aErich Schmid Institute of Materials Science, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Jahnstr. 12, 8700 Leoben, Austria;bDepartment Materials Physics, Montanuniversität Leoben, Jahnstr. 12, 8700 Leoben, Austria
Abstract:
Temperature changes induce thermal stresses in thin films on substrates due to differences in the thermal expansion coefficients. Repeated thermal cycling may finally lead to severe surface roughening and a change in film texture. In this study we investigate the orientation changes for a 600 nm thick Al film during subsequent thermal cycles between 25 °C and 450 °C by analyzing individual grains. The results reveal orientation changes by up to 3° after one thermal cycles and unexpected large orientation gradients within individual grains.