Advantages and limitations of using an AFM to study mechanical properties of nanostructured systems.

ROA, SIMON; M. SIRENA

Bariloche

Simposio; XIII Latin American Symposium on Solid State Physics (SLAFES); 2018

AFM-assisted nanoindentation technique to study the influence of size effects (influence of substrate at different film thickness) and the microstructure on the thin films mechanicalproperties was used.● Performance of modern AFM equipment to resolve changes on the mechanical properties of thin films under different physical conditions was tested.● Nanocrystalline Cu thin films of different thickness (between 100 and 2000 [nm]) were grown by DC sputtering on Si(100) substrates at room temperature.● Different annealing treatments were performed to understand the role of microstructural features on the measured mechanical response and compared with those induced by size effects.● Results show that variations on the microstructure or thickness of the thin films can produce similar changes in their mechanical properties(Young´s modulus and Indentation Hardness), suggesting that both factors represent a relevant parameter to define the mechanical properties of thin films.