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Electro-Fragmentation Analysis of Dielectric Thin Films on Flexible Polymer Substrates

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

Albert Pinyol
Affiliation:
albert.pinyol@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Bastian Meylan
Affiliation:
bastian-meylan@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Damien Gilliéron
Affiliation:
damien.gilliéron@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Aurélie Mottet
Affiliation:
aurelie.mottet@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Vinodh Mewani
Affiliation:
vinodh.mewani@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Yves Leterrier
Affiliation:
yves.leterrier@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
Jan-Anders E Månson
Affiliation:
jan-anders.manson@epfl.ch, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Laboratoire de Technologie des Composites et Polymères (LTC), Station 12, Lausanne, AL, CH-1015, Switzerland
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Abstract

A novel electro-fragmentation method was developed as a fast alternative to the time consuming fragmentation test carried out in situ in a microscope, to investigate the failure of dielectric coatings on polymer substrates using an ultrathin conductive layer. Focus was put on SiNx coatings on polyimide substrates. A careful selection of the conductive layer was carried out to avoid artifacts resulting for instance from a change of the residual stress state of the investigated coating. Au layers were found to be too ductile and Al-Ti layers altered the stress state of the nitride, which invalidated their use to probe the failure of the nitride coatings. In contrast, a 20 nm thick graphite layer was found to accurately reproduce the failure of the nitride, which was analyzed in terms of residual strain and cohesive properties of the graphite layer. An electro-fatigue device was built and preliminary results suggest that damage already develops in ultrathin coatings at relatively low strain levels under long-term fatigue loading.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2008

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