TY - JOUR

T1 - Materials Engineering for Flexible Metallic Thin Film Applications

AU - Cordill, Megan J.

AU - Kreiml, Patrice

AU - Mitterer, Christian

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

PY - 2022/1/25

Y1 - 2022/1/25

N2 - More and more flexible, bendable, and stretchable sensors and displays are becoming a reality. While complex engineering and fabrication methods exist to manufacture flexible thin film systems, materials engineering through advanced metallic thin film deposition methods can also be utilized to create robust and long-lasting flexible devices. In this review, materials engineering con-cepts as well as electro-mechanical testing aspects will be discussed for metallic films. Through the use of residual stress, film thickness, or microstructure tailoring, all controlled by the film deposition parameters, long-lasting flexible film systems in terms of increased fracture or deformation strains, electrical or mechanical reliability, can be generated. These topics, as well as concrete examples, will be discussed. One objective of this work is to provide a toolbox with sustainable and scalable methods to create robust metal thin films for flexible, bendable, and stretchable applications.

AB - More and more flexible, bendable, and stretchable sensors and displays are becoming a reality. While complex engineering and fabrication methods exist to manufacture flexible thin film systems, materials engineering through advanced metallic thin film deposition methods can also be utilized to create robust and long-lasting flexible devices. In this review, materials engineering con-cepts as well as electro-mechanical testing aspects will be discussed for metallic films. Through the use of residual stress, film thickness, or microstructure tailoring, all controlled by the film deposition parameters, long-lasting flexible film systems in terms of increased fracture or deformation strains, electrical or mechanical reliability, can be generated. These topics, as well as concrete examples, will be discussed. One objective of this work is to provide a toolbox with sustainable and scalable methods to create robust metal thin films for flexible, bendable, and stretchable applications.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85123369086&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.3390/ma15030926

DO - 10.3390/ma15030926

M3 - Review article

VL - 15.2022

JO - Materials

JF - Materials

SN - 1996-1944

IS - 3

M1 - 926

ER -