FCP Report No. 137

Analysis of Ion Plate Cu/Cordierite Film and Interface Structure and Chemistry

by

Philip A. Scott
J. M. Rigsbee

Abstract

This research is a fundamental study which uses ion plating, a plasma-assisted physical vapor deposition process (PAPVD), to deposit Cu films onto cordierite glass ceramic substrates. The primary goal of this project is to characterize the ion plated film/substrate interfaces produced using hgh resolution analytical tools such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The observed structure and chemistry of the interface is then related to the ion plating process parameters, such as applied substrate voltage, and the interface mechanical properties, such as adhesion failure strength. Some of the results of this study include the following:

1) Films deposited under low substrate bias conditions exhibited open-boundary columnar structures while films deposited under higher bias conditions are of an equiaxed type morphology.

2) Evaporated films exhibited nearly abrupt metal/ceramic interfaces while ion plated films were spatially graded both chemically and structurally.

3) The adhesion failure strength was found to increase significantly with applied substrate bias (voltage). The analytical tools used in this project include SIMS, AES, TEM, and SEM.

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