Titanium Nitride

Titanium nitride (TiN) is a refractory, conductive ceramic that pairs excellent thermal/chemical stability with high hardness, making it a robust, CMOS‑compatible metal for microelectronics and harsh‑environment devices. It can be deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering for dense, low‑resistivity films and by atomic layer deposition (ALD) for ultra‑conformal, thickness‑controlled coatings in high‑aspect‑ratio interconnects and 3D nanostructures. In semiconductor processing, TiN serves as a copper diffusion barrier, gate/electrode material with tunable work function, hard mask/ARC, and stable contact in ferroelectric, memristive, and power devices. Optically, TiN behaves as a plasmonic metal with a tunable epsilon‑near‑zero region in the visible–near‑IR, enabling durable metasurfaces, waveguides, absorbers, and thermoplasmonic/heater structures that tolerate high temperatures better than noble metals. TiN is also a superconductor at cryogenic temperatures (critical temperatures typically around a few kelvin), supporting resonators, kinetic‑inductance detectors, nanowire single‑photon detectors, and low‑loss microwave circuits. Beyond semiconductors and photonics, TiN’s hardness, wear and corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility underpin tool coatings, tribological layers, and medical implant finishes, while its stability and moderate resistivity suit transparent‑window heaters when patterned or combined in hybrid stacks.

Deposition of Titanium Nitride

Thin films of Titanium Nitride (TiN) can be deposited by either ALD or reactive sputtering. If sputtering is used, the target is titanium (Ti), and nitrogen (N₂) is added as a reactive gas to the chamber, resulting in the formation of Titanium Nitride on the sample. The process information is available below:

TiN deposition using ALD.

TiN deposition with reactive sputtering using Lesker sputter tool.

TiN deposition with reactive sputtering using Sputter-System Metal-Oxide (PC1).

TiN deposition with reactive sputtering using Sputter-System Metal-Nitride (PC3) - preferable option.

Comparison between sputtering and ALD methods for deposition of Titanium Nitride.

	ALD2	Sputter-System Metal-Oxide (PC1)/Sputter-System Metal-Nitride (PC3)	Sputter-System(Lesker)
Generel description	Atomic Layer Deposition	Reactive sputtering Pulsed DC reactive sputtering Reactive HIPIMS (high-power impulse magnetron sputtering)	Reactive sputtering
Stoichiometry	TiN	TiN (can be tuned)	TiN (can be tuned)
Film Thickness	0 nm - 50 nm	few nm - ? (hundreds of nm)	few nm - 200 nm
Deposition rate	0.0173 nm/cycle on a flat sample 0.0232 nm/cycle on a high aspect ratio structures	about 0.12 nm/s, depends on sputtering parameters, check processlog in LabManager	up to 0.0625 nm/s on a flat sample
Step coverage	Very good	not known yet	Not investigated
Process Temperature	450 °C	Up to 600 °C	Up to 400 °C
Substrate size	Several small samples 1-5 50 mm wafers 1-5 100 mm wafers 1-5 150 mm wafer	Many small samples Up to 10x100 mm or 150 mm wafers	Several small samples 100 mm wafer 150 mm wafer
Allowed materials	Silicon Silicon oxide, silicon nitride Quartz/fused silica Al, Al₂O₃ Ti, TiO₂ Other metals (use dedicated carrier wafer) III-V materials (use dedicated carrier wafer) Polymers (depending on the melting point/deposition temperature, use carrier wafer)	Silicon Silicon oxide, silicon nitride Quartz/fused silica Metals III-V materials (use dedicated carrier wafer) Almost anything that is not toxic and does not outgas	Silicon Silicon oxide, silicon nitride Quartz/fused silica Metals III-V materials (use dedicated carrier wafer) Almost anything that is not toxic