Aluminium diffusion in titanium nitride films. Efficiency of TiN barrier layers

Grigorov, G.; Grigorov, K. G.; Stoyanova, M.; Vignes, J.‐L.; Langeron, J.P.; Denjean, P.

doi:10.1007/bf00331444

Cited by 54 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…From the results of Chamberlain [11], the grain boundary diffusivity (D b ) and the activation energy (Q b ) of Cu in the Cu/TiN/sapphire system were 10 −17 -10 −19 cm 2 /s and 4.4 eV, respectively, at temperature region from 600 • C to 700 • C. His results indicate that TiN in Cu metallization is a better barrier system than that in Al metallization since Q b and D b of Al through TiN layer were 0.31 eV and ≈ 10 −16 cm 2 /s, respectively, from 300 • C to 550 • C [12]. Although the differences in failure temperatures and diffusion coefficients are caused by various film microstructures and characterization methods, the grain boundary diffusion coefficients of Chamberlain [11], are too different from those of Al through TiN layer.…”

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confidence: 71%

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Grain boundary diffusion of Cu in TiN film by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Lim

Lee

Chung

et al. 2000

Applied Physics A: Materials Science & Processing

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In this study, the grain boundary diffusion of Cu through a TiN layer with columnar structure was investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was observed that Cu atoms diffuse from the Cu layer to the surface along the grain boundaries in the TiN layer at elevated temperature. In order to estimate the grain boundary diffusion constants, we used the surface accumulation method. The diffusivity of Cu through TiN layer with columnar structure from 400The present semiconductor devices such as ULSI require the higher integration density with smaller submicron design scheme. However, aluminum and aluminum-based metallization have some problems such as the relatively higher resistance and the failure caused by the electromigration. At present, Cu has attracted more attention as a new interconnection metallization material, because of its low resistivity (1.67 µΩ cm for bulk), and high reliability against electromigration (EM) [1,2]. However, Cu is regarded as a fatal impurity in the semiconductor fabrication process due to its high diffusivity in Si (diffusion coefficient ≈ 10 −8 cm 2 /s at room temperature) [3][4][5]. Therefore, a thin diffusion barrier preventing Cu diffusion in Si substrate is needed in order to successfully integrate Cu as an interconnecting layer.TiN is one of the most widely investigated barrier materials in Cu metallization, as well as in Al-based metallization. Thus, there are many reports for the Cu diffusion in TiN during the annealing even though the failure temperatures of TiN against Cu diffusion differ among researchers [6-10]. Generally, it was known that the grain boundaries of TiN film act as a main diffusion path of Cu or Si [8]. Therefore, to understand the temperature failure mechanisms of TiN against Cu, an investigation of the diffusivity and diffusion mechanisms of Cu in TiN thin film are needed.From the results of Chamberlain [11], the grain boundary diffusivity (D b ) and the activation energy (Q b ) of Cu in the Cu/TiN/sapphire system were 10 −17 -10 −19 cm 2 /s and 4.4 eV, respectively, at temperature region from 600 • C to 700 • C. His results indicate that TiN in Cu metallization is a better barrier system than that in Al metallization since Q b and D b of Al through TiN layer were 0.31 eV and ≈ 10 −16 cm 2 /s, respectively, from 300 • C to 550 • C [12]. Although the differences in failure temperatures and diffusion coefficients are caused by various film microstructures and characterization methods, the grain boundary diffusion coefficients of Chamberlain [11], are too different from those of Al through TiN layer. In general, the value of Q b is approximately half of that for lattice diffusion [13] and in the range of T < 1 3 T m , the smaller the measurement temperature T is, the smaller the value of Q b should be [14]. Therefore, his values of diffusion coefficient seem to be unreasonable from a view point of the grain boundary diffusion. In fact, his Q b , 4.4 eV, for Cu in TiN layer is closed to the value of the bulk (=lattice) diffusion.To study this gr...

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confidence: 71%

“…From Grigorov et al [12], Q b and D b0 of Al in TiN/Al/Si system with TiN layer of columnar structure were esti- Fig. 6.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grain boundary diffusion of Cu in TiN film by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Lim

Lee

Chung

et al. 2000

Applied Physics A: Materials Science & Processing

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“…15-18 K for NbN and MoN) and they provide conductive diffusion barrier layers for electronics devices. The optical properties lead to coloured coatings for costume jewellery, and they have applications in catalysis [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrogen-rich transition metal nitrides

Salamat

Hector

Kroll

et al. 2013

Coordination Chemistry Reviews

131

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The solid state chemistry leading to the synthesis and characterization of metal nitrides with N:M ratios > 1 is summarized. Studies of these compounds represent an emerging area of research. Most transition metal nitrides have much lower nitrogen contents, and they often form with nonor sub-stoichiometric compositions. These materials are typically metallic with often superconducting properties, and they provide highly refractory, high hardness materials with many technological applications. The higher metal nitrides should achieve formal oxidation states (OS) attaining those found among corresponding oxides, and they are expected to have useful semiconducting properties. Only a very few examples of such high OS nitrogen-rich compounds are known at present. The main group elements typically form covalently bonded nitride ceramics such as Si 3 N 4 , Ge 3 N 4 and Sn 3 N 4 , and the early transition metals Zr and Hf produce Zr 3 N 4 and Hf 3 N 4 . However, the only main example of a highly nitrided transition metal compound known to date is Ta 3 N 5 , that has a formal oxidation state +5 and is a semiconductor with visible light absorption leading to applications as a pigment and in photocatalysis. New synthesis routes are being explored to study the possible formation of other N-rich materials that are predicted to exist by ab initio calculations. There is a useful interplay between theoretical predictions and experimental synthesis studies at ambient and high pressure conditions, as we explore and establish the existence and structure-property relations of these new nitride compounds and polymorphs. Here we review the state of current investigations and indicate possible new directions for further work.[a] European Synchrotron Radiation Facility,

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“…Titanium nitride (TiN) is an important material due to its many superior properties, such as superior high-temperature strength, excellent corrosion and wear resistance, high melting point (2950 • C), extreme hardness (2160 kg/mm 2 ), high chemical and thermal stability, and high electrical and thermal conductivity and gold color [1][2][3][4][5]. These attractive properties allow it to be used as hard, protective coatings for cutting tools [6,7], as diffusion barriers in microelectronics [8][9][10], as crucibles in metal smelting, as an optical coating [11] and as a gold-colored surface for jewelry [12]. Besides these, titanium nitride is also used as a solar energy absorber [13], an IR reflector, and a thin film resistor [14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synthesis of nanocrystalline titanium nitride at low temperature and its thermal stability

et al. 2009

Journal of Alloys and Compounds

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Aluminium diffusion in titanium nitride films. Efficiency of TiN barrier layers

Cited by 54 publications

References 23 publications

Grain boundary diffusion of Cu in TiN film by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Grain boundary diffusion of Cu in TiN film by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Nitrogen-rich transition metal nitrides

Synthesis of nanocrystalline titanium nitride at low temperature and its thermal stability

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