Paper TF+AS+NS+SA-ThM5
iTF Modulus Solution with xProbe Applications for Ultra-thin Film Systems (<=10nm)

Thursday, October 22, 2015, 9:20 am, Room 111

Reliable measurements of the Elastic Modulus of thin films is particularly challenging due to substrate effect. The prevalent rule of limiting indentation depth to 10% of the coating thickness to avoid the substrate’s influence on the mechanical properties is challenging to assure, especially when the film thickness goes below 200nm. The tip radius can be one of the many factors limiting the application of Oliver-Pharr model on the elastic modulus calculation, just as the surface roughness. With the newly developed ultra-low noise xProbe transducer combined with the Intrinsic Thin Film Property Solution from Hysitron, quantitative mechanical properties from nanoindentation tests on 10nm thin film systems become possible. Here a MEMS based transducer with a noise floor similar to that of a contact mode Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). The linear actuation allows for direct and fully quantitative measurements without the need of modeling, which leads to more precise mechanical properties estimation and higher analysis throughput. By combining the ultra-low noise xProbe transducer and analytical intrinsic thin film solution (Itf), we quantitatively estimate elastic properties of the ultra-thin film systems of 10nm or below.