Abstract
In this work, the surface morphology changes of nanocrystalline Cr2O3 film deposited on Si wafer during the heating process were observed in-situ by means of an environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). The Cr2O3 film cracked at high temperature due to the cause of thermal stress; the corresponding crack area percentages on the film surface were real-time evaluated using image analysis software (SISC IAS V8.0) based on the principle of gray value analysis. In the meantime, the effects of the heating temperature on the crack area percentage, phase constituents, and grain size of the Cr2O3 film were also studied in detail. The results showed that the percentage of crack area on film surface first increased with the heating temperature rise, and reached the maximum value at around 980 °C, and then gradually declined again. The above trend is closely related to the changes of thermal stress and grain growth in film. In addition, the heat treatment also had a strong influence on the grain size of the Cr2O3 film.
Highlights
In the past decades, the field of thin film materials has been developing rapidly, with more new types of films, and improved film quality
The thermal stress σT in Cr2 O3 film induced by temperature rise can be calculated by the following formula: σT = −
The thermal stress induced by temperature is negative which indicates the compressive stress generated, because the thermal expansion coefficient of Cr2 O3 film is larger than that of Si wafer
Summary
The field of thin film materials has been developing rapidly, with more new types of films, and improved film quality. Wang et al [16] had investigated that Cr2 O3 is the only solid chromium oxide that keeps thermodynamically stable at temperatures in excess of 500 ◦ C in the family of Crx Oy. In previous works [17,18,19,20], the effect of substrate bias voltage on film growth mechanism, morphology, microstructure, mechanical properties, tribological properties and thermal stability of the nanocrystalline Cr2 O3 films were systematically investigated. How the microstructure and morphology change during the heating process is still unclear Clarifying these issues is very helpful for the improvement of the Cr2 O3 film properties and their practical application. The changes of surface morphology of the AIP Cr2 O3 film during heat-treating process were in-situ observed, via an ESEM in a low vacuum atmosphere of 120 Pa, up to a temperature of 1100 ◦ C. Cr2 O3 film before and after heat treatment were compared and discussed
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