Influence of Cu deposition conditions on the microstructure and adhesion of Cu/Cr thin film to polyimide film

The microstructure of Cu thin films in various deposition conditions and the influence of their microstructure on the adhesion strength between Cu/Cr films and polyimides were studied. Cr films (50 nm thick) and Cu films (500 or 1000 nm thick) were deposited on polyimide films by DC magnetron sputtering. The Ar pressure during Cu deposition was controlled to 5, 50, and 100 mtorr. The microstructure was characterized using SEM and TEM. The adhesion strength between Cu/Cr and polyimide was measured using a modified T-peel test. Plastic deformation of the peeled metal was qualitatively measured using the XRD technique. The Cu film sputtered at 5 mtorr has a dense and uniform structure, while low-density regions or open boundaries between columns exist in the film deposited at higher pressure. As sputtering pressure increases, open boundaries are observed more frequently. The peel adhesion strength of Cr film to polyimide increases with Cu sputtering pressure. The adhesion change of Cu/Cr film can be interpreted as the difference in plastic deformation. Open boundaries in the Cu film seem to play an important role in increasing the amount of plastic deformation in the metal film during peeling.