One might wonder what do high performance microprocessors, French Cheese and Sunscreen have in common. Considering that porous materials have been used for more than 10 years to build active devices and that these materials will require some protection in the future, the comparison above is only a little stretch of our imagination. Indeed today, integration of porous low dielectric constant materials constitutes a major roadblock in the reliable manufacturing of back end of the line (BEOL) wiring for advanced microprocessors [1]. In this presentation, I will describe the two main issues preventing the reliable integration of Ultra low-k (ULK) materials : their low mechanical properties and high sensitivity to plasma induced damage (PID). I will also present the strategies that we have developed to address these challenges [2-6].
References
1. W. Volksen, R. D. Miller, G. Dubois, Chem. Rev. 2010, 110, 56–110.
2. G. Dubois, W. Volksen, T. Magbitang, R. D. Miller, D. M. Gage, R. H. Dauskardt, Adv. Mater. 2007, 19, 3989–3894.
3. G. Dubois, W. Volksen, T. Magbitang, M. H. Sherwood, R. D. Miller, D. M. Gage, R. H. Dauskardt, J. Sol-Gel Sci. Technol. 2008, 48, 187–193.
4. M. S. Oliver, G. Dubois, M. Sherwood, D. M. Gage, R. H. Dauskardt, Adv. Funct. Mater. 2010, 20, 2884–2892.
5. T. Frot, W. Volksen, S. Purushothaman, R. Bruce, G. Dubois, Adv. Mater. 2011, 23, 2828–2832.
6. T. Frot, W. Volksen, S. Purushothaman, R. L. Bruce, T. Magbitang, D. C. Miller, VR. Deline, G. Dubois, Adv. Funct. Mater. 2012, 22, 3043–3050.
Biographical sketch :
Dr. Géraud Dubois obtained his Ph.D. degree summa cum laude from the Montpellier II University in France in 1999. From 1999 to 2000, Dr. Dubois was a post-doc at the University of Burgundy. In 2000, Dr. Dubois moved to the United States and a postdoctoral position at Stanford University. In November 2002, Dr. Dubois joined the IBM Research Division at their Almaden Research Center in California where he currently is the manager of the hybrid polymeric materials group. He has also been a Consulting Associate Professor at Stanford University since 2009 and the president of the International Sol-Gel Society from 2009 to 2011. His research interests focus on the synthesis and characterization of porous silicates thin-films with superior mechanical properties, the development of new processes for the damage free integration of ULK materials and the preparation of organic membranes for sea water desalination and waste water purification.
Contact local ICGM : Prof. Bruno Boury (équipe CMOS)