Mastering the biaxial stress state in nanometric thin films on flexible substrates

Biaxial stress state of thin films deposited on flexible substrate can be mastered thanks to a new biaxial device. This tensile machine allows applying in-plane loads Fx and Fy in the two principal directions x and y of a cruciform-shaped polymer substrate. The transmission of the deformation at film/substrate interface allows controlling the stress and strain field in the thin films. We show in this paper a few illustrations dealing with strain measurements in polycrystalline thin films deposited on flexible substrate. The potentialities of the biaxial device located at Soleil synchrotron are also discussed.