Correlation between bonding structure and mechanical properties of amorphous carbon nitride thin films

Amorphous carbon nitride thin films were prepared in a dual ion beam sputte ring (DIBS) system. The N/C atomic concentration ratio ranged between 0.3 a nd 0.5 as determined by quantitative X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy ( XPS ) of the surface. Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), XPS and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) were used to obtain information about t he different types of bonding present in the films. The hardness and the Yo ung's modulus of the samples were determined by nanoindentation measurement s. The hardness varied in the range 15-30 GPa with Young's modulus between 170 and 250 GPa. In order to explain the measured hardness, some of the fil ms are considered as heterogeneous, in good agreement with the XPS, FT-IR a nd XAS data. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.