Protocol for nanoscale thermal mapping of electronic devices using atomic force microscopy with phase change material

Qilong Cheng; Sukumar Rajauria; Erhard Schreck; Robert Smith; Na Wang; Jim Reiner; Qing Dai; David Bogy

doi:10.1016/j.xpro.2024.103039

Protocol for nanoscale thermal mapping of electronic devices using atomic force microscopy with phase change material

STAR Protoc. 2024 Apr 25;5(2):103039. doi: 10.1016/j.xpro.2024.103039. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Qilong Cheng¹, Sukumar Rajauria², Erhard Schreck³, Robert Smith³, Na Wang³, Jim Reiner³, Qing Dai³, David Bogy⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Western Digital Corporation, Recording Sub System Staging and Research, San Jose, CA 95135, USA. Electronic address: qlcheng@berkeley.edu.
² Western Digital Corporation, Recording Sub System Staging and Research, San Jose, CA 95135, USA. Electronic address: sukumar.rajauria@wdc.com.
³ Western Digital Corporation, Recording Sub System Staging and Research, San Jose, CA 95135, USA.
⁴ Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.

Abstract

In this protocol, we present a facile nanoscale thermal mapping technique for electronic devices by use of atomic force microscopy and a phase change material Ge₂Sb₂Te₅. We describe steps for Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ thin film coating, Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ temperature calibration, thermal mapping by varying heater power, and thermal mapping by varying heating time. The protocol can be applied for resolving surface temperatures of various operational microelectronic devices with a nanoscale precision. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Cheng et al.¹.

Keywords: Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM); Material sciences; Microscopy; Physics.