Nanoindentation and deformation properties of nanoscale silicon carbide films on silicon substrate

We propose a model to describe the microhardness of a nanoscale film-substrate system as a function of the depth of indenter penetration. The proposed model has been used to study the deformation characteristics of a nanometer-thick silicon carbide (SiC) grown on a silicon substrate by the method of atomic substitution. The microhardness of as-grown SiC film and a modified silicon layer has been determined. The SiC film thickness has been determined using the nanoindentation technique. The data of nanoindentation are in good agreement with the results of ellipsometric measurements.