Measuring the thermal conductivity of sub-surface buried substrates is of significant practical interests. However, this remains challenging with traditional pump–probe spectroscopies due to their limited thermal penetration depths. Here, we experimentally and numerically investigate the TPD of the recently developed optical pump–probe technique steady-state thermoreflectance (SSTR) and explore its capability for measuring the thermal properties of buried substrates. The conventional definition of the TPD (i.e., the depth at which temperature drops to 1/e value of the maximum surface temperature) does not truly represent the upper limit of how far beneath the surface SSTR can probe. For estimating the uncertainty of SSTR measurements of a buried substrate a priori, sensitivity calculations provide the best means. Thus, detailed sensitivity calculations are provided to guide future measurements. Due to the steady-state nature of SSTR, it can measure the thermal conductivity of buried substrates that are traditionally challenging by transient pump–probe techniques, exemplified by measuring three control samples. We also discuss the required criteria for SSTR to isolate the thermal properties of a buried film. Our study establishes SSTR as a suitable technique for thermal characterizations of sub-surface buried substrates in typical device geometries.
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June 2021
Research Article|
June 29 2021
Thermal conductivity measurements of sub-surface buried substrates by steady-state thermoreflectance
Md Shafkat Bin Hoque
;
Md Shafkat Bin Hoque
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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Yee Rui Koh
;
Yee Rui Koh
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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Kiumars Aryana
;
Kiumars Aryana
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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Eric R. Hoglund
;
Eric R. Hoglund
2
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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Jeffrey L. Braun
;
Jeffrey L. Braun
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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David H. Olson;
David H. Olson
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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John T. Gaskins
;
John T. Gaskins
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
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Habib Ahmad
;
Habib Ahmad
3
School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
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Mirza Mohammad Mahbube Elahi;
Mirza Mohammad Mahbube Elahi
4
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico
, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA
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Jennifer K. Hite
;
Jennifer K. Hite
5
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
, Washington, DC 20375, USA
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Zayd C. Leseman
;
Zayd C. Leseman
6
Department of Mechanical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
, Dhahran, Eastern Province 31261, Saudi Arabia
7
Interdisciplinary Research Center for Advanced Materials, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
, Dhahran, Eastern Province 31261, Saudi Arabia
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W. Alan Doolittle
;
W. Alan Doolittle
3
School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology
, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, USA
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Patrick E. Hopkins
Patrick E. Hopkins
a)
1
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
2
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
8
Department of Physics, University of Virginia
, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: phopkins@virginia.edu
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a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: phopkins@virginia.edu
Rev. Sci. Instrum. 92, 064906 (2021)
Article history
Received:
March 05 2021
Accepted:
June 06 2021
Citation
Md Shafkat Bin Hoque, Yee Rui Koh, Kiumars Aryana, Eric R. Hoglund, Jeffrey L. Braun, David H. Olson, John T. Gaskins, Habib Ahmad, Mirza Mohammad Mahbube Elahi, Jennifer K. Hite, Zayd C. Leseman, W. Alan Doolittle, Patrick E. Hopkins; Thermal conductivity measurements of sub-surface buried substrates by steady-state thermoreflectance. Rev. Sci. Instrum. 1 June 2021; 92 (6): 064906. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0049531
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