Growth of Cu nanotwinned films on surface activated SiC chips
Journal
Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics
Journal Volume
34
Journal Issue
23
Date Issued
2023-08-01
Author(s)
Abstract
This article presents a method of enhancing the performance of sputtered Cu nanotwinned films on Ti pre-coated SiC substrate. Before deposition, the substrate was RF pre-sputtered by argon discharge at a bias of − 500 V for 30 min to remove the surface oxide layer and contamination, while simultaneously, the substrate was bombarded with argon ions. The results show that a nanotwinned structure with surface activation before sputtering has a thinner transition layer. In addition, the titanium adhesive layer and the Cu nanotwinned film have stronger (002) and (111) peaks, respectively. Cu nanotwinned film on Ti pre-coated SiC substrate with ion surface activation has a higher (111) orientation of 92.4% and a thinner twin thickness of about 19.4 nm. In addition, the electrical and mechanical properties are affected by microstructural changes. The Cu film sputtered with surface activation exhibited lower resistivity and higher hardness value compared to that without surface activation. High-energy Ar+ surface activation also enhances the adhesion strength of Cu film. This work reports a facile method of surface activation to optimize the quality of Cu nanotwinned film.
SDGs
Type
journal article