How mechanical reliability monitoring of ULK films is becoming increasingly important to rapidly identify process variation and sustain high device yields
Dielectric materials are of critical importance in the function of microelectronic devices because they electrically isolate conductive components from one another in microcircuits. Capacitance between conductors can limit a circuit’s maximum operating frequency, and the capacitance increases in inverse proportion to the separation distance between the conductors. Therefore, to minimize the size of a microelectronic device and maximize its operating frequency, the device’s components must be separated by a material with a dielectric constant as low as possible. A class of materials known as ultra low-k (ULK) dielectrics are employed for this purpose. Every significant semiconductor node change requires the successful integration of a new generation of higher porosity, lower k materials. However, there is a significant trade-off between mechanical properties and electrical properties for low-k materials. The incorporation of nanometer-scale pores to decrease k typically results in decreased strength, stiffness, and adhesion of the deposited films. Therefore, monitoring mechanical properties of ULK films in a semiconductor production process is critical to ensuring that the device will survive and yield a consistent, reliable finished product. This application note discusses how mechanical reliability monitoring of ULK films is becoming increasingly important to rapidly identify process variation and sustain high device yields; and how nanoindentation and nanoscratch testing provide an ideal means to measure the hardness (strength), modulus (stiffness), and critical scratch force (adhesion) of these critical films.
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