Microstructure and electrical characteristics of Cr–Si–Ni films deposited on glass and Si (1 0 0) substrates by RF magnetron sputtering

Cr–Si–Ni resistive films were prepared on glass and n-type Si (1 0 0) substrates by RF magnetron sputtering from a casting alloy target of Cr17Si80Ni3, respectively. The microstructure evolution of the films was comparative investigated by X-ray diffraction as a function of annealing temperature. The results showed that two types of the films had the similar crystallization behavior. When annealing temperature was higher than 300 °C, both were crystallized into CrSi2 phase. However, the grain size of the films on Si substrates was larger than the films on glass substrates at the same annealing temperature. There was an atomic interdiffusion at the interface between films and Si substrates. In addition, the electrical resistivity of two types of films was studied as a function of annealing temperature. It indicated that the electrical resistivity values of the films on glass substrates were higher than the films on Si substrates at the same annealing temperature. The annealing behavior of the electrical resistivity was correlated with microstructure and interfacial diffusion of the films, as well as the surface roughness of the substrates.