Characterization of organic ultra-thin film adhesion on flexible substrate using scratch test technique

The mechanical properties of interfaces and more precisely the adhesion are of great importance for the understanding of the reliability of thin film devices. Organic thin film transistors (OTFT) on flexible substrate are a new class of electronic components. Since these devices are flexible and intended for different fields of application like sensors and displays, they will undergo a lot of mechanical and thermal stress during their useful life. Moreover, interfaces play an important role in the electrical stability of these transistors. In this context, the adhesion of two organic submicron thin films, semi conducting and dielectric respectively, deposited on polymeric substrate were investigated by scratch test method. This study demonstrates the feasibility and selectivity of the scratch test as a tool for assessing the adhesion and the damage behaviour of ultra-thin organic film on flexible plastic substrate. The semi-crystalline substrate presents a brittle cracking damage from a given strain, whereas when covered by the semi-conducting thin film, the sample exhibits a more ductile behaviour. Moreover, this technique has proven to be sensitive enough to highlight the effects of a plasma treatment prior to deposition. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.