Characterization of Thin Films and Coatings

Just as the numbers and types of thin films have grown dramatically, the needs and approaches for their characterization have also expanded significantly. Adequate characterization of a film or coating depends on the process to create the coating as well as the planned or potential application(s) and expected lifetime. Characterization of a coating or film necessarily requires application of methods that determine properties of the coating and not primarily the substrate. This places some focus on methods that determine properties of layers and not "bulk" material. However, the increasing importance of micro- and nano-structures in coatings and films places an increased importance in methods with high spatial resolution. The growing use of organic films and coatings and the importance of molecular functionalization of inorganic surfaces increase the importance for different types of molecular characterization tools. In most circumstances appropriate characterization requires use of a combination of tools. The purpose of this chapter is to provide an introduction to the basic methods and overview applications for some of the most important tools for characterization of films, coatings and surfaces. The chapter will be organized in six sections: • Technique Overview – This section provides a high level summary of the typesmore » of information that can be obtained by different methods and includes information about their sensitivity and resolution. • Incident Photon Methods – Techniques involving incident photons are described and some brief examples of application are shown. Methods included are: x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), x-ray diffraction (XRD), x-ray reflectivity (XRR), Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), laser Raman spectroscopy, ellipsometry, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. • Incident Ion Methods - Methods initiated by ion irradiation are summarized including: Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), ion channeling, elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), glow discharge mass spectrometry and uses of focused ion beams (FIB) (often in combination with scanning electron microscopy). • Incident Electron Methods – Methods involving incident electrons include: Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and electron diffraction (low energy electron diffraction [LEED] and reflection high energy electron diffraction [RHEED]). • Other Methods – Additional methods described include scanning probe microscopy (SPM) (including scanning tunneling microscopy [STM] and atomic force microscopy [AFM]) and atom probe microscopy.« less