Relaxation in Nanoscale Freestanding Gold Films Using MEMS

Abstract

We present experimental results to describe the stress relaxation behavior of thin (125 nm) freestanding gold films at room temperature. The experiments were performed inside a field emission scanning microscope using a MEMS-based test bed which is only 3mm × 10mm in size. The effect of stress relaxation on the young’s modulus of gold thin films is observed. The thin film specimen used in the experiment is co-fabricated with the micromechanical loading device and hence eliminates problems of alignment and gripping. Freestanding thin films provide us with information about the mechanical behavior of thin films in the absence of substrate effects.