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Rate Sensitivity and Size Effects in Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposited Silicon Oxide Films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

Zhiqiang Cao  and
Xin Zhang
Zhiqiang Cao
Affiliation:
zcao@bu.edu, Boston University, Department of Manufacturing Engineering, 15 Saint Mary's Street, Brookline, MA, 02446, United States, (617)358-1913
Xin Zhang
Affiliation:
xinz@bu.edu, Boston University, Department of Manufacturing Engineering, United States
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Abstract

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited (PECVD) silicon oxide (SiOx) thin films have been widely used in MEMS to form electrical and mechanical components. In this paper, both the time-independent and the time-dependent plastic responses of the PECVD SiOx films were studied by the instrumented nanoindentation experiments. Our experiments found an enhanced rate-sensitivity and size-effect in the plastic responses of the PECVD SiOx thin films. In addition, the plastic flow behavior is more homogeneous compared with most inorganic glasses and many metallic glasses. The deformation mechanism in the PECVD SiOx thin films is depicted by the shear transformation zone (STZ) based amorphous plasticity theory. The physical origin of the STZ is elucidated and linked with the plastic deformation dynamics.

Keywords

oxideamorphousplasma-enhanced CVD (PECVD) (deposition)
Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 904: Symposium BB – Mechanisms of Mechanical Deformation in Brittle Materials , 2005 , 0904-BB04-21
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2006

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