Electrical and structural properties of thin films of sputtered CrSi2

Abstract Thin films of CrSi 2 were deposited by r.f. sputtering from a CrSi 2 target. The resistivity, the microstructure and the depth profiles of the films were measured with a four-point probe, a transmission electron microscope, and an Auger electron spectrometer. It is shown that the sputtered amorphous CrSi 2 film crystallizes at 300 °C, reaching a higher resistivity state compared with that of the amorphous counterpart; the increase in resistivity is due to the formation of wide boundaries between columnar grains of the film after crystallization. A relatively stable resistivity state can be reached by annealing the film at a temperature between 375 °C and 425 °C.