Advanced PECVD SiCOH low-k films with low dielectric constant and/or high Young’s modulus

Verdonck, Patrick; Le, Quoc Toan; Souriau, Laurent; Vanstreels, Kris; Krishtab, Mikhail; Baklanov, Mikhaı̈l R.

doi:10.1016/j.mee.2013.10.028

Cited by 18 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…It seems however that there is a limit to values around 1.9-2.0 due to pore collapsing at higher porogen loadings. 32,58,59 As a result, the list of potentially viable low-k candidates has narrowed substantially over the years. For advanced and future technologies nodes below 10 nm, the PECVD technology will no longer be able to satisfy all the integration requirements due to the uncontrollable process of pore formation and the porogen residues that are formed during the UV curing process.…”

Section: Low-k Dielectrics For Future Technology Nodesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mechanical Stability of Porous Low-k Dielectrics

Vanstreels

Baklanov

2014

ECS J. Solid State Sci. Technol.

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This paper reviews the mechanical and fracture properties of porous ultralow-k dielectrics with the focus on chip package interaction related issues. It is shown that the mechanical and fracture properties of porous ultralow-k dielectric films are closely linked with porosity, pore morphology, network structure and deposition technology, while their fracture properties are also sensitive to reactive species in the environment. The survivability of low-k dielectrics upon integration, package assembly and subsequent reliability tests is therefore a combination of their mechanical stability, fracture properties, the specific mechanical or thermo-mechanical load and environmental effects. For the past three decades, the semiconductor industry has been improving the performance of microelectronic devices and the functionality of advanced integrated circuits through the continuous scaling of integrated circuits and the maximization of transistor density.1 Consequently, this encourages the introduction of new materials, processes, chip designs, and packaging strategies into micro-/nano-electronic products. Among these material innovations are insulating materials with a dielectric constant (k) less than that of SiO 2 , so called low-k dielectrics. During the last 15 years, various materials and methods have been developed for fabricating low-k dielectric films, among which the plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technology of porous organosilicate glasses (OSG) is the most popular due to its better compatibility with the technological needs.2-5 The reduction in k for low-k dielectrics is being pursued through the introduction of controlled levels of porosity. However, finding a good low-k material has proven to be much more challenging than first expected due to a number of integration and reliability issues.1 Besides the need of being compatible with the different lithography, etching, stripping and cleaning processes that are used in state-of-the-art integration schemes, they must also have sufficient mechanical strength to withstand the high shear stresses as well as harsh chemical environments that are involved during the chemical mechanical polishing process without cohesive or adhesive failure occurring.6-8 On top of that, since low-k dielectrics exhibit intrinsic tensile stresses and have increased coefficients of thermal expansion compared to SiO 2 , thin film cracking and adhesion are serious thermal-mechanical reliability issues for low-k dielectric materials (Figure 1). 9,10 Thermo-mechanical deformation of the package during package assembly and subsequent reliability tests can induce large local stresses that can initiate and propagate cohesive and/or adhesive cracks in different back-end of line (BEOL) layers.11 Therefore, a careful characterization of the mechanical integrity of potential new low-k candidates is required to integrate these new materials and Cu interconnects and to assure reliability during chip packaging and under field conditions. In the microelectronics industry, the elas...

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Section: Low-k Dielectrics For Future Technology Nodesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mechanical Stability of Porous Low-k Dielectrics

Vanstreels

Baklanov

2014

ECS J. Solid State Sci. Technol.

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“…Of a broad class of silicon‐based thin‐film materials amorphous hydrogenated silicon oxycarbide (a‐SiCO:H) films due to their many attractive properties, such as: high hardness and elastic modulus, low residual stress, low dielectric constant, and very low absorption coefficient, are of great interest. a‐SiCO:H films appear to be a promising coatings for a wide range of technological applications and they may be used, for example, as anode component in lithium ion batteries, dielectric material in ultra large‐scale integrated circuit chips, emitters of white or blue light, and coatings for catalytic reactors deposited on metallic support …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicon Oxycarbide Films Produced by Remote Microwave Hydrogen Plasma CVD using a Tetramethyldisiloxane Precursor: Growth Kinetics, Structure, Surface Morphology, and Properties

Wróbel

Uznański

Walkiewicz-Pietrzykowska

2015

Chemical Vapor Deposition

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Amorphous hydrogenated silicon oxycarbide (a-SiCO:H) thin films are produced by remote microwave hydrogen plasma CVD using 1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane precursor. The effect of substrate temperature (T S ) on the chemical structure and some properties of resulting a-SiCO:H films is reported. The examination performed by infrared spectroscopy revealed that the increase in T S involves the elimination of organic moieties from the film and its transformation from polymer-like to ceramiclike high-crosslink-density material. Due to their small surface roughness, high density, and good optical transparency, the aSiCO:H films seem to be useful coatings for optical and electronic devices.

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“…Amorphous hydrogenated silicon carbooxide (a‐SiCO:H) films are coating materials of a complex structure composed of carbidic Si‐C and oxide Si‐O units. They have attracted much attention in recent times due to their excellent properties, such as high hardness and elastic modulus, low residual stress, low dielectric constant, and very low absorption coefficient . In view of the recent reports, these a‐SiCO:H films are promising coating materials for advanced technology and they may be used, for example, as anode components in lithium ion batteries, dielectric materials in ultra‐large‐scale integrated circuit chips, and emitters of white or blue light .…”

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confidence: 99%