Mechanical Properties of Polycrystalline Titanium Nitride Films Measured by XRD Tensile Testing

Abstract

This paper describes measurement of mechanical properties of micron-thin polycrystalline titanium nitride (TiN) films. We developed a novel tensile test technique that can directly measure lateral elastic strain of a microscale single/poly-crystalline specimen by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), which enables evaluation of not only Young's modulus but also Poisson's ratio of TiN films. TiN films having thicknesses of 0.5 μm to 1.6 μm are deposited onto the top and bottom surfaces of a microscale single crystal silicon (Si) specimen. The deposition is carried out by r.f. reactive magnetron sputtering under Ar partial pressure ranging from 0.7 Pa to 1.0 Pa. Average values of Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio for the Si monolayer specimen are found to be 169 GPa and 0.35, respectively, which are in close agreement with analytical values. TiN films deposited under an Ar partial pressure of 0.7 Pa have average Young's modulus of 290 GPa and Poisson's ratio of 0.36. These values gradually decrease with increasing Ar partial pressure, but are independent of TiN film thickness. Fracture strength of a TiN/Si/TiN composite specimen shows dependence on film thickness, regardless of Ar partial pressure.