Hostname: page-component-76d6cb85b7-92wsb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-07-15T22:44:23.209Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Interface Stability of Metal Barrier and low K Dielectrics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

Toh-Ming Lu ,
Y. Ou  and
P.-I. Wang
Toh-Ming Lu
Affiliation:
lut@rpi.edu, Rensselaer Polytechinc Institute, Center for Integrated Electronics, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, United States
Y. Ou
Affiliation:
ouy@rpi.edu, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute,, Department of Physics, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, United States
P.-I. Wang
Affiliation:
wangp3@rpi.edu, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Department of Physics, 110, 8th Street, Troy, NY, 12180, United States
Get access

Abstract

It is known that the interface between a refractory metal barrier and a dielectric material is stable against thermal treatment at a conventional IC interconnect processing temperature. However, the interface may not be stable against thermal and electrical stress called the bias temperature stress (BTS) at moderate conditions of 150 °C and 0.5 MV/cm. Massive refractory metal ions are seen to drift into low K dielectric materials that contain a mixture of organic and inorganic elements. It is argued that the oxidation of the metal at the interface creates unstable metal ions that are ready to drift into the dielectric film under an electric filed during the BTS test. Dielectric or dielectric capping materials that do not contain oxygen can prevent metal oxidation and are desirable to create a stable metal and dielectric interface.

Keywords

barrier layerdielectricfilm

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

REFERENCES

1 Mallikarjunan, A., Murarka, S.P., and Lu, T.-M., Appl. Phys. Lett. 79, 1855 (2001).Google Scholar
2 Mallikarjunan, A., Murarka, S.P., and Lu, T.-M., J. Electrochemical Society 149, F155 (2002).Google Scholar
3 Hillen, M. W. and Verwey, J. F., Instabilities in Silicon Devices, Volume I, ed. Barbottin, G. and Vapaille, A., (North Holland Elsevier Science Publishers, Netherlands, 1986), p. 416.Google Scholar
4 Fukuda, T., Nishino, H., Matsuura, A., and Matsunaga, H., Jpn. J. Appl. Phys., Part 2, 41, L537 (2002).Google Scholar
5 Willis, B.G. and Lang, D.V., Thin Solid Films 467, 284 (2004).Google Scholar
6 Rodriguez, O., Cho, W., Saxena, R., Plawsky, J.L., and Gill, W.N., J. Appl. Phys. 98, 024108 (2005).Google Scholar
7 Loke, A.L.S., Wetzel, J.T., Townsend, P.H., Tanabe, T., Vrtis, R.N., Zussman, M.P., Kumar, D., Ryu, C., and Wong, S.S., IEEE Trans. Electron Devices 46, 2178 (1999).Google Scholar
8 Wang, P.-I., Wu, Z., Lu, T.-M., and Interrante, L.V., J. Electrochem. Soc. 153 (4), G267 (2006).Google Scholar
9 Mallikarjunan, A., Wiegand, C., Senkevich, J.J., Yang, G.-R., Williams, E., and Lu, T.-M., Electrochem. Sold-State Lett. 6 (8), F28 (2003).Google Scholar
10 Juneja, J.S., Wang, P.-I., Karabacak, T., and Lu, T.-M., Thin Solid Films 504, 239 (2006).Google Scholar
11 Jezewski, Christopher, Lanford, W.A., Wiegand, C. J., Senkevich, Jay J., Lu, T.-M., Semiconductor International 27(5), 56 (2004).Google Scholar