Mechanical properties of plasma polymer film evaluated by conventional and alternative nanoindentation techniques

A plasma-polymerized tetravinylsilane film of about 1 μm thickness was prepared under steady-state deposition conditions on polished silicon wafer using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Near-surface mechanical properties such as the reduced modulus and hardness of the plasma polymer film were investigated using conventional depth-sensing nanoindentation as well as load-partial-unload (cyclic) nanoindentation. The study found an influence of the dwell time and loading/unloading rate on the determined values of the reduced modulus, hardness, and contact depth.