The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films
Tantalum metal and tantalum oxide thin films are commonly used in semiconductor devices, protective coatings, and biomedical implants. However, there is limited information on their nanotribological behavior and small-scale mechanical properties. This study characterized the chemical, mechanical, an...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-04-01
|
| Series: | Micromachines |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/16/4/427 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849713921673396224 |
|---|---|
| author | Debottam Datta Ali Eskandari Junaid Syed Himanshu Rai Nitya Nand Gosvami Ting Y. Tsui |
| author_facet | Debottam Datta Ali Eskandari Junaid Syed Himanshu Rai Nitya Nand Gosvami Ting Y. Tsui |
| author_sort | Debottam Datta |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Tantalum metal and tantalum oxide thin films are commonly used in semiconductor devices, protective coatings, and biomedical implants. However, there is limited information on their nanotribological behavior and small-scale mechanical properties. This study characterized the chemical, mechanical, and tribological properties of as-deposited and 400 °C annealed β-Ta thin films using nanoindentation and atomic force microscope (AFM)-based nanoscale friction and wear tests. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results revealed that a thermally grown Ta oxide layer forms on the surface of Ta film after being annealed at 400 °C. The nanoindentation data indicated an increase in both the hardness and elastic modulus in the heat-treated sample compared to the as-deposited Ta film (13.1 ± 1.3 GPa vs. 12.0 ± 1.4 GPa for hardness) and (213.1 ± 12.7 GPa vs. 175.2 ± 12.3 GPa for elastic modulus). Our nanotribological results show that the friction increased and wear resistance decreased on the surface of the annealed sample compared to the as-deposited Ta film. This discrepancy may be caused by the oxidation of Ta on the film surface, which induces residual compressive stresses in the film and degrades its wear resistance. Our results highlight the influence of thermal annealing and oxidation on nanotribological behavior and small-scale mechanical properties of Ta thin films. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0466da5b857d4005ade992e56b004c9a |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2072-666X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Micromachines |
| spelling | doaj-art-0466da5b857d4005ade992e56b004c9a2025-08-20T03:13:50ZengMDPI AGMicromachines2072-666X2025-04-0116442710.3390/mi16040427The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin FilmsDebottam Datta0Ali Eskandari1Junaid Syed2Himanshu Rai3Nitya Nand Gosvami4Ting Y. Tsui5Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, IndiaDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, CanadaDepartment of Materials Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, IndiaDepartment of Materials Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, IndiaDepartment of Materials Science & Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, IndiaDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, CanadaTantalum metal and tantalum oxide thin films are commonly used in semiconductor devices, protective coatings, and biomedical implants. However, there is limited information on their nanotribological behavior and small-scale mechanical properties. This study characterized the chemical, mechanical, and tribological properties of as-deposited and 400 °C annealed β-Ta thin films using nanoindentation and atomic force microscope (AFM)-based nanoscale friction and wear tests. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results revealed that a thermally grown Ta oxide layer forms on the surface of Ta film after being annealed at 400 °C. The nanoindentation data indicated an increase in both the hardness and elastic modulus in the heat-treated sample compared to the as-deposited Ta film (13.1 ± 1.3 GPa vs. 12.0 ± 1.4 GPa for hardness) and (213.1 ± 12.7 GPa vs. 175.2 ± 12.3 GPa for elastic modulus). Our nanotribological results show that the friction increased and wear resistance decreased on the surface of the annealed sample compared to the as-deposited Ta film. This discrepancy may be caused by the oxidation of Ta on the film surface, which induces residual compressive stresses in the film and degrades its wear resistance. Our results highlight the influence of thermal annealing and oxidation on nanotribological behavior and small-scale mechanical properties of Ta thin films.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/16/4/427tantalumnanotribologywearfrictionhardnesselastic modulus |
| spellingShingle | Debottam Datta Ali Eskandari Junaid Syed Himanshu Rai Nitya Nand Gosvami Ting Y. Tsui The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films Micromachines tantalum nanotribology wear friction hardness elastic modulus |
| title | The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films |
| title_full | The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films |
| title_fullStr | The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films |
| title_short | The Influence of Thermal Annealing on the Chemical Composition, Nanomechanical, and Nanotribological Properties of Tantalum Thin Films |
| title_sort | influence of thermal annealing on the chemical composition nanomechanical and nanotribological properties of tantalum thin films |
| topic | tantalum nanotribology wear friction hardness elastic modulus |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/16/4/427 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT debottamdatta theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT alieskandari theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT junaidsyed theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT himanshurai theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT nityanandgosvami theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT tingytsui theinfluenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT debottamdatta influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT alieskandari influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT junaidsyed influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT himanshurai influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT nityanandgosvami influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms AT tingytsui influenceofthermalannealingonthechemicalcompositionnanomechanicalandnanotribologicalpropertiesoftantalumthinfilms |