Fatigue testing of polysilicon - a review

Measurement of the mechanical properties of thin-film materials such as polysilicon is difficult because of the small sizes, forces, and displacements involved as well as the need for special techniques to prepare and handle the specimens. The situation is even more difficult when cyclic loading is involved, and this paper reviews the limited number of fatigue studies to date. New tension-tension test methods are presented along with some initial data. All of these measurements show an increase in life of polysilicon with decreasing applied cyclic stress.