Structural and electrical properties of Cu films deposited on glass by DC magnetron sputtering

• Published in: Vacuum Vol. 66; no. 3; pp. 447 - 452
• Main Authors: Qiu, Hong, Wang, Fengping, Wu, Ping, Pan, Liqing, Tian, Yue
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 19.08.2002; Elsevier
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Ar pressure; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Cu film; DC magnetron sputtering deposition; Deposition by sputtering; Electronic structure and electrical properties of surfaces, interfaces, thin films and low-dimensional structures; Electronic transport phenomena in thin films and low-dimensional structures; Exact sciences and technology; Low-field transport and mobility; piezoresistance; Materials science; Metals. Metallurgy; Methods of deposition of films and coatings; film growth and epitaxy; Physics; Resistivity; Structure; Structure and morphology; thickness; Surfaces and interfaces; thin films and whiskers (structure and nonelectronic properties); Thin film structure and morphology; Cu film; DC magnetron sputtering deposition; Structure; Ar pressure; Resistivity; Grain size; Electrical conductivity; Electrical properties; Crystal orientation; Roughness; Polycrystals; Surfaces; Crystal growth from vapors; Experimental study; Fabrication property relation; Thin films; Magnetrons; Cathode sputtering; Transition elements; Fabrication structure relation; Copper; Microstructure
• ISSN: 0042-207X; 1879-2715
• DOI: 10.1016/S0042-207X(02)00169-0

Cu films with thicknesses of 290–350 nm were deposited on glass substrates without heating by DC magnetron sputtering in pure Ar gas. Ar pressure was maintained in 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 Pa, respectively. The target voltage was fixed at 400 V, but the target current increased from 69 to 200 mA with increasing Ar pressure. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were used to observe the structural characterization of the films. The resistivity of the films was measured using four-point probe technique. At all Ar pressures, the Cu films have mixture crystalline orientations of [1 1 1], [2 0 0] and [2 2 0] in the direction of the film growth. The film deposited at a lower pressure shows a slightly more [1 1 1] orientation while that deposited at a higher pressure has a slightly more [2 2 0] orientation. The amount of larger grains decreases with an increase in Ar pressure. Roughness of the film surface is about 5 nm independent of Ar pressure. The resistivity of the films increases with increasing Ar pressure. The increasing of Ar pressure causes the decrease in both the average energy of reflected Ar atoms and the ratio of energetic Ar atoms to Cu atoms as well as the increase in the deposition rate, resulting in the decrease in grain size and the increase in resistivity of the Cu film.