Characterization of Thin Film Dissolution in Water with in Situ Monitoring of Film Thickness Using Reflectometry

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• 作者：Alexander S. Yersak ; Ryan J. Lewis ; Jenny Tran ; Yung C. Lee
• 刊名：ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
• 出版年：2016
• 出版时间：July 13, 2016
• 年：2016
• 卷：8
• 期：27
• 页码：17622-17630
• 全文大小：545K
• 年卷期：0
• ISSN：1944-8252

文摘

Reflectometry was implemented as an in situ thickness measurement technique for rapid characterization of the dissolution dynamics of thin film protective barriers in elevated water temperatures above 100 °C. Using this technique, multiple types of coatings were simultaneously evaluated in days rather than years. This technique enabled the uninterrupted characterization of dissolution rates for different coating deposition temperatures, postdeposition annealing conditions, and locations on the coating surfaces. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) SiO₂ and wet thermally grown SiO₂ (wtg-SiO₂) thin films were demonstrated to be dissolution-predictable barriers for the protection of metals such as copper. A ∼49% reduction in dissolution rate was achieved for ALD SiO₂ films by increasing the deposition temperatures from 150 to 300 °C. ALD SiO₂ deposited at 300 °C and followed by annealing in an inert N₂ environment at 1065 °C resulted in a further ∼51% reduction in dissolution rate compared with the nonannealed sample. ALD SiO₂ dissolution rates were thus lowered to values of wtg-SiO₂ in water by the combination of increasing the deposition temperature and postdeposition annealing. Thin metal films, such as copper, without a SiO₂ barrier corroded at an expected ∼1–2 nm/day rate when immersed in room temperature water. This measurement technique can be applied to any optically transparent coating.