Effect of grain size on nanomechanical property Ni80Fe20 thin film

The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of this study into the structure and nanomechanical properties of Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ thin film. The films were sputtered onto glass substrates with thicknesses of 500 Å, 1000 Å, and 1500 Å, respectively. These three thicknesses were tested both at room temperature (RT) and with a post-annealing heat treatment temperature of 250 °C for 1 h. The plane-view microstructure was observed under a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) to determine grain distribution. The selected area diffraction (SAD) pattern was obtained with the HRTEM to investigate NiFe microstructures. Electron diffraction patterns demonstrated that NiFe thin film has a face-centered cubic (FCC) structure and strong NiFe (111) crystallization. Annealing treatment increased the grain size distribution of the thin film. The grain size is increased at the thicker thickness of NiFe thin film. Nano-indentation was used to measure hardness and Young's modulus; based on these results and the grain size, the decline of hardness can be reasonably inferred from an enlarged grain size, which is consistent with the Hall–Petch effect. However, the rising Young's modulus measurement can be reasonably associated with the effect of the sputtered adhesion of NiFe thin film.