We propose an amorphous/porous molecular connection network generation algorithm for simulating the material stiffness of a low-k material (SiOC:H). Based on a given concentration of the basic building blocks, this algorithm will generate an approximate and large amorphous network. The molecular topology is obtained by distributing these blocks randomly into a predefined framework. Subsequently, a structural relaxation step including local and global perturbations is applied to achieve the most likely stereochemical structure. Thus, the obtained mechanical properties of the low-k materials have been verified with the experimental data.

We propose a molecular modeling method which is capable of modeling the mechanical impact of the porosity and pore size to the amorphous silicon-based low-dielectric (low-k) material. Due to the electronic requirement of advanced electronic devices, low-k materials are in demand for the IC backend structure. However, due to the amorphous nature and porosity of this material, it exhibits low mechanical stiffness and low interfacial strength, as well as inducing numerous reliablity issues. The mechanical impact of the nanoscaled pore, including the porosity ratio and pore size, is simulated using molecular dynamics on the mechanical stiffness and interfacial strength. A fitting function is formulated based on the continuum homogenour theory and atomic interaction in nano-scale. The simulation results are fitted into analytical equation based on the homogenous theory.