Abstract
ABSTRACTThe growth and microstructural evolution of sputtered Ti/Ni and Ni/Ti bilayer thin films have been investigated as a function of Ti and Ni layer thicknesses in as-deposited and annealed states (280°C for 60 minutes) by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The Ti layer thickness was varied systematically from 4.9 to 29.4 nm while the Ni thickness was varied from 3.2 to 19.2 nm. Carbon coated Cu TEM grids were used as substrates. Microstructural characteristics of the bilayers were found to be deposition sequence dependent. Ti/Ni bilayers exhibit a finer microstructure than N/T especially for the thicker films. Intergranular cracking is observed in the Ti/Ni sequence. In both deposition sequences the presence of Ni promotes the crystallization of Ti in the as-deposited state. By contrast, single layer Ti films deposited under the same sputtering conditions remain amorphous up to 9.8 nm thick. The Ti{002} electron diffraction ring is present in all of the bilayers even those with the thinnest Ti layers. Additional Ti rings, {010} and {011}, develop in bilayers with thicker Ti layers. In both bilayer systems a tensile stress parallel to the film plane is present in the Ni layer. Annealing removes structural defects and relieves the stress. A large increase in Ni{111} spacing can be attributed to dissolution of Ti atoms into the Ni lattice. Annealing also produces evidence of grain growth, intermetallic compound formation, and amorphization in both Ti/Ni and Ni/Ti samples.
Published Version
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