Stress Study on CrN Thin Films with Different Thicknesses on Stainless Steel

doi:10.1007/s40195-017-0620-5

Abstract

Abstract:

The reliability of a substrate curvature-based stress measurement method for CrN thin films on substrate with fluctuant surface was discussed. The stress error led by the ignorance of substrate thermal deformation was studied. Results showed that this error could be as large as several hundred MPa under general deposition conditions. Stress in the CrN thin films with different thicknesses ranging from 110 to 330 nm on stainless steel was studied by this method, in comparison with conventional results on silicon wafer. The thin films’ morphology and structure were investigated and related to the film stress. A significant result of the comparison is that stress evolution in the thin films on steel obviously differs from that on silicon wafer, not only because the two substrates have different coefficients of thermal expansion, which provokes thermal stress, but also the considerable discrepancy in the thin films’ grain coarsening rate and structure that induce different intrinsic stresses.

Key words: Stress CrN film, Magnetron sputtering, Stoney equation, Steel substrate

Di Fan, Hao Lei, Chao-Qian Guo, Dong-Li Qi, Jun Gong, Chao Sun. Stress Study on CrN Thin Films with Different Thicknesses on Stainless Steel[J]. Acta Metallurgica Sinica (English Letters), 2018, 31(3): 329-336.

Figures/Tables 9

Table 1 Deposition parameters of the CrN thin films

Voltage (V)	Current (A)	Bias (V)	Pressure (Pa)		Time (s)
Voltage (V)	Current (A)	Bias (V)	Ar	N₂	1#	2#	3#	4#	5#
330	0.4	-50	0.5	0.25	131	157	196	262	393

Fig. 1 Typical D-L curves before/after film deposition for a silicon wafer, b stainless steel strip

Fig. 2 Nominal D-L curves for steel strip after heat treatment with thickness of a 0.5 mm, b 0.8 mm

Fig. 3 Stress error in films with different thicknesses and deposition temperatures on steel substrate with thickness of a 0.5 mm, b 0.8 mm

Fig. 4 D-L curves before and after the second round heat treatment for steel strip with thickness of 0.8 mm

Fig. 5 Stress test results: a D-L curves for sample 3# on steel substrate, b substrate dependent stress evolution with film thickness

Fig. 6 Cross-sectional SEM images and AFM surface morphologies of 1#-5# CrN thin films on Si and steel substrates

Fig. 7 Cross-sectional STEM image for the CrN thin film with thickness of 330 nm

Fig. 8 Average surface grain circumference in the CrN thin films with different thicknesses

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