An investigation of smooth nanosized copper films on glass substrate by improved electroless plating

Thin nanocrystalline Cu films (< 1 mu m) are deposited on a glass substrate using an improved electroless plating technique. The deposition course of the Cu film is illustrated by the variation of surface morphology with different deposition time. The results show that a more uniform and continuous nanocrystalline Cu film with very small nodules can be formed on a glass substrate at the deposition time over 1 min. The roles of SDBS as an additive in the bath are also discussed. According to the relation of the film thickness and the deposition time, it is obvious that the film thickness nearly linearly varies with the deposition time in the present work. An enhanced (111) texture with the diffraction intensity ratio (I-(111)/I-(200)) of about 4.0 and the very fine grain size of 15-28 nm determined by X-ray results has been observed. The variations of the resistivity show that it is strongly affected by the film thickness and grain size.