Crystal orientation and residual stress in TiN film by synchrotron radiation

Abstract

Abstract The residual stress in a TiN film, the thickness of which is less than 1 µm, deposited by arc ion plating was measured using the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility installed at Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI). Films thicker than 300 nm have a {111} texture, whereas those with a thickness of 100 nm have a relatively random orientation. Instead of the conventional laboratory X-ray equipment, ultrabright synchrotron radiation can be used to precisely measure the residual stress in thin films with a thickness of 100 to 800 nm. The residual stress in thicker TiN films is about 7 GPa in compression and it is not affected by the film thickness. The slightly small compressive stress in a film of 100 nm in thickness may be due to the different crystal orientations in the film.