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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])
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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

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References

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