. Despite the simplicity of this setting, basic questions remain about the mechanics and morphology of indented thin films. Recent work shows that traditional post-buckling analysis must be supplanted with an analysis where wrinkles completely relax compressive stresses. Support for this ``far-from-threshold'' theory has been built on measurements of wrinkle extent and wavelength, but direct force measurements have been absent. Here we measure the force response of floating ultrathin ( 100 nm) polystyrene films in indentation experiments. Our measurements are in good agreement with recent predictions for two regimes of poking: Early on force depends on film properties (thickness and Young's modulus) and later is independent of film properties, simply transferring forces from the substrate (gravity and surface tension) to the poker. At larger indentations compression localizes into a single fold. We present scaling arguments and experiments that show the existing model of this transition must be modified. NSF IGERT, NSF CAREER.

Influence of white light illumination on the performance of a-IGZO thin film transistor under positive gate-bias stress

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Lan-Feng; Yu, Guang; Lu, Hai; Wu, Chen-Fei; Qian, Hui-Min; Zhou, Dong; Zhang, Rong; Zheng, You-Dou; Huang, Xiao-Ming

2015-08-01

The influence of white light illumination on the stability of an amorphous InGaZnO thin film transistor is investigated in this work. Under prolonged positive gate bias stress, the device illuminated by white light exhibits smaller positive threshold voltage shift than the device stressed under dark. There are simultaneous degradations of field-effect mobility for both stressed devices, which follows a similar trend to that of the threshold voltage shift. The reduced threshold voltage shift under illumination is explained by a competition between bias-induced interface carrier trapping effect and photon-induced carrier detrapping effect. It is further found that white light illumination could even excite and release trapped carriers originally exiting at the device interface before positive gate bias stress, so that the threshold voltage could recover to an even lower value than that in an equilibrium state. The effect of photo-excitation of oxygen vacancies within the a-IGZO film is also discussed. Project supported by the State Key Program for Basic Research of China (Grant Nos. 2011CB301900 and 2011CB922100) and the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions, China.

Novel chemical analysis for thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Usui, Toshio; Kamei, Masayuki; Aoki, Yuji; Morishita, Tadataka; Tanaka, Shoji

1991-01-01

Scanning electron microscopy and total-reflection-angle X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-TRAXS) was applied for fluorescence X-ray analysis of 50A- and 125A-thick Au thin films on Si(100). The intensity of the AuM line (2.15 keV) emitted from the Au thin films varied as a function of the take-off angle (θ t ) with respect to the film surface; the intensity of AuM line from the 125A-thick Au thin film was 1.5 times as large as that of SiK α line (1.74 keV) emitted from the Si substrate when θ t = 0deg-3deg, in the vicinity of a critical angle for total external reflection of the AuM line at Si (0.81deg). In addition, the intensity of the AuM line emitted from the 50A-thick Au thin film was also sufficiently strong for chemical analysis. (author)

Nanostructured thin film coatings with different strengthening effects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Panfilov Yury

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A number of articles on strengthening thin film coatings were analyzed and a lot of unusual strengthening effects, such as super high hardness and plasticity simultaneously, ultra low friction coefficient, high wear-resistance, curve rigidity increasing of drills with small diameter, associated with process formation of nanostructured coatings by the different thin film deposition methods were detected. Vacuum coater with RF magnetron sputtering system and ion-beam source and arc evaporator for nanostructured thin film coating manufacture are represented. Diamond Like Carbon and MoS2 thin film coatings, Ti, Al, Nb, Cr, nitride, carbide, and carbo-nitride thin film materials are described as strengthening coatings.

RF magnetron sputtered TiNiCu shape memory alloy thin film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu Yongqing; Du Hejun

2003-01-01

Shape memory alloys (SMAs) offer a unique combination of novel properties, such as shape memory effect, super-elasticity, biocompatibility and high damping capacity, and thin film SMAs have the potential to become a primary actuating mechanism for micro-actuators. In this study, TiNiCu films were successfully prepared by mix sputtering of a Ti 55 Ni 45 target with a separated Cu target. Crystalline structure, residual stress and phase transformation properties of the TiNiCu films were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and curvature measurement methods. Effects of the processing parameters on the film composition, phase transformation and shape-memory effects were analyzed. Results showed that films prepared at a high Ar gas pressure exhibited a columnar structure, while films deposited at a low Ar gas pressure showed smooth and featureless structure. Chemical composition of TiNiCu thin films was dependent on the DC power of copper target. DSC, XRD and curvature measurement revealed clearly the martensitic transformation of the deposited TiNiCu films. When the free-standing film was heated and cooled, a 'two-way' shape-memory effect can be clearly observed

Thin Film Photovoltaics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zweibel, K.

1998-11-19

The motivation to develop thin film technologies dates back to the inception of photovoltaics. It is an idea based on achieving truly low-cost photovoltaics appropriate for mass production and energy significant markets. The key to the idea is the use of pennies worth of active materials. Since sunlight carries relatively little energy in comparison with combustion-based energy sources, photovoltaic (PV) modules must be cheap to produce energy that can be competitive. Thin films are presumed to be the answer to that low-cost requirement. But how cheap do they have to be? The following is an oversimplified analysis that allows some insight into this question.

Thin films: Past, present, future

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zweibel, K

1995-04-01

This report describes the characteristics of the thin film photovoltaic modules necessary for an acceptable rate of return for rural areas and underdeveloped countries. The topics of the paper include a development of goals of cost and performance for an acceptable PV system, a review of current technologies for meeting these goals, issues and opportunities in thin film technologies.

Non-linear optics of nano-scale pentacene thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Yahia, I. S.; Alfaify, S.; Jilani, Asim; Abdel-wahab, M. Sh.; Al-Ghamdi, Attieh A.; Abutalib, M. M.; Al-Bassam, A.; El-Naggar, A. M.

2016-07-01

We have found the new ways to investigate the linear/non-linear optical properties of nanostructure pentacene thin film deposited by thermal evaporation technique. Pentacene is the key material in organic semiconductor technology. The existence of nano-structured thin film was confirmed by atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The wavelength-dependent transmittance and reflectance were calculated to observe the optical behavior of the pentacene thin film. It has been observed the anomalous dispersion at wavelength λ 800. The non-linear refractive index of the deposited films was investigated. The linear optical susceptibility of pentacene thin film was calculated, and we observed the non-linear optical susceptibility of pentacene thin film at about 6 × 10-13 esu. The advantage of this work is to use of spectroscopic method to calculate the liner and non-liner optical response of pentacene thin films rather than expensive Z-scan. The calculated optical behavior of the pentacene thin films could be used in the organic thin films base advanced optoelectronic devices such as telecommunications devices.

Oxidation of ruthenium thin films using atomic oxygen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McCoy, A.P.; Bogan, J.; Brady, A.; Hughes, G.

2015-12-31

In this study, the use of atomic oxygen to oxidise ruthenium thin films is assessed. Atomic layer deposited (ALD) ruthenium thin films (~ 3 nm) were exposed to varying amounts of atomic oxygen and the results were compared to the impact of exposures to molecular oxygen. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies reveal substantial oxidation of metallic ruthenium films to RuO{sub 2} at exposures as low as ~ 10{sup 2} L at 575 K when atomic oxygen was used. Higher exposures of molecular oxygen resulted in no metal oxidation highlighting the benefits of using atomic oxygen to form RuO{sub 2}. Additionally, the partial oxidation of these ruthenium films occurred at temperatures as low as 293 K (room temperature) in an atomic oxygen environment. - Highlights: • X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study of the oxidation of Ru thin films • Oxidation of Ru thin films using atomic oxygen • Comparison between atomic oxygen and molecular oxygen treatments on Ru thin films • Fully oxidised RuO{sub 2} thin films formed with low exposures to atomic oxygen.

The correlation between mechanical stress and magnetic anisotropy in ultrathin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sander, D.

1999-01-01

The impact of stress-driven structural transitions and of film strain on the magnetic properties of nm ferromagnetic films is discussed. The stress-induced bending of film-substrate composites is analysed to derive information on film stress due to lattice mismatch or due to surface-stress effects. The magneto-elastic coupling in epitaxial films is determined directly from the magnetostrictive bending of the substrate. The combination of stress measurements with magnetic investigations by the magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) reveals the modification of the magnetic anisotropy by film stress. Stress-strain relations are derived for various epitaxial orientations to facilitate the analysis of the substrate curvature. Biaxial film stress and magneto-elastic coupling coefficients are measured in epitaxial Fe films in situ on W single-crystal substrates. Tremendous film stress of more than 10 GPa is measured in pseudomorphic Fe layers, and the important role of film stress as a driving force for the formation of misfit distortions and for inducing changes of the growth mode in monolayer thin films is presented. The direct measurement of the magneto-elastic coupling in epitaxial films proves that the magnitude and sign of the magneto-elastic coupling deviate from the respective bulk value. Even a small film strain of order 0.1% is found to induce a significant change of the effective magneto-elastic coupling coefficient. This peculiar behaviour is ascribed to a second-order strain dependence of the magneto-elastic energy density, in contrast to the linear strain dependence that is valid for bulk samples. (author)

Thin Films in the Photovoltaic Industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaeger-Waldau, A.

2008-03-01

In the past years, the yearly world market growth rate for Photovoltaics was an average of more than 40%, which makes it one of the fastest growing industries at present. Business analysts predict the market volume to increase to 40 billion euros in 2010 and expect rising profit margins and lower prices for consumers at the same time. Today PV is still dominated by wafer based Crystalline Silicon Technology as the 'working horse' in the global market, but thin films are gaining market shares. For 2007 around 12% are expected. The current silicon shortage and high demand has kept prices higher than anticipated from the learning curve experience and has widened the windows of opportunities for thin film solar modules. Current production capacity estimates for thin films vary between 3 and 6 GW in 2010, representing a 20% market share for these technologies. Despite the higher growth rates for thin film technologies compared with the industry average, Thin Film Photovoltaic Technologies are still facing a number of challenges to maintain this growth and increase market shares. The four main topics which were discussed during the workshop were: Potential for cost reduction; Standardization; Recycling; Performance over the lifetime.

Nanostructured thin films and coatings functional properties

CERN Document Server

Zhang, Sam

2010-01-01

The second volume in ""The Handbook of Nanostructured Thin Films and Coatings"" set, this book focuses on functional properties, including optical, electronic, and electrical properties, as well as related devices and applications. It explores the large-scale fabrication of functional thin films with nanoarchitecture via chemical routes, the fabrication and characterization of SiC nanostructured/nanocomposite films, and low-dimensional nanocomposite fabrication and applications. The book also presents the properties of sol-gel-derived nanostructured thin films as well as silicon nanocrystals e

Elastic Moduli of Nanoparticle-Polymer Composite Thin Films via Buckling on Elastomeric Substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Hongyi; Karim, Alamgir; University of Akron Team

2011-03-01

Polymeric thin films find applications in diverse areas such as coatings, barriers and packaging. The dispersion of nanoparticles into the films was proven to be an effective method to generate tunable properties, particularly mechanical strength. However, there are very few methods for mechanical characterization of the composite thin films with high accuracy. In this study, nanometric polystyrene and polyvinyl alcohol films with uniformly dispersed cobalt and Cloisite nanoparticles at varying concentrations were synthesized via flow-coating and then transferred to crosslinked polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) flexible substrates. The technique of Strain-Induced Elastic Buckling Instability for Mechanical Measurements (SIEBIMM) was employed to determine the elastic moduli of the films, which were calculated from the buckling patterns generated by applying compressive stresses. Results on moduli of films as a function of the concentrations of nanoparticles and the thicknesses of the composite films will be presented. *Corresponding author: alamgir@uakron.edu

An investigation into which factors control the nanotribological behaviour of thin sputtered carbon films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi Baogui; Sullivan, John L; Beake, Ben D

2008-01-01

Ultra-thin (20-100 nm) films deposited on Si surfaces can improve their mechanical and tribological properties. As a stepping stone towards the optimization of such ultra-thin films, herein we report experimental nanoscratch and nanowear data on a-C films of thickness in the range 200-1000 nm on Si aiming to (1) understand the role of film thickness on the nanoscratch behaviour, (2) determine whether the same factors (substrate bias, H/E ratio, etc) are at play for thick films as for the thin films, (3) determine possible design rules for thinner films enabling their optimization for MEMS applications and (4) evaluate the use of the multi-pass (3-scan) procedure for clarifying the locus of failure. To a first approximation, the critical load for total film failure in the nanoscratch test is proportional to thickness provided the films are not too stressed. a-C films of 1 μm with very high H/E, deposited under high substrate bias, perform well at low load but very poorly in more highly loaded situations. Not only do they exhibit low critical loads but also failure involves extensive delamination outside of the scratch track. This is not observed on thinner films. A suitable strategy for optimizing wear resistance for thin films for MEMS applications is to aim to maximize H/E. For the 200 nm films studied here, the films with the highest H/E showed slightly improved scratch resistance

Effect of hydrogen on stresses in anodic oxide film on titanium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Joong-Do; Pyun, Su-Il; Seo, Masahiro

2003-01-01

Stresses in anodic oxide film on titanium thin film/glass electrode in pH 8.4 borate solution were investigated by a bending beam method. The increases in compressive stress observed with cathodic potential sweeps after formation of anodic oxide film were attributed to the volume expansion due to the compositional change of anodic oxide film from TiO 2 to TiO 2-x (OH) x . The instantaneous responses of changes in stress, Δσ, in the anodic oxide film to potential steps demonstrated the reversible characteristic of the TiO 2-x (OH) x formation reaction. In contrast, the transient feature of Δσ for the titanium without anodic oxide film represented the irreversible formation of TiH x at the metal/oxide interphase. The large difference in stress between with and without the oxide film, has suggested that most of stresses generated during the hydrogen absorption/desorption reside in the anodic oxide film. A linear relationship between changes in stress, Δ(Δσ) des , and electric charge, ΔQ des , during hydrogen desorption was found from the current and stress transients, manifesting that the stress changes were crucially determined by the amount of hydrogen desorbed from the oxide film. The increasing tendency of -Δ(Δσ) des with increasing number of potential steps and film formation potential were discussed in connection with the increase in desorption amount of hydrogen in the oxide film with increasing absorption/desorption cycles and oxide film thickness

Intrinsically conductive polymer thin film piezoresistors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lillemose, Michael; Spieser, Martin; Christiansen, N.O.

2008-01-01

We report on the piezoresistive effect in the intrinsically conductive polymer, polyaniline. A process recipe for indirect patterning of thin film polyaniline has been developed. Using a specially designed chip, the polyaniline thin films have been characterised with respect to resistivity...

Thermal expansion coefficients of obliquely deposited MgF2 thin films and their intrinsic stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaing, Cheng-Chung

2011-03-20

This study elucidates the effects of columnar angles and deposition angles on the thermal expansion coefficients and intrinsic stress behaviors of MgF2 films with columnar microstructures. The behaviors associated with temperature-dependent stresses in the MgF2 films are measured using a phase-shifting Twyman-Green interferometer with a heating stage and the application of a phase reduction algorithm. The thermal expansion coefficients of MgF2 films at various columnar angles were larger than those of glass substrates. The intrinsic stress in the MgF2 films with columnar microstructures was compressive, while the thermal stress was tensile. The thermal expansion coefficients of MgF2 films with columnar microstructures and their intrinsic stress evidently depended on the deposition angle and the columnar angle.

Probing-models for interdigitated electrode systems with ferroelectric thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Cuong H.; Nigon, Robin; Raeder, Trygve M.; Hanke, Ulrik; Halvorsen, Einar; Muralt, Paul

2018-05-01

In this paper, a new method to characterize ferroelectric thin films with interdigitated electrodes is presented. To obtain accurate properties, all parasitic contributions should be subtracted from the measurement results and accurate models for the ferroelectric film are required. Hence, we introduce a phenomenological model for the parasitic capacitance. Moreover, two common analytical models based on conformal transformations are compared and used to calculate the capacitance and the electric field. With a thin film approximation, new simplified electric field and capacitance formulas are derived. By using these formulas, more consistent CV, PV and stress-field loops for samples with different geometries are obtained. In addition, an inhomogeneous distribution of the permittivity due to the non-uniform electric field is modelled by finite element simulation in an iterative way. We observed that this inhomogeneous distribution can be treated as a homogeneous one with an effective value of the permittivity.

Thermal conductivity model for nanoporous thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Congliang; Zhao, Xinpeng; Regner, Keith; Yang, Ronggui

2018-03-01

Nanoporous thin films have attracted great interest because of their extremely low thermal conductivity and potential applications in thin thermal insulators and thermoelectrics. Although there are some numerical and experimental studies about the thermal conductivity of nanoporous thin films, a simplified model is still needed to provide a straightforward prediction. In this paper, by including the phonon scattering lifetimes due to film thickness boundary scattering, nanopore scattering and the frequency-dependent intrinsic phonon-phonon scattering, a fitting-parameter-free model based on the kinetic theory of phonon transport is developed to predict both the in-plane and the cross-plane thermal conductivities of nanoporous thin films. With input parameters such as the lattice constants, thermal conductivity, and the group velocity of acoustic phonons of bulk silicon, our model shows a good agreement with available experimental and numerical results of nanoporous silicon thin films. It illustrates that the size effect of film thickness boundary scattering not only depends on the film thickness but also on the size of nanopores, and a larger nanopore leads to a stronger size effect of the film thickness. Our model also reveals that there are different optimal structures for getting the lowest in-plane and cross-plane thermal conductivities.

Thin film materials: stress, defect formation, and surface evolution

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Freund, L. B; Suresh, S

2003-01-01

... scientific basis with which stress, deformation and failure in thin film materials can be characterized, an attempt is also made to link the scientific concepts to a broad range of practical applications through example problems, historical notes, case studies and exercises. Of particular interest to engineers, materials scientists and physicist...

A Homogenized Free Energy Model for Hysteresis in Thin-film Shape Memory Alloys

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Massad, Jordan E; Smith, Ralph C

2004-01-01

Thin-film shape memory alloys (SMAs) have become excellent candidates for microactuator fabrication in MEMS due to their capability to achieve very high work densities, produce large deformations, and generate high stresses...

Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Hao; Hong Jiawang; Zhang Yihui; Li Faxin; Pei Yongmao; Fang Daining

2012-01-01

Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO 3 thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.

Flexoelectricity induced increase of critical thickness in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou Hao [State Key Laboratory for Turbulence and Complex Systems, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Hong Jiawang; Zhang Yihui [Department of Engineering Mechanics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China); Li Faxin [State Key Laboratory for Turbulence and Complex Systems, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Pei Yongmao, E-mail: peiym@pku.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory for Turbulence and Complex Systems, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Fang Daining, E-mail: fangdn@pku.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory for Turbulence and Complex Systems, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871 (China); Department of Engineering Mechanics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084 (China)

2012-09-01

Flexoelectricity describes the coupling between polarization and strain/stress gradients in insulating crystals. In this paper, using the Landau-Ginsburg-Devonshire phenomenological approach, we found that flexoelectricity could increase the theoretical critical thickness in epitaxial BaTiO{sub 3} thin films, below which the switchable spontaneous polarization vanishes. This increase is remarkable in tensile films while trivial in compressive films due to the electrostriction caused decrease of potential barrier, which can be easily destroyed by the flexoelectricity, between the ferroelectric state and the paraelectric state in tensile films. In addition, the films are still in a uni-polar state even below the critical thickness due to the flexoelectric effect.

Fundamental Mechanisms of Roughening and Smoothing During Thin Film Deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Headrick, Randall [Univ. of Vermont, Burlington, VT (United States)

2016-03-18

In this research program, we have explored the fundamental limits for thin film deposition in both crystalline and amorphous (i.e. non-crystalline) materials systems. For vacuum-based physical deposition processes such as sputter deposition, the background gas pressure of the inert gas (usually argon) used as the process gas has been found to be a key variable. Both a roughness transition and stress transition as a function of pressure have been linked to a common mechanism involving collisions of energetic particles from the deposition source with the process inert gas. As energetic particles collide with gas molecules in the deposition process they lose their energy rapidly if the pressure (and background gas density) is above a critical value. Both roughness and stress limit important properties of thin films for applications. In the area of epitaxial growth we have also discovered a related effect; there is a critical pressure below which highly crystalline layers grow in a layer-by-layer mode. This effect is also though to be due to energetic particle thermalization and scattering. Several other important effects such as the observation of coalescence dominated growth has been observed. This mode can be likened to the behavior of two-dimensional water droplets on the hood of a car during a rain storm; as the droplets grow and touch each other they tend to coalesce rapidly into new larger circular puddles, and this process proceeds exponentially as larger puddles overtake smaller ones and also merge with other large puddles. This discovery will enable more accurate simulations and modeling of epitaxial growth processes. We have also observed that epitaxial films undergo a roughening transition as a function of thickness, which is attributed to strain induced by the crystalline lattice mismatch with the substrate crystal. In addition, we have studied another physical deposition process called pulsed laser deposition. It differs from sputter deposition due to the

Influence of annealing temperature on ZnO thin films grown by dual ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Administrator

In electrical characterization as well, when annealing temperature was increased .... of ZnO (002) peaks and (c) crystallite size and stress generation on ZnO thin films ... sufficient kinetic energy and surface mobility to occupy stable positions ...

Photoinduced hydrophobic surface of graphene oxide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Xiaoyan; Song Peng; Cui Xiaoli

2012-01-01

Graphene oxide (GO) thin films were deposited on transparent conducting oxide substrates and glass slides by spin coating method at room temperature. The wettability of GO thin films before and after ultraviolet (UV) irradiation was characterized with water contact angles, which increased from 27.3° to 57.6° after 3 h of irradiation, indicating a photo-induced hydrophobic surface. The UV–vis absorption spectra, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and conductivity measurements of GO films before and after UV irradiation were taken to study the mechanism of photoinduced hydrophobic surface of GO thin films. It is demonstrated that the photoinduced hydrophobic surface is ascribed to the elimination of oxygen-containing functional groups on GO molecules. This work provides a simple strategy to control the wettability properties of GO thin films by UV irradiation. - Highlights: ► Photoinduced hydrophobic surface of graphene oxide thin films has been demonstrated. ► Elimination of oxygen-containing functional groups in graphene oxide achieved by UV irradiation. ► We provide novel strategy to control surface wettability of GO thin films by UV irradiation.

Optical thin film deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macleod, H.A.

1979-01-01

The potential usefulness in the production of optical thin-film coatings of some of the processes for thin film deposition which can be classified under the heading of ion-assisted techniques is examined. Thermal evaporation is the process which is virtually universally used for this purpose and which has been developed to a stage where performance is in almost all respects high. Areas where further improvements would be of value, and the possibility that ion-assisted deposition might lead to such improvements, are discussed. (author)

Optical thin films and coatings from materials to applications

CERN Document Server

Flory, Francois

2013-01-01

Optical coatings, including mirrors, anti-reflection coatings, beam splitters, and filters, are an integral part of most modern optical systems. This book provides an overview of thin film materials, the properties, design and manufacture of optical coatings and their use across a variety of application areas.$bOptical coatings, including mirrors, anti-reflection coatings, beam splitters, and filters, are an integral part of most modern optical systems. Optical thin films and coatings provides an overview of thin film materials, the properties, design and manufacture of optical coatings and their use across a variety of application areas. Part one explores the design and manufacture of optical coatings. Part two highlights unconventional features of optical thin films including scattering properties of random structures in thin films, optical properties of thin film materials at short wavelengths, thermal properties and colour effects. Part three focusses on novel materials for optical thin films and coatings...

Observation of ultraslow stress release in silicon nitride films on CaF2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guo, Tianyi; Deen, M. Jamal; Xu, Changqing; Fang, Qiyin; Selvaganapathy, P. Ravi; Zhang, Haiying

2015-01-01

Silicon nitride thin films are deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition on (100) and (111) CaF 2 crystalline substrates. Delaminated wavy buckles formed during the release of internal compressive stress in the films and the stress releasing processes are observed macroscopically and microscopically. The stress release patterns start from the substrate edges and propagate to the center along defined directions aligned with the crystallographic orientations of the substrate. The stress releasing velocity of SiN x film on (111) CaF 2 is larger than that of SiN x film with the same thickness on (100) CaF 2 . The velocities of SiN x film on both (100) and (111) CaF 2 increase with the film thickness. The stress releasing process is initiated when the films are exposed to atmosphere, but it is not a chemical change from x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Sputtering materials for VLSI and thin film devices

CERN Document Server

Sarkar, Jaydeep

2010-01-01

An important resource for students, engineers and researchers working in the area of thin film deposition using physical vapor deposition (e.g. sputtering) for semiconductor, liquid crystal displays, high density recording media and photovoltaic device (e.g. thin film solar cell) manufacturing. This book also reviews microelectronics industry topics such as history of inventions and technology trends, recent developments in sputtering technologies, manufacturing steps that require sputtering of thin films, the properties of thin films and the role of sputtering target performance on overall p

Intrinsic stress in ZrN thin films: Evaluation of grain boundary contribution from in situ wafer curvature and ex situ x-ray diffraction techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koutsokeras, L. E.; Abadias, G.

2012-01-01

Low-mobility materials, like transition metal nitrides, usually undergo large residual stress when sputter-deposited as thin films. While the origin of stress development has been an active area of research for high-mobility materials, atomistic processes are less understood for low-mobility systems. In the present work, the contribution of grain boundary to intrinsic stress in reactively magnetron-sputtered ZrN films is evaluated by combining in situ wafer curvature measurements, providing information on the overall biaxial stress, and ex situ x-ray diffraction, giving information on elastic strain (and related stress) inside crystallites. The thermal stress contribution was also determined from the in situ stress evolution during cooling down, after deposition was stopped. The stress data are correlated with variations in film microstructure and growth energetics, in the 0.13-0.42 Pa working pressure range investigated, and discussed based on existing stress models. At low pressure (high energetic bombardment conditions), a large compressive stress is observed due to atomic peening, which induces defects inside crystallites but also promotes incorporation of excess atoms in the grain boundary. Above 0.3-0.4 Pa, the adatom surface mobility is reduced, leading to the build-up of tensile stress resulting from attractive forces between under-dense neighbouring column boundary and possible void formation, while crystallites can still remain under compressive stress.

Piezoelectric MEMS: Ferroelectric thin films for MEMS applications

Science.gov (United States)

Kanno, Isaku

2018-04-01

In recent years, piezoelectric microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have attracted attention as next-generation functional microdevices. Typical applications of piezoelectric MEMS are micropumps for inkjet heads or micro-gyrosensors, which are composed of piezoelectric Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 (PZT) thin films and have already been commercialized. In addition, piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters (PVEHs), which are regarded as one of the key devices for Internet of Things (IoT)-related technologies, are promising future applications of piezoelectric MEMS. Significant features of piezoelectric MEMS are their simple structure and high energy conversion efficiency between mechanical and electrical domains even on the microscale. The device performance strongly depends on the function of the piezoelectric thin films, especially on their transverse piezoelectric properties, indicating that the deposition of high-quality piezoelectric thin films is a crucial technology for piezoelectric MEMS. On the other hand, although the difficulty in measuring the precise piezoelectric coefficients of thin films is a serious obstacle in the research and development of piezoelectric thin films, a simple unimorph cantilever measurement method has been proposed to obtain precise values of the direct or converse transverse piezoelectric coefficient of thin films, and recently this method has become to be the standardized testing method. In this article, I will introduce fundamental technologies of piezoelectric thin films and related microdevices, especially focusing on the deposition of PZT thin films and evaluation methods for their transverse piezoelectric properties.

The role and effect of residual stress on pore generation during anodization of aluminium thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liao, M.W.; Chung, C.K.

2013-01-01

Highlights: •Al films of varying residual stress were prepared by sputtering. •Variation of the residual stress in the Al films influences pore growth during anodization. •The change in average pore size with residual stress is fairly small. •Interaction of residual stress with oxide growth stress leads to change in structure. •Residual tensile stress increases the pore density of porous alumina. -- Abstract: The role and effect of residual stress on pore generation of anodized aluminium oxide (AAO) have been investigated into anodizing the various-residual-stresses aluminium films. The plane stresses were characterised by X-ray diffraction with sin 2 ψ method. The pore density roughly linearly increased with residual stress from 64.6 (−132.5 MPa) to 90.5 pores/μm 2 (135.9 MPa). However, the average pore size around 40 nm was not changed significantly except for the rougher film. The tensile residual stress lessened the compressive oxide growth stress to reduce AAO plastic deformation for higher pore density. The findings provide new foundations for realizing AAO films on silicon

Origin of Degradation Phenomenon under Drain Bias Stress for Oxide Thin Film Transistors using IGZO and IGO Channel Layers

OpenAIRE

Bak, Jun Yong; Kang, Youngho; Yang, Shinhyuk; Ryu, Ho-Jun; Hwang, Chi-Sun; Han, Seungwu; Yoon, Sung-Min

2015-01-01

Top-gate structured thin film transistors (TFTs) using In-Ga-Zn-O (IGZO) and In-Ga-O (IGO) channel compositions were investigated to reveal a feasible origin for degradation phenomenon under drain bias stress (DBS). DBS-driven instability in terms of VTH shift, deviation of the SS value, and increase in the on-state current were detected only for the IGZO-TFT, in contrast to the IGO-TFT, which did not demonstrate VTH shift. These behaviors were visually confirmed via nanoscale transmission el...

Nanometric thin film membranes manufactured on square meter scale: ultra-thin films for CO 2 capture

KAUST Repository

Yave, Wilfredo

2010-09-01

Miniaturization and manipulation of materials at nanometer scale are key challenges in nanoscience and nanotechnology. In membrane science and technology, the fabrication of ultra-thin polymer films (defect-free) on square meter scale with uniform thickness (<100 nm) is crucial. By using a tailor-made polymer and by controlling the nanofabrication conditions, we developed and manufactured defect-free ultra-thin film membranes with unmatched carbon dioxide permeances, i.e. >5 m3 (STP) m-2 h -1 bar-1. The permeances are extremely high, because the membranes are made from a CO2 philic polymer material and they are only a few tens of nanometers thin. Thus, these thin film membranes have potential application in the treatment of large gas streams under low pressure like, e.g., carbon dioxide separation from flue gas. © 2010 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Effect of top gate potential on bias-stress for dual gate amorphous indium-gallium-zinc-oxide thin film transistor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chun, Minkyu; Um, Jae Gwang; Park, Min Sang; Chowdhury, Md Delwar Hossain; Jang, Jin, E-mail: jjang@khu.ac.kr [Advanced Display Research Center and Department of Information Display, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-07-15

We report the abnormal behavior of the threshold voltage (V{sub TH}) shift under positive bias Temperature stress (PBTS) and negative bias temperature stress (NBTS) at top/bottom gate in dual gate amorphous indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (a-IGZO) thin-film transistors (TFTs). It is found that the PBTS at top gate shows negative transfer shift and NBTS shows positive transfer shift for both top and bottom gate sweep. The shift of bottom/top gate sweep is dominated by top gate bias (V{sub TG}), while bottom gate bias (V{sub BG}) is less effect than V{sub TG}. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profile provides the evidence of In metal diffusion to the top SiO{sub 2}/a-IGZO and also the existence of large amount of In{sup +} under positive top gate bias around top interfaces, thus negative transfer shift is observed. On the other hand, the formation of OH{sup −} at top interfaces under the stress of negative top gate bias shows negative transfer shift. The domination of V{sub TG} both on bottom/top gate sweep after PBTS/NBTS is obviously occurred due to thin active layer.

Thin film bismuth iron oxides useful for piezoelectric devices

Science.gov (United States)

Zeches, Robert J.; Martin, Lane W.; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy

2016-05-31

The present invention provides for a composition comprising a thin film of BiFeO.sub.3 having a thickness ranging from 20 nm to 300 nm, a first electrode in contact with the BiFeO.sub.3 thin film, and a second electrode in contact with the BiFeO.sub.3 thin film; wherein the first and second electrodes are in electrical communication. The composition is free or essentially free of lead (Pb). The BFO thin film is has the piezoelectric property of changing its volume and/or shape when an electric field is applied to the BFO thin film.

Tools to synthesize the learning of thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rojas, Roberto; Fuster, Gonzalo; Sluesarenko, Viktor

2011-01-01

After a review of textbooks written for undergraduate courses in physics, we have found that discussions on thin films are mostly incomplete. They consider the reflected and not the transmitted light for two instead of the four types of thin films. In this work, we complement the discussion in elementary textbooks, by analysing the phase differences required to match the conditions for constructive and destructive interference, in the reflected and transmitted light in four types of thin films. We consider thin films with varied sequences in the refractive index, which we identify as barriers, wells and stairs (up and down). Also, we use the conservation of energy in order to understand the complementary colour fringes observed in the reflected and transmitted light through thin films. We analyse systematically the phase changes by introducing a phase table and we synthesize the results in a circular diagram matching 16 physical situations of interference and their corresponding conditions on the film thickness. The phase table and the circular diagram are a pair of tools easily assimilated by students, and useful to organize, analyse and activate the knowledge about thin films.

Stress-induced metallic behavior under magnetic field in Pr1-xCaxMnO3 (x=0.5 and 0.4) thin films (invited)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prellier, W.; Simon, Ch.; Mercey, B.; Hervieu, M.; Haghiri-Gosnet, A. M.; Saurel, D.; Lecoeur, Ph.; Raveau, B.

2001-01-01

We have investigated the role of the stress induced by the presence of the substrate in thin films of colossal magnetoresistive manganites on structural, resistive, and magnetic properties. Because of the strong coupling between the small structural distortions related to the charge ordering (CO) and the resistive properties, the presence of the substrate prevents the full development of the charge ordering in Pr 0.5 Ca 0.5 MnO 3 , especially in the very thin films. For thicker films, the CO state exists, but is not fully developed. Correlatively, the magnetic field which is necessary to suppress the CO is decreased drastically from 25 T to about 5 T on SrTiO 3 substrates. We have also investigated the influence of the doping level by studying the case of Pr 0.6 Ca 0.4 MnO 3 . [copyright] 2001 American Institute of Physics

Influences of W Content on the Phase Transformation Properties and the Associated Stress Change in Thin Film Substrate Combinations Studied by Fabrication and Characterization of Thin Film V1- xW xO2 Materials Libraries.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiao; Rogalla, Detlef; Ludwig, Alfred

2018-04-09

The mechanical stress change of VO 2 film substrate combinations during their reversible phase transformation makes them promising for applications in micro/nanoactuators. V 1- x W x O 2 thin film libraries were fabricated by reactive combinatorial cosputtering to investigate the effects of the addition of W on mechanical and other transformation properties. High-throughput characterization methods were used to systematically determine the composition spread, crystalline structure, surface topography, as well as the temperature-dependent phase transformation properties, that is, the hysteresis curves of the resistance and stress change. The study indicates that as x in V 1- x W x O 2 increases from 0.007 to 0.044 the crystalline structure gradually shifts from the VO 2 (M) phase to the VO 2 (R) phase. The transformation temperature decreases by 15 K/at. % and the resistance change is reduced to 1 order of magnitude, accompanied by a wider transition range and a narrower hysteresis with a minimal value of 1.8 K. A V 1- x W x O 2 library deposited on a Si 3 N 4 /SiO 2 -coated Si cantilever array wafer was used to study simultaneously the temperature-dependent stress change σ( T) of films with different W content through the phase transformation. Compared with σ( T) of ∼700 MPa of a VO 2 film, σ( T) in V 1- x W x O 2 films decreases to ∼250 MPa. Meanwhile, σ( T) becomes less abrupt and occurs over a wider temperature range with decreased transformation temperatures.

Specimen alignment in an axial tensile test of thin films using direct imaging and its influence on the mechanical properties of BeCu

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Dong-Joong; Park, Jun-Hyub; Shin, Myung-Soo; Ha, Jong-Eun; Lee, Hak-Joo

2010-01-01

This paper proposes a new system for verification of the alignment of loading fixtures and test specimens during tensile testing of thin film with a micrometer size through direct imaging. The novel and reliable image recognition system to evaluate the misalignment between the load train and the specimen axes during tensile test of thin film was developed using digital image processing technology with CCD. The decision of whether alignment of the tensile specimen is acceptable or not is based on a probabilistic analysis through the edge feature extraction of digital imaging. In order to verify the performance of the proposed system and investigate the effect of the misalignment of the specimen on tensile properties, the tensile tests were performed as displacement control in air and at room temperature for metal thin film, the beryllium copper (BeCu) alloys. In the case of the metal thin films, bending stresses caused by misalignment are insignificant because the films are easily bent during tensile tests to eliminate the bending stresses. And it was observed that little effects and scatters on tensile properties occur by stress gradient caused by twisting at in-plane misalignment, and the effects and scatters on tensile properties are insignificant at out-of-plane misalignment, in the case of the BeCu thin film.

Two-dimensional superconductivity in ultrathin disordered thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beasley, M.R.

1992-01-01

The status of the understanding of two-dimensional superconductivity in ultrathin, disordered thin films is reviewed. The different consequences of microscopic versus macroscopic disorder are stressed. It is shown that microscopic disorder leads to a rapid suppression of the mean-field transition temperature. The consequences of macroscopic disorder are not well understood, but a universal behavior of the zero-bias resistance as a function of field and temperature has been observed. (orig.)

Stress evaluation in thin films: Micro-focus synchrotron X-ray diffraction combined with focused ion beam patterning for d{sub o} evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baimpas, Nikolaos, E-mail: nikolaos.baimpas@eng.ox.ac.uk [University of Oxford, Dept. of Engineering Science (United Kingdom); Le Bourhis, Eric [University of Poitiers, Institut P' , Laboratoire de Physique des Matériaux, Poitiers (France); Eve, Sophie [ENSICAEN, CRISMAT, Caen (France); Thiaudière, Dominique [Synchrotron SOLEIL, L' Orme des Merisiers Saint-Aubin, Paris (France); Hardie, Christopher [University of Oxford, Materials Department (United Kingdom); Korsunsky, Alexander M. [University of Oxford, Dept. of Engineering Science (United Kingdom)

2013-12-31

Nanocrystalline metallic coatings of sub-micron thickness are widely used in modern microelectronic applications. In X-ray diffraction experiments to determine both the residual and applied stresses in nanocrystalline coatings, one difficult challenge that comes up invariably is the determination of the strain-free lattice spacing d{sub o}. The present study addresses this challenge by using the focused ion beam (FIB) to generate a built-in strain-free reference by patterning (milling) a 50 × 50 μm{sup 2} region of the coating to produce an array of small stress-relieved “islands” ∼ 0.8 × 0.8 μm{sup 2} each. Transmission X-ray diffraction setup was used for data collection at DIFFABS beamline (Synchrotron SOLEIL, France). A 150 nm-thick multi-layered W–Cu nano-composite thin film on polyimide (Kapton®) substrate was studied. The samples were loaded incrementally using a compact uniaxial loading device, and micro-beam diffraction data were collected on and away from the reference array. It was shown experimentally that the “island” array remained approximately strain free throughout the experiment, providing an on-board d{sub o} lattice spacing reference. The changing lattice spacing d in the coating was also monitored away from the array, to deduce the elastic strain evolution during deformation. The results and their implications are presented and discussed. - Highlights: • In situ deformation study of laminate polycrystalline W–Cu thin films • Focused ion beam (FIB) patterning of an array of “islands” on thin films surface • X-ray diffraction on island-patterned region • Constant strain on “islands” independently of the deformation of the substrate.

Molecular simulation of freestanding amorphous nickel thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dong, T.Q. [Université Paris-Est, Laboratoire Modélisation et Simulation Multi Echelle, UMR 8208 CNRS, 5 Boulevard Descartes, 77454 Marne-la-Vallée, Cedex 2 (France); Hoang, V.V., E-mail: vvhoang2002@yahoo.com [Department of Physics, Institute of Technology, National University of Ho Chi Minh City, 268 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City (Viet Nam); Lauriat, G. [Université Paris-Est, Laboratoire Modélisation et Simulation Multi Echelle, UMR 8208 CNRS, 5 Boulevard Descartes, 77454 Marne-la-Vallée, Cedex 2 (France)

2013-10-31

Size effects on glass formation in freestanding Ni thin films have been studied via molecular dynamics simulation with the n-body Gupta interatomic potential. Atomic mechanism of glass formation in the films is determined via analysis of the spatio-temporal arrangements of solid-like atoms occurred upon cooling from the melt. Solid-like atoms are detected via the Lindemann ratio. We find that solid-like atoms initiate and grow mainly in the interior of the film and grow outward. Their number increases with decreasing temperature and at a glass transition temperature they dominate in the system to form a relatively rigid glassy state of a thin film shape. We find the existence of a mobile surface layer in both liquid and glassy states which can play an important role in various surface properties of amorphous Ni thin films. We find that glass formation is size independent for models containing 4000 to 108,000 atoms. Moreover, structure of amorphous Ni thin films has been studied in details via coordination number, Honeycutt–Andersen analysis, and density profile which reveal that amorphous thin films exhibit two different parts: interior and surface layer. The former exhibits almost the same structure like that found for the bulk while the latter behaves a more porous structure containing a large amount of undercoordinated sites which are the origin of various surface behaviors of the amorphous Ni or Ni-based thin films found in practice. - Highlights: • Glass formation is analyzed via spatio-temporal arrangements of solid-like atoms. • Amorphous Ni thin film exhibits two different parts: surface and interior. • Mobile surface layer enhances various surface properties of the amorphous Ni thin films. • Undercoordinated sites play an important role in various surface activities.

Resistivity of thiol-modified gold thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Correa-Puerta, Jonathan; Del Campo, Valeria; Henríquez, Ricardo; Häberle, Patricio

2014-01-01

In this work, we study the effect of thiol self assembled monolayers on the electrical resistivity of metallic thin films. The analysis is based on the Fuchs–Sondheimer–Lucas theory and on electrical transport measurements. We determined resistivity change due to dodecanethiol adsorption on gold thin films. For this purpose, we controlled the deposition and annealing temperatures of the films to change the surface topography and to diminish the effect of electron grain boundary scattering. Results show that the electrical response to the absorption of thiols strongly depends on the initial topography of the surface. - Highlights: • We study the effect of self assembled monolayers on the resistivity of thin films. • Fuchs–Sondheimer theory reproduces the resistivity increase due to thiol deposition. • We determined resistivity change due to dodecanethiol deposition on gold thin films. • The electrical response strongly depends on the substrate surface topography

Resistivity of thiol-modified gold thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Correa-Puerta, Jonathan [Instituto de Física, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Av. Universidad 330, Curauma, Valparaíso (Chile); Del Campo, Valeria [Departamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Av. España 1680, Valparaiso 2390123 (Chile); Henríquez, Ricardo, E-mail: ricardo.henriquez@usm.cl [Departamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Av. España 1680, Valparaiso 2390123 (Chile); Häberle, Patricio [Departamento de Física, Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María, Av. España 1680, Valparaiso 2390123 (Chile)

2014-11-03

In this work, we study the effect of thiol self assembled monolayers on the electrical resistivity of metallic thin films. The analysis is based on the Fuchs–Sondheimer–Lucas theory and on electrical transport measurements. We determined resistivity change due to dodecanethiol adsorption on gold thin films. For this purpose, we controlled the deposition and annealing temperatures of the films to change the surface topography and to diminish the effect of electron grain boundary scattering. Results show that the electrical response to the absorption of thiols strongly depends on the initial topography of the surface. - Highlights: • We study the effect of self assembled monolayers on the resistivity of thin films. • Fuchs–Sondheimer theory reproduces the resistivity increase due to thiol deposition. • We determined resistivity change due to dodecanethiol deposition on gold thin films. • The electrical response strongly depends on the substrate surface topography.

Corrosion resistance of sintered NdFeB coated with SiC/Al bilayer thin films by magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yiqin; Li, Heqin; Zuo, Min; Tao, Lei; Wang, Wei; Zhang, Jing; Tang, Qiong; Bai, Peiwen

2016-07-01

The poor corrosion resistance of sintered NdFeB imposes a great challenge in industrial applications. In this work, the SiC/Al bilayer thin films with the thickness of 510 nm were deposited on sintered NdFeB by magnetron sputtering to improve the corrosion resistance. A 100 nm Al buffer film was used to reduce the internal stress between SiC and NdFeB and improve the surface roughness of the SiC thin film. The morphologies and structures of SiC/Al bilayer thin films and SiC monolayer film were investigated with FESEM, AFM and X-ray diffraction. The corrosion behaviors of sintered NdFeB coated with SiC monolayer film and SiC/Al bilayer thin films were analyzed by polarization curves. The magnetic properties were measured with an ultra-high coercivity permanent magnet pulse tester. The results show that the surface of SiC/Al bilayer thin films is more compact and uniform than that of SiC monolayer film. The corrosion current densities of SiC/Al bilayer films coated on NdFeB in acid, alkali and salt solutions are much lower than that of SiC monolayer film. The SiC/Al bilayer thin films have little influence to the magnetic properties of NdFeB.

Studies on electrodeposited silver sulphide thin films by double exposure holographic interferometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prabhune, V.B.; Shinde, N.S.; Fulari, V.J.

2008-01-01

Silver sulphide (Ag 2 S) thin films have been deposited on to stainless steel and fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrates by the electrodeposition process, in potentiostatic mode using silver nitrate (AgNO 3 ), sodium thiosulphate (Na 2 S 2 O 3 ) as a precursor sources and Ethylene Diamine Tetra Acetic Acid (EDTA) was used as a complexing agent. The deposition potential of the compound was investigated by cyclic voltammetry. The structural and optical properties of the deposited films have been studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and optical absorption techniques, respectively. XRD studies reveal that the films are polycrystalline with monoclinic crystal structure. Optical absorption study shows the presence of direct transition with bandgap energy 1.1 eV. The determination of thickness and stress of the Ag 2 S thin films was carried out by Double Exposure Holographic Interferometry (DEHI) technique.

Disorder–order phase transformation in a fluorite-related oxide thin film: In-situ X-ray diffraction and modelling of the residual stress effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gaboriaud, R.J.; Paumier, F.; Lacroix, B.

2016-01-01

This work is focused on the transformation of the disordered fluorite cubic-F phase to the ordered cubic-C bixbyite phase, induced by isothermal annealing as a function of the residual stresses resulting from different concentrations of microstructural defects in the yttrium oxide, Y_2O_3. This transformation was studied using in-situ X-ray diffraction and was modelled using Kolmogorov–Johnson–Mehl–Avrami (KJMA) analysis. The degree of the disorder of the oxygen network was associated with the residual stress, which was a key parameter for the stability and the kinetics of the transition of the different phases that were present in the thin oxide film. When the degree of disorder/residual stress level is high, this transition, which occurs at a rather low temperature (300 °C), is interpreted as a transformation of phases that occurs by a complete recrystallization via the nucleation and growth of a new cubic-C structure. Using the KJMA model, we determined the activation energy of the transformation process, which indicates that this transition occurs via a one-dimensional diffusion process. Thus, we present the analysis and modelling of the stress state. When the disorder/residual stress level was low, a transition to the quasi-perfect ordered cubic-C structure of the yttrium oxide appeared at a rather high temperature (800 °C), which is interpreted as a classic recovery mechanism of the cubic-C structure. - Highlights: • Rare earth oxide thin films • XRD analysis • Phase transformation modelling • Residual stress effects • Crystallographic phase stability

Disorder–order phase transformation in a fluorite-related oxide thin film: In-situ X-ray diffraction and modelling of the residual stress effects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gaboriaud, R.J.; Paumier, F. [Institut Pprime, Department of Material Sciences, CNRS-University of Poitiers SP2MI-BP 30179, 86962 Futuroscope-Chasseneuil cedex (France); Lacroix, B. [CSIC, Institut de Ciencia de Materiales, University of Sevilla, Avenida Américo Vespucio, 49, 41092 Sevilla (Spain)

2016-02-29

This work is focused on the transformation of the disordered fluorite cubic-F phase to the ordered cubic-C bixbyite phase, induced by isothermal annealing as a function of the residual stresses resulting from different concentrations of microstructural defects in the yttrium oxide, Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}. This transformation was studied using in-situ X-ray diffraction and was modelled using Kolmogorov–Johnson–Mehl–Avrami (KJMA) analysis. The degree of the disorder of the oxygen network was associated with the residual stress, which was a key parameter for the stability and the kinetics of the transition of the different phases that were present in the thin oxide film. When the degree of disorder/residual stress level is high, this transition, which occurs at a rather low temperature (300 °C), is interpreted as a transformation of phases that occurs by a complete recrystallization via the nucleation and growth of a new cubic-C structure. Using the KJMA model, we determined the activation energy of the transformation process, which indicates that this transition occurs via a one-dimensional diffusion process. Thus, we present the analysis and modelling of the stress state. When the disorder/residual stress level was low, a transition to the quasi-perfect ordered cubic-C structure of the yttrium oxide appeared at a rather high temperature (800 °C), which is interpreted as a classic recovery mechanism of the cubic-C structure. - Highlights: • Rare earth oxide thin films • XRD analysis • Phase transformation modelling • Residual stress effects • Crystallographic phase stability.

Atomically flat surface of (0 0 1) textured FePt thin films by residual stress control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, S.H. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Feng Chia University, Taichung 407, Taiwan (China); Hsiao, S.N., E-mail: pmami.hsiao@gmail.com [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Feng Chia University, Taichung 407, Taiwan (China); Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan (China); Chou, C.L.; Chen, S.K. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Feng Chia University, Taichung 407, Taiwan (China); Lee, H.Y. [National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan (China); Department of Applied Science, National Hsinchu University of Education, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan (China)

2015-11-01

Highlights: • We demonstrate crystallographic structure, (0 0 1) texture, surface roughness, and residual stress in the single-layered FePt thin films annealed at various heating rates (10–110 K/s). • Texture coefficient of (0 0 1)-plane of the samples increases with increasing heating rate from 10 to 40 K/s, which is correlated with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and in-plane tensile stress. • Dewetting phenomenon due to stress relaxation leads to the broadening of [0 0 1] easy axis and degradation of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. • A strong dependence of surface roughness on in-plane residual stress was revealed. • When the samples are RTA at 40 K/s, the enhanced perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and atomically surface roughness are achieved. - Abstract: Single-layered Fe{sub 52}Pt{sub 48} films with thickness of 10 nm were sputter-deposited on glass substrates. Rapid thermal annealing with different heating rates (10–110 K/s) was applied to transform as-deposited fcc phase into L1{sub 0} phase and meanwhile to align [0 0 1]-axis of L1{sub 0} crystal along plane normal direction. Based on X-ray diffractometry using synchrotron radiation source, the texture coefficient of (0 0 1)-plane increases with increasing heating rate from 10 to 40 K/s, which is correlated with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and in-plane tensile stress analyzed by asymmetric sin{sup 2} ψ method. Furthermore, it was revealed by atomic force microscopy that the dewetting process occurred as heating rate was raised up to 80 K/s and higher. The change in the microstructure due to stress relaxation leads to the degradation of (0 0 1) orientation and magnetic properties. Surface roughness is closely related to the in-plane tensile stress. Enhanced perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and atomically flat surface were achieved for the samples annealed at 40 K/s, which may be suitable for further practical applications. This work also suggests a feasible way for surface

A Comuputerized DRBEM model for generalized magneto-thermo-visco-elastic stress waves in functionally graded anisotropic thin film/substrate structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Abdelsabour Fahmy

Full Text Available A numerical computer model, based on the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM for studying the generalized magneto-thermo-visco-elastic stress waves in a rotating functionally graded anisotropic thin film/substrate structure under pulsed laser irradiation is established. An implicit-implicit staggered algorithm was proposed and implemented for use with the DRBEM to get the solution for the temperature, displacement components and thermal stress components through the structure thickness. A comparison of the results for different theories is presented in the presence and absence of rotation. Some numerical results that demonstrate the validity of the proposed method are also presented.

Gate voltage and drain current stress instabilities in amorphous In–Ga–Zn–O thin-film transistors with an asymmetric graphene electrode

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joonwoo Kim

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The gate voltage and drain current stress instabilities in amorphous In–Ga–Zn–O thin-film transistors (a-IGZO TFTs having an asymmetric graphene electrode structure are studied. A large positive shift in the threshold voltage, which is well fitted to a stretched-exponential equation, and an increase in the subthreshold slope are observed when drain current stress is applied. This is due to an increase in temperature caused by power dissipation in the graphene/a-IGZO contact region, in addition to the channel region, which is different from the behavior in a-IGZO TFTs with a conventional transparent electrode.

Improvement in interfacial characteristics of low-voltage carbon nanotube thin-film transistors with solution-processed boron nitride thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeon, Jun-Young; Ha, Tae-Jun, E-mail: taejunha0604@gmail.com

2017-08-15

Highlights: • We demonstrate the potential of solution-processed boron nitride (BN) thin films for nanoelectronics. • Improved interfacial characteristics reduced the leakage current by three orders of magnitude. • The BN encapsulation improves all the device key metrics of low-voltage SWCNT-TFTs. • Such improvements were achieved by reduced interaction of interfacial localized states. - Abstract: In this article, we demonstrate the potential of solution-processed boron nitride (BN) thin films for high performance single-walled carbon nanotube thin-film transistors (SWCNT-TFTs) with low-voltage operation. The use of BN thin films between solution-processed high-k dielectric layers improved the interfacial characteristics of metal-insulator-metal devices, thereby reducing the current density by three orders of magnitude. We also investigated the origin of improved device performance in SWCNT-TFTs by employing solution-processed BN thin films as an encapsulation layer. The BN encapsulation layer improves the electrical characteristics of SWCNT-TFTs, which includes the device key metrics of linear field-effect mobility, sub-threshold swing, and threshold voltage as well as the long-term stability against the aging effect in air. Such improvements can be achieved by reduced interaction of interfacial localized states with charge carriers. We believe that this work can open up a promising route to demonstrate the potential of solution-processed BN thin films on nanoelectronics.

Effect of substrate temperature on thermochromic vanadium dioxide thin films sputtered from vanadium target

Science.gov (United States)

Madiba, I. G.; Kotsedi, L.; Ngom, B. D.; Khanyile, B. S.; Maaza, M.

2018-05-01

Vanadium dioxide films have been known as the most promising thermochromic thin films for smart windows which self-control the solar radiation and heat transfer for energy saving, comfort in houses and automotives. Such an attractive technological application is due to the fact that vanadium dioxide crystals exhibit a fast semiconductor-to-metal phase transition at a transition temperature Tc of about 68 °C, together with sharp optical changes from high transmitive to high reflective coatings in the IR spectral region. The phase transition has been associated with the nature of the microstructure, stoichiometry and stresses related to the oxide. This study reports on the effect of the crystallographic quality controlled by the substrate temperature on the thermochromic properties of vanadium dioxide thin films synthesized by reactive radio frequency inverted cylindrical magnetron sputtering from vanadium target. The reports results are based on X-ray diffraction, Atomic force microscopy, and UV-Visible spectrophotometer. The average crystalline grain size of VO2 increases with the substrate temperature, inducing stress related phenomena within the films.

Characterization of nanocrystalline cadmium telluride thin films ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Unknown

tion method, successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR), are described. For deposition of CdTe thin films ... By conducting several trials optimization of the adsorption, reaction and rinsing time duration for CdTe thin film .... The electrical resistivity of CdTe films was studied in air. Figure 3 shows the variation of log ...

Photoluminescence properties of perovskite multilayer thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Macario, Leilane Roberta; Longo, Elson, E-mail: leilanemacario@gmail.com [Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos (UFSCar), SP (Brazil); Mazzo, Tatiana Martelli [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (UNIFESP), SP (Brazil); Bouquet, Valerie; Deputier, Stephanie; Ollivier, Sophie; Guilloux-Viry, Maryline [Universite de Rennes (France)

2016-07-01

Full text: The knowledge of the optical properties of thin films is important in many scientific, technological and industrial applications of thin films such as photoconductivity, solar energy, photography, and numerous other applications [1]. In this study, perovskite type oxides were grown by pulsed laser deposition [2] in order to obtain thin films with applicable optical properties. The LaNiO{sub 3} (LN), BaTiO{sub 3} (BT) and KNbO{sub 3} (KNb) targets were prepared by solid-state reaction. The X-ray Diffraction revealed the presence of the desired phases, containing the elements of interest in the targets and in the thin films that were produced. The LN, BT and KNb thin films were polycrystalline and the corresponding diffraction peaks were indexed in the with JCPDS cards n. 00-033-0711, n. 00-005-0626, and n. 00-009-0156, respectively. The multilayers films were polycrystalline. The majority of the micrographs obtained by scanning electron microscopy presented films with a thickness from 100 to 400 nm. The photoluminescent (PL) emission spectra of thin films show different broad bands that occupies large region of the visible spectrum, ranging from about 300-350 to 600-650 nm of the electromagnetic spectrum. The PL emission is associated with the order-disorder structural, even small structural changes can modify the interactions between electronic states. The structural disorder results in formation of new energy levels in the forbidden region. The proximity or distance of these new energy levels formed in relation to valence band and to the conduction band results in PL spectra located at higher or lower energies. These interactions change the electronic states which can be influenced by defects, particularly the interface defects between the layers of the thin films. The presence of defects results in changes in the broad band matrix intensity and in displacement of the PL emission maximum. (author)

Optical characteristics of the thin-film scintillator detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muga, L.; Burnsed, D.

1976-01-01

A study of the thin-film detector (TFD) was made in which various light guide and scintillator film support configurations were tested for efficiency of light coupling. Masking of selected portions of the photomultiplier (PM) tube face revealed the extent to which emitted light was received at the exposed PM surfaces. By blocking off selected areas of the scintillator film surface from direct view of the PM tube faces, a measure of the light-guiding efficiency of the film and its support could be estimated. The picture that emerges is that, as the light which is initially trapped in the thin film spreads radially outward from the ion entrance/exit point, it is scattered out of the film by minute imperfections. Optimum signals were obtained by a configuration in which the thin scintillator film was supported on a thin rectangular Celluloid frame inserted within a highly polished metal cylindrical sleeve

(0 0 2-oriented growth and morphologies of ZnO thin films prepared by sol-gel method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guo Dongyun

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Zinc acetate was used as a starting material to prepare Zn-solutions from solvents and ligands with different boiling temperature. The ZnO thin films were prepared on Si(1 0 0 substrates by spin-coating method. The effect of baking temperature and boiling temperature of the solvents and ligands on their morphologies and orientation was investigated. The solvents and ligands with high boiling temperature were favorable for relaxation of mechanical stress to form the smooth ZnO thin films. As the solvents and ligands with low boiling temperature were used to prepare Zn-solutions, the prepared ZnO thin films showed (0 0 2 preferred orientation. As n-propanol, 2-methoxyethanol, 2-(methylaminoethanol and monoethanolamine were used to prepare Zn-solutions, highly (0 0 2-oriented ZnO thin films were formed by adjusting the baking temperature.

Tensile stress-dependent fracture behavior and its influences on photovoltaic characteristics in flexible PbS/CdS thin-film solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Seung Min; Yeon, Deuk Ho; Mohanty, Bhaskar Chandra; Cho, Yong Soo

2015-03-04

Tensile stress-dependent fracture behavior of flexible PbS/CdS heterojunction thin-film solar cells on indium tin oxide-coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates is investigated in terms of the variations of fracture parameters with applied strains and their influences on photovoltaic properties. The PbS absorber layer that exhibits only mechanical cracks within the applied strain range from ∼0.67 to 1.33% is prepared by chemical bath deposition at different temperatures of 50, 70, and 90 °C. The PbS thin films prepared at 50 °C demonstrate better mechanical resistance against the applied bending strain with the highest crack initiating bending strain of ∼1.14% and the lowest saturated crack density of 0.036 μm(-1). Photovoltaic properties of the cells depend on the deposition temperature and the level of applied tensile stress. The values of short-circuit current density and fill factor are dramatically reduced above a certain level of applied strain, while open-circuit voltage is nearly maintained. The dependency of photovoltaic properties on the progress of fractures is understood as related to the reduced fracture energy and toughness, which is limitedly controllable by microstructural features of the absorber layer.

Preparation of LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries by a mist CVD process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tadanaga, Kiyoharu, E-mail: tadanaga@chem.osakafu-u.ac.jp [Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, 599-8531 (Japan); Yamaguchi, Akihiro; Sakuda, Atsushi; Hayashi, Akitoshi; Tatsumisago, Masahiro [Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University, Sakai, Osaka, 599-8531 (Japan); Duran, Alicia; Aparacio, Mario [Instituto de Cerámica y Vidrio, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Kelsen 5 (Campus de Cantoblanco), Madrid, 28049 (Spain)

2014-05-01

Highlights: • LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} thin films were prepared by using the mist CVD process. • An aqueous solution of lithium and manganese acetates is used for the precursor solution. • The cell with the LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} thin films exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g. • The cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles. - Abstract: LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} cathode thin films for thin film lithium secondary batteries were prepared by using so-called the “mist CVD process”, employing an aqueous solution of lithium acetate and manganese acetate, as the source of Li and Mn, respectively. The aqueous solution of starting materials was ultrasonically atomized to form mist particles, and mists were transferred by nitrogen gas to silica glass substrate to form thin films. FE-SEM observation revealed that thin films obtained by this process were dense and smooth, and thin films with a thickness of about 750 nm were obtained. The electrochemical cell with the thin films obtained by sintering at 700 °C exhibited a capacity of about 80 mAh/g, and the cell showed good cycling performance during 10 cycles.

MultiLayer solid electrolyte for lithium thin film batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Se -Hee; Tracy, C. Edwin; Pitts, John Roland; Liu, Ping

2015-07-28

A lithium metal thin-film battery composite structure is provided that includes a combination of a thin, stable, solid electrolyte layer [18] such as Lipon, designed in use to be in contact with a lithium metal anode layer; and a rapid-deposit solid electrolyte layer [16] such as LiAlF.sub.4 in contact with the thin, stable, solid electrolyte layer [18]. Batteries made up of or containing these structures are more efficient to produce than other lithium metal batteries that use only a single solid electrolyte. They are also more resistant to stress and strain than batteries made using layers of only the stable, solid electrolyte materials. Furthermore, lithium anode batteries as disclosed herein are useful as rechargeable batteries.

Fractal and multifractal analysis of LiF thin film surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yadav, R.P.; Dwivedi, S.; Mittal, A.K.; Kumar, M.; Pandey, A.C.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Fractal and multifractal analysis of surface morphologies of the LiF thin films. ► Complexity and roughness of the LiF thin films increases as thickness increases. ► LiF thin films are multifractal in nature. ► Strength of the multifractality increases with thickness of the film. - Abstract: Fractal and multifractal analysis is performed on the atomic force microscopy (AFM) images of the surface morphologies of the LiF thin films of thickness 10 nm, 20 nm, and 40 nm, respectively. Autocorrelation function, height–height correlation function, and two-dimensional multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MFDFA) are used for characterizing the surface. It is found that the interface width, average roughness, lateral correlation length, and fractal dimension of the LiF thin film increase with the thickness of the film, whereas the roughness exponent decreases with thickness. Thus, the complexity and roughness of the LiF thin films increases as thickness increases. It is also demonstrated that the LiF thin films are multifractal in nature. Strength of the multifractality increases with thickness of the film.

Improvement in gate bias stress instability of amorphous indium-gallium-zinc oxide thin-film transistors using microwave irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jo, Kwang-Won; Cho, Won-Ju, E-mail: chowj@kw.ac.kr [Department of Electronic Materials Engineering, Kwangwoon University, 447-1, Wolgye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul 139-701 (Korea, Republic of)

2014-11-24

In this study, we evaluated the effects of microwave irradiation (MWI) post-deposition-annealing (PDA) treatment on the gate bias stress instability of amorphous indium-gallium-zinc oxide thin-film transistors (a-IGZO TFTs) and compared the results with a conventional thermal annealing PDA treatment. The MWI-PDA-treated a-IGZO TFTs exhibited enhanced electrical performance as well as improved long-term stability with increasing microwave power. The positive turn-on voltage shift (ΔV{sub ON}) as a function of stress time with positive bias and varying temperature was precisely modeled on a stretched-exponential equation, suggesting that charge trapping is a dominant mechanism in the instability of MWI-PDA-treated a-IGZO TFTs. The characteristic trapping time and average effective barrier height for electron transport indicate that the MWI-PDA treatment effectively reduces the defects in a-IGZO TFTs, resulting in a superior resistance against gate bias stress.