Electrical characterization of low permittivity materials for ULSI inter-metal-insulation

Cluzel, J.; Mondon, F.; Loquet, Yannick; Morand, Y.; Reimbold, G.

doi:10.1016/s0026-2714(99)00319-4

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…13 It was reported that oxygen/moisture uptake would weaken the electrical characteristics in terms of leakage current and breakdown strength. 14,15 However, the oxygen species were almost removed from the Ta/PAE interface with EB treatments ͑Fig. 5b and c͒, both of which show similar depth profile.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Modification of Ta/Polymeric Low-k Interface by Electron-Beam Treatment

Gan

Mhaisalkar

Chen

et al. 2006

J. Electrochem. Soc.

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Polymeric dielectric, porous polyarylene ether ͑PAE͒, was introduced in the Cu damascene structures because of its low dielectric constant to reduce resistance-capacitance ͑RC͒ delay. One of the requirements of a low-k material includes its good adhesion to the other interconnect materials. In the present study, the adhesion energy ͑G c ͒ of the barrier layer Ta/PAE interface was quantitatively measured by a four-point bending technique. The obtained G c value of the pristine Ta/PAE interface was 5.9 ± 1.1 J/m 2 . If the PAE was subjected to electron-beam ͑EB͒ treatment with low dose ͑20 C/cm 2 ͒ prior to Ta deposition, G c value increased to 8.1 ± 0.5 J/m 2 . However, with high-dose ͑40 C/cm 2 ͒ EB treatment, G c value reduced to 4.0 ± 0.6 J/m 2 . The adhesion improvement and degradation induced by low-and high-dose EB were correlated to the increase and reduction of the amount of C-Ta bonds at the Ta/PAE interface, respectively. The phenomena were further studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis.As the feature sizes continue to reduce in ultra large-scale integration ͑ULSI͒, on-chip interconnects are being scaled aggressively and the resistance-capacitance ͑RC͒ delay becomes a serious concern. According to the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors ͑ITRS͒ 2003, 1 as feature sizes in integrated circuits approach 0.1 m, it is necessary to reduce the dielectric constant of the dielectrics materials to below 2.2. This means these dielectric materials will need to be produced in a porous form.Due to the inherent mechanical weakness of the low-k material, adhesion of the low-k material to the surrounding layers becomes a critical issue for application consideration in the back-end-of-line ͑BEOL͒, especially when the dielectric material is highly porous. One of the diverse requirements of a low-k material in order to be successfully integrated includes its good adhesion to the other interconnect materials, because interfacial debonding of multilayer interconnect thin films can affect the reliability of electronic devices. [2][3][4][5][6] Polymeric low-k dielectric, porous polyarylene ether ͑PAE͒, was introduced in the Cu damascene structures because of its low dielectric constant ͑i.e., k͒ of 2.65 and high thermal stability ͑Ͼ425°C͒. 7 Another advantage is that it could be fabricated by the lower cost spin-on process, compared with the silicon-based chemical vapor deposition ͑CVD͒. 8 A metallic barrier layer Ta was employed to block Cu diffusion into the dielectric. However, the reliability issues, mostly associated with the poor electrical/mechanical properties of this kind of low-k films, are major concerns in the Cu/organic low-k damascene process. 1 It has been demonstrated previously that the film stack may delaminate during chemical mechanical polishing ͑CMP͒ if the interfacial adhesion energy ͑G c ͒ value is less than 5 J/m 2 . 9 In the present study, the adhesion energy ͑G c ͒ of the Ta/PAE interface was quantitatively measured by four-point bending technique. The interaction at the Ta...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Modification of Ta/Polymeric Low-k Interface by Electron-Beam Treatment

Gan

Mhaisalkar

Chen

et al. 2006

J. Electrochem. Soc.

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“…There exist many unpaired bonds, defects and surface states in the film due to the porous nature of the film resulting in the emission of UV and blue-light [19]. Compared to the common SiO 2 films, there is a stronger blue-light emission and a small blue shift for the SiO 2 :F samples.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fluorinated nanoporous SiO2 films with ultra-low dielectric constant

Zhen

Zhang

et al. 2008

Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids

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Low dielectric constant materials for microelectronics

Maex

Baklanov

Shamiryan

et al. 2003

Journal of Applied Physics

1,570

1,110

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The ever increasing requirements for electrical performance of on-chip wiring has driven three major technological advances in recent years. First, copper has replaced Aluminum as the new interconnect metal of choice, forcing also the introduction of damascene processing. Second, alternatives for SiO2 with a lower dielectric constant are being developed and introduced in main stream processing. The many new resulting materials needs to be classified in terms of their materials characteristics, evaluated in terms of their properties, and tested for process compatibility. Third, in an attempt to lower the dielectric constant even more, porosity is being introduced into these new materials. The study of processes such as plasma interactions and swelling in liquid media now becomes critical. Furthermore, pore sealing and the deposition of a thin continuous copper diffusion barrier on a porous dielectric are of prime importance. This review is an attempt to give an overview of the classification, the characteristics and properties of low-k dielectrics. In addition it addresses some of the needs for improved metrology for determining pore sizes, size distributions, structure, and mechanical properties.

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Electrical characterization of low permittivity materials for ULSI inter-metal-insulation

Cited by 6 publications

References 5 publications

Modification of Ta/Polymeric Low-k Interface by Electron-Beam Treatment

Modification of Ta/Polymeric Low-k Interface by Electron-Beam Treatment

Fluorinated nanoporous SiO2 films with ultra-low dielectric constant

Low dielectric constant materials for microelectronics

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