Properties of Al-doped copper nitride films prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering

Abstract

Cu₃N and Al _xCu₃N films were prepared with reactive magnetron sputtering method. The two films were deposited on glass substrates at 0.8 Pa N₂ partial pressure and 100 °C substrate temperature by using a pure Cu and Al target, respectively. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements show that the un-doped film was composed of Cu₃N crystallites with anti-ReO₃ structure and adopted [111] preferred orientation. XRD shows that the growth of Al-doped copper nitride films (Al _xCu₃N) was affected strongly by doping Al, the intensity of [111] peak decreases with increasing the concentration of Al and the high concentration of Al could prevent the Cu₃N from crystallization. AFM shows that the surface of Al _xCu₃N film is smoother than that of Cu₃N film. Compared with the Cu₃N films, the resistivities of the Al-doped copper nitride films (Al _xCu₃N) have been reduced, and the microhardness has been enhanced.

Keywords

copper nitride film / magnetron sputtering / resistivity / microhardness

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