ISSN:
1089-7550
Source:
AIP Digital Archive
Topics:
Physics
Notes:
An unconventional analytical/empirical approach was used to determine the intrinsic stress in thin films of hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) from measurements at room temperature of total stress on glass. The a-C:H was deposited through the decomposition of methane in an rf plasma over a range of conditions defined by two parameters; namely, the self-bias voltage on the substrate support electrode, Vb, and the pressure of methane in the deposition chamber, P. The intrinsic stress was found to differ from the total stress at room temperature by a thermal stress introduced by the deposition process. Over the range of deposition conditions investigated, 400 ≤ Vb ≤ 1600 V and 1≤P≤16 mTorr, the intrinsic stress was compressive, high in level (varying only slightly between 1–3×1010 dynes/cm2) and proportional to a function of the deposition parameters, Vb−1/4P1/8. Over the same range of conditions, the thermal stress (at ∼20 °C) was tensile and proportional to Vb3/2P1/4. At the highest values of Vb and P investigated, 1600 V and 16 mTorr, respectively, the level of the thermal stress (∼0.8×1010 dynes/cm2) exceeded the level of the total stress (∼0.3×1010 dynes/cm2) by a significant margin. Implications are discussed.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.349035
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