The Cracking and Decohesion of Thin Films

1987 ◽  
Vol 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. G. Evans ◽  
M. D. Drory ◽  
M. S. Hu
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Yield Strength ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Elastic Properties ◽  
Fracture Resistance ◽  
Substrate Thickness ◽  
Dimensional Parameter ◽  
The Status ◽  
Ductile Substrates

ABSTRACTThe cracking and decohesion of thin films can be characterized by critical values of a non-dimensional parameter governed by the residual stress, the film thickness and a fracture resistance. This article describes the status of understanding concerning the magnitude of this number for various types of adherent film on either brittle or ductile substrates. Important effects of elastic properties, substrate thickness and yield strength are described.

The cracking and decohesion of thin films

1988 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 1043-1049 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. G. Evans ◽  
M. D. Drory ◽  
M. S. Hu
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Yield Strength ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Elastic Properties ◽  
Fracture Resistance ◽  
Critical Values ◽  
Substrate Thickness ◽  
The Status ◽  
Ductile Substrates

The cracking and decohesion of thin films can be characterized by critical values of a nondimensional parameter governed by the residual stress, the film thickness, and a fracture resistance. This article reviews the status of understanding concerning the magnitude of this number for various types of adherent film on either brittle or ductile substrates. Important effects of elastic properties, substrate thickness, and yield strength are described.

Film thickness effect on texture and residual stress sign transition in sputtered TiN thin films

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (15) ◽  
pp. 11992-11997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yeting Xi ◽  
Kewei Gao ◽  
Xiaolu Pang ◽  
Huisheng Yang ◽  
Xiaotao Xiong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Thickness Effect ◽  
Tin Thin Films

Measurements of Residual Stresses in Low-Stress Silicon Nitride Thin Films Using Micro-Rotating Structures

1996 ◽  
Vol 444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Zhang ◽  
Yitshak Zohar ◽  
Tong-Yi Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Finite Element Method ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Finite Element ◽  
Silicon Nitride ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Strain Measurement ◽  
Strain Measurements ◽  
Micro Structures ◽  
Gas Ratio

AbstractA variety of rotating micro structures were designed, fabricated and characterized for residual-stress (or strain) measurements in low-stress silicon nitride thin films, deposited by LPCVD on silicon wafers. The sensitivities of the micro structures were calculated by finite element method (FEM) and verified experimentally. The results were further confirmed by utilizing the wafer-curvature method for stress measurements. The size of the structures enables local residual-stress (or strain) measurement. The stress level depends on both the film thickness and the gas ratio and also varies with the location on the wafer.

Thickness Effect on Microstructure and Residual Stress of Annealed Copper Thin Films

2011 ◽  
Vol 681 ◽  
pp. 139-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renaud Vayrette ◽  
Christian Rivero ◽  
Sylvain Blayac ◽  
Karim Inal
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Crystallite Size ◽  
Annealing Temperature ◽  
Stress Generation ◽  
Thickness Effect ◽  
Electron Backscattered Diffraction ◽  
Electroplated Copper ◽  
Stress Models

In this work, coupled effects of thickness and annealing temperature on both microstructure and residual stress of electroplated copper thin films are studied. Microstructure is investigated by Electron Backscattered Diffraction (EBSD) and residual stress is estimated from samples curvature. All films exhibit highly twinned grains. Except for several microns films, median crystallite size grows with both film thickness and annealing temperature. Concerning residual stress, it decreases, first as the increase of film thickness, and secondly as the decrease of annealing temperature. The comparison between experiments and stress models demonstrates that the root mechanisms of residual stress generation change with annealing temperature. As well as annealing temperature, film thickness determines the level of residual stress through control of microstructure. Furthermore, EBSD investigations confirmed that the relevant microstructural length to define mechanical properties of thin copper films is the median crystallite size.

A Brittle to Ductile Transition (BDT) in Adhered Thin Films

1999 ◽  
Vol 594 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. W. Gerberich ◽  
A. A. Volinsky ◽  
N. I. Tymiak ◽  
N. R. Moody
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Energy Dissipation ◽  
Yield Strength ◽  
Plastic Zone ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Fracture Energy ◽  
Test Temperature ◽  
Plastic Energy ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Film Substrate

AbstractIt has been long recognized that the BDT in bulk materials may be associated with enhanced plastic energy dissipation. This can be achieved by either changing the state of stress (plane strain to plane stress) or by raising the test temperature (lowering the yield stress). The situation is somewhat different in thin films where the BDT can be achieved by increasing film thickness or perhaps, even in a limited temperature range, by raising the test temperature. To study the latter we use a superlayer technique with a 1 μm tungsten film on top of thin copper films bonded to SiO2/Si wafers. This involves indenting into the superlayer which stores and then releases large amounts of elastic energy into the thin film/substrate interface. Here, preliminary data on 500 nm thick Cu demonstrates more than an order of magnitude increase in fracture energy from about 10 to 200 J/m2 as the test temperature is raised from 20°C to 130°C. As the amount of plastic energy absorption would appear to be limited by film thickness, this relatively large value was unanticipated. This interfacial fracture energy translates to a stress intensity of 5 MPa-m1/2. In context of the highest possible nanocrystalline Cu yield strength, this still represents a plastic zone of nearly 30 μm. This illustrates the quandary associated with explaining such high apparent toughness values as one generally expects plasticity to be truncated by film thickness. Is this associated with:–some artifact of assessing local stresses during nanoindentation at elevated temperature:–extending the plastic zone in the direction of crack growth much further than the film thickness;–a shielding mechanism from an organized dislocation array in a ductile film sandwiched between a brittle substrate and a higher yield strength superlayer;–some plastic energy dissipation in the superlayer;–or by enhanced mode II at higher temperatures?A few of these will be addressed in some detail with a goal of narrowing the field of the most promising candidates.

Residual Stress Analysis of Al Alloy Thin Films by X-Ray Diffraction as a Function of Film Thickness

1988 ◽  
Vol 130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carla J. Shute ◽  
J. B. Cohen ◽  
D. A. Jeannottea
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Stress Analysis ◽  
Metal Film ◽  
High Stress ◽  
Al Alloy ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Residual Stress Analysis

AbstractResidual stress has been measured as a function of layer thickness in thin films of an Al alloy on oxidized Si by the x-ray “d” versus sin2ψ technique. Samples with and without a passivation layer were examined. The results show an increase in residual stress with decreasing film thickness for the passivated samples and indicates that the interface between the metal film and SiO2 may be a region of high stress.

Emergence of film-thickness- and grain-size-dependent elastic properties in nanocrystalline thin films

2013 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 261-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Lian ◽  
Seok-Woo Lee ◽  
Lorenzo Valdevit ◽  
Michael I. Baskes ◽  
Julia R. Greer
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Grain Size ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Elastic Properties ◽  
Size Dependent ◽  
Nanocrystalline Thin Films

Residual stresses in polycrystalline Cu/Cr multilayered thin films

2000 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 756-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Misra ◽  
H. Kung ◽  
T. E. Mitchell ◽  
M. Nastasi
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Residual Stress ◽  
Yield Strength ◽  
Residual Stresses ◽  
Layer Thickness ◽  
Growth Stresses ◽  
Cu Films ◽  
Bilayer Films ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Substrate Curvature

Residual stresses in sputter-deposited Cu/Cr multilayers and Cu and Cr single-layered polycrystalline thin films were evaluated by the substrate curvature method. The stresses in the multilayers were found to be tensile and to increase in magnitude with increasing layer thickness (h) to a peak value of ∼1 GPa for h = 50 nm. For h > 50 nm, the residual stress decreased with increasing h but remained tensile. The same trends were observed in single-layered Cu and Cr thin films, except that the maximum stress in Cu films is 1 order of magnitude lower than that in Cr. Transmission electron microscopy was used to study the microstructural evolution as a function of layer thickness. The evolution of tensile growth stresses in Cr films is explained by island coalescence and subsequent growth with increasing thickness. Estimates of the Cr film yield strength indicated that, for h ≥ 50 nm, the residual stress may be limited by the yield strength. Substrate curvature measurements on bilayer films of different thicknesses were used to demonstrate that a non-negligible contribution to the total stress in the multilayers arises from the interface stress.

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