Use of genetic algorithms for the simultaneous estimation of thin films thermal conductivity and contact resistances

This study is on the use of genetic algorithms (GAs) to develop estimation methodologies for the determination of the thermal properties of thin films. The thermal conductivity and two contact resistances are thought to be simultaneously estimated. A GA is used to minimize a least squares objective function containing calculated and measured temperatures. A photo-thermal technique is applied to acquire measured temperatures, while calculated data are obtained from a one-dimensional conductive model. Experiments were performed on ZrO2 thin films of different thickness. The results from the analysis demonstrate that the proposed GA is a useful tool for the thermal characterization of thin films.