He Mechanical Properties of Amorphous Silicon Carbide Films Deposited by Pecvd and Rf Sputtering for Application as a Structural Layer in Microbridge-Based Rf Mems
Author | : Rocco John Parro (III.) |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : 124 |
Release | : 2010 |
ISBN-10 | : OCLC:630641873 |
ISBN-13 | : |
Rating | : 4/5 (73 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: The purpose of this thesis was to characterize the relevant mechanical properties of amorphous silicon carbide in order to evaluate its application to microbridge-based RF MEMS switches. For the study, Young's modulus and residual stress were determined by load deflection testing of bulk micromachined thin film diaphragms of SiC deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) and radio-frequency magnetron sputtering. The effects of film thickness, a silicon or silicon dioxide substrate material, and metallization with chromium and gold on the values of Young's modulus and residual stress were quantified for 300 and 500 nm-thick PECVD SiC films annealed at 450 @C. For bi-layered, 500 nm-thick sputtered SiC films on silicon, the effects of thermal annealing at 350@C and 450@C on the values of Young's modulus, residual stress, and Poisson's ratio were determined.