Electrical and structural characteristics of chromium thin films deposited on glass and alumina substrates

Abstract The electrical resistivities of electron beam deposited and sputter deposited chromium thin films (25–500 nm) on glass and alumina substrates are correlated with the structural characteristics of the films determined by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope and Auger electron spectrometer. The resistivities of as-deposited chromium films on glass substrates range from 58 to 107 μΩ cm, whereas, those deposited on alumina substrates range from 155 to 573 μΩ cm. The surface roughness appears to be the most important parameter in determining the resistivity on different substrates. The electron-beam deposited films have lower resistivities compared to the sputter deposited films because there is less oxygen and carbon contamination in the e-beam deposited films. The average grain sizes are determined from the X-ray diffraction data and are compared to the resistivity of Cr films.