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Evaluation of elastic modulus and hardness of thin films by nanoindentation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 October 2004

Yeon-Gil Jung ,
Brian R. Lawn ,
Mariusz Martyniuk ,
Han Huang  and
Xiao Zhi Hu
Yeon-Gil Jung
Affiliation:
Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8500
Brian R. Lawn*
Affiliation:
Materials Science and Engineering Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8500
Mariusz Martyniuk
Affiliation:
School of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia
Han Huang
Affiliation:
School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia
Xiao Zhi Hu
Affiliation:
School of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia
*
b)Address all correspondence to this author. e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Simple equations are proposed for determining elastic modulus and hardness properties of thin films on substrates from nanoindentation experiments. An empirical formulation relates the modulus E and hardness H of the film/substrate bilayer to corresponding material properties of the constituent materials via a power-law relation. Geometrical dependence of E and H is wholly contained in the power-law exponents, expressed here as sigmoidal functions of indenter penetration relative to film thickness. The formulation may be inverted to enable deconvolution of film properties from data on the film/substrate bilayers. Berkovich nanoindentation data for dense oxide and nitride films on silicon substrates are used to validate the equations and to demonstrate the film property deconvolution. Additional data for less dense nitride films are used to illustrate the extent to which film properties may depend on the method of fabrication.

Keywords

HardnessElastic propertiesNanoindentation
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Materials Research , Volume 19 , Issue 10 , October 2004 , pp. 3076 - 3080
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2004

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References

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