Abstract
High-quality AlN films were sputtered onto c-Al2O3 substrates by reactive-gas pulsed sputtering deposition. The plasma power was varied from 300 to 800 W, and AlN films were sputtered at room temperature. AlN layer with a Full-Width at Half-Maximum (FWHM) at 1120 arcsec X-ray diffraction was achieved at the plasma power of 600 W. However, the AlN films revealed considerable residual compressive strain. The cause of the residual strain was discussed from the various points of view including surface color, Al-content in the film, residual strain and XRD FWHM, as well as the metallic cluster density. All results can be explained in terms of increase of Al-clustering especially at high sputtering power condition.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2015R1D1A1A01060555).
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Choi, JS., Ko, DW., Cho, SM. et al. Residual Strain in the AlN Layers Deposited by Reactive-Gas Pulsed Sputtering Deposition. Trans. Electr. Electron. Mater. 21, 519–523 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42341-020-00204-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42341-020-00204-0