Abstract
Nanocrystalline TiN films were deposited on Si(001) substrates using an unbalanced magnetron (UBM) sputtering system. The effect of nitrogen flow rates (ranging from 0.25 to 1.75 sccm) was studied on the composition, structure and properties of the TiN films. The grain size of the films was determined by x-ray diffraction, and the size was less than 7 nm diameters. The results of AFM and SEM image also showed a nanometer-size grain of the TiN thin film. The N/Ti ratio increased (N/Ti= 0.4~1.1) with nitrogen flow rates. The preferred orientation of the TiN films changed from (111) to (200), and back to (111) with increasing nitrogen flow rates. The film hardness was not varied with nitrogen flow rates and the variation of (111) preferred orientation. High residual stress and nanometer-size grain structure may be the factors that lead to the high hardness at a film thickness approximately 200 nm. The resistivity decreases with increasing packing factor, but is not sensitive to the grain size.