Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-l7hp2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T21:57:29.887Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Experimental Study on the Nanoindentation of Thin Copper Films from Deep Submicron to Nano-Scale

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 August 2012

Y.-R. Jeng ,
C.-M. Tan ,
C. C. Su ,
S.-C. Cheng  and
C.-Y. Cheng
Y.-R. Jeng
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Chung Cheng University Chia-Yi, Taiwan 62102, R.O.C.
C.-M. Tan*
Affiliation:
Graduate School of Opto-Mechatronics and Materials, WuFeng Institute of Technology Chia-Yi, Taiwan 62153, R.O.C.
C. C. Su
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Chung Cheng University Chia-Yi, Taiwan 62102, R.O.C. Graduate School of Opto-Mechatronics and Materials, WuFeng Institute of Technology Chia-Yi, Taiwan 62153, R.O.C.
S.-C. Cheng
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Chung Cheng University Chia-Yi, Taiwan 62102, R.O.C.
C.-Y. Cheng
Affiliation:
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Southern Taiwan University of Technology Yungkang, Taiwan 71005, R.O.C.
*
*Corresponding author ([email protected])
Get access

Abstract

This study uses the nanoindentation technique to evaluate the mechanical properties of thin copper films at indentation depths measured in the order of nanometers. Copper films with various thicknesses are deposited on a single crystal silicon wafer with a (100) orientation and on a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) substrate, respectively. The experimental results show that for soft thin films on a hard substrate, the substrate effect is negligible when the indentation depth is less than 20% of the film thickness. However, the results suggest that hard films on a soft substrate should be treated as a composite system in indentation because the substrate effect is significant. Finally, the results reveal that a significant indentation size effect exists for thin films with a thickness of less than 100nm. A number of possible reasons for the depth dependence of the hardness properties at ultra-shallow indentation depths are proposed and discussed.

Keywords

Nanoindentation technologyThin filmIndentation size effect
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Mechanics , Volume 28 , Issue 3 , September 2012 , pp. 507 - 511
Copyright
Copyright © The Society of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, R.O.C. 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

1. Hu, C. K. and Harper, J. M. E., “Copper Interconnections and Reliability Mater,” Chemical Physics, 52, pp. 5–16 (1998).Google Scholar
2. Li, Z. L., Brokken-Zijp, J. C. M. and de With, G., “Determination of the Elastic Moduli of Silicone Rubber Coatings and Films Using Depth-Sensing Indentation,” Polymer, 45, pp. 5403–5406 (2004).Google Scholar
3. Zhou, Y., Yang, C. S., Chen, J. A., Ding, G. F., Ding, W., Wang, L., Wang, M. J., Zhang, Y. M. and Zhang, T. H., “Measurement of Young's Modulus and Residual Stress of Copper Film Electroplated on Silicon Wafer,” Thin Solid Films, 460, pp. 175–180 (2004).Google Scholar
4. Nix, W. D., “Elastic and Plastic Properties of Thin Film on Substrates: Nanoindentation Techniques,” Materials Science and Engineering, A234–236, pp. 37–44 (1997).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5. Briscoey, B. J., Fiori, L. and Pelillo, E., “Nano-Indentation of Polymeric Surfaces,” Journal of Physica D: Applied Physics, 31, pp. 2395–2405 (1998).Google Scholar
6. Nix, W. D. and Gao, H., “Indentation Size Effects in Crystalline Materials: A Law for Strain Gradient Plasticity,” Journal of Mechanics and Physics of Solids, 46, pp. 411–425 (1998).Google Scholar
7. Panich, N. and Sun, Y., “Effect of Penetration Depth on Indentation Response of Soft Coatings on Hard Substrates: A Finite Element Analysis,” Surface and Coatings Technology, 182, pp. 342–350 (2004).Google Scholar
8. Saha, R. and Nix, W. D., “Effects of the Substrate on the Determination of Thin Film Mechanical Properties by Nanoindentation,” Acta Materialia, 50, pp. 23–38 (2002).Google Scholar
9. Rodríguez, R. and Gutierrez, I., “Correlation Between Nanoindentation and Tensile Properties: Influence of the Indentation Size Effect,” Materials Science and Engineering, A361, pp. 377–384 (2003).Google Scholar
10. Jeng, Y. R. and Tan, C. M., “Theoretical Study of Dislocation Emission Around a Nanoindentation Using a Static Atomistic Model,” Physics Review B, 69, p. 104109 (2004).Google Scholar
11. Peng, P., Liao, G., Shi, T., Tang, Z. and Gao, Y., “Molecular Dynamic Simulations of Nanoindentation in Aluminum Thin Film on Silicon Substrate,” Applied Surface Science, 256, pp. 6284–6290 (2010).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
12. Oliver, W. C. and Pharr, G. M., “An Improved Technique for Determining Hardness and Elastic Modulus Using Load and Displacement Sensing Indentation Experiment,” Journal of Materials, 7, pp. 1564–1583 (1992).Google Scholar
13. Jeng, Y. R. and Tan, C. M., “Computer Simulation of Tension Experiments of a Thin Film Using an Atomic Model,” Physics Review B, 65, p. 174107 (2002).Google Scholar