Time variation of the tunnelling length in island Cu films studied by the repeated deposition technique

The post-deposition resistance increase (aging) in island Cu films on glass studied by the repeated deposition technique was quantified with the definition of an agglomeration rate in an earlier study. Using an analysis employed by Andersson, with some modifications, the change in the tunnelling length during aging (inter-island spacing) and the values of the tunnelling length before and after aging are determined. A new agglomeration rate is defined in terms of the change in the tunnelling length per unit time which enables easier comparison between films. As an illustration, the technique is applied to the Cu island films studied by the repeated deposition technique.