Titanium nitride (TiN) thin film resistors (TFRs) have been fabricated by reactive sputter deposition. The TFRs were characterized in terms of composition, thickness, and resistance. Furthermore, a first assessment of the resistor reliability was made by measurements of the resistivity (rho) versus temperature, electrical stress, long-term stability, and thermal infrared measurements. TiN layers with thicknesses up to 3560 angstrom, corresponding to a sheet resistance (R(s)) of 10 Omega/square, were successfully deposited without any signs of stress in the films. The critical dissipated power (P(c)) showed a correlation with the resistor footprint-area indicating that Joule-heating was the main cause of failure. This was partly substantiated by the thermal infrared measurements. (C) 2010 American Vacuum Society. [DOI: 10.1116/1.3475532]