Superconformal Electrodeposition for 3-Dimensional Interconnects

Studies of Benzotriazole on and into the Copper Electrodeposited Layer by Cyclic Voltammetry, Time-of-Flight Secondary-Ion Mass Spectrometry, Atomic Force Microscopy, and Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Benzotriazole (BTA) is an important compound that demonstrates the strongest anticorrosion properties of copper and plays a role as a leveler and an additive to the electroplating bath for control of the roughness and corrosion resistance of the electrodeposited copper layer. In this paper, we combined cyclic voltammetry (CV), time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to study the interaction of BTA with copper surfaces at varied concentrations with and without the presence of chloride ions. We identified the most relevant molecular copper and its complex forms with BTA on the copper electrodeposited layer. BTA is adsorbed and incorporated into the copper surface in monomeric, dimeric, trimeric, tetrameric, and pentameric forms, inhibiting the copper electrodeposition. The addition of chloride ions diminishes the inhibiting properties of BTA. The Cu-BTA-Cl complexes were identified in the forms C12H8N6Cu2Cl- and C6H4N3CuCl-. Coadsorption of chloride ions and BTA molecules depends on their concentration and applied potential. Chloride ions are replaced by BTA molecules. BTA and chloride ions, depending on their concentration and applied potential, control the copper nucleation processes at the micro- and nanoscales. We compared the abilities and limitations of TOF-SIMS and SERS for studies of the interactions of benzotriazole with copper and chloride ions at the molecular level.

Interaction of Bis-(sodium-sulfopropyl)-Disulfide and Polyethylene Glycol on the Copper Electrodeposited Layer by Time-of-Flight Secondary-Ion Mass Spectrometry

The interactions of the functional additives SPS (bis-(sodium-sulfopropyl)-disulfide) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) in the presence of chloride ions were studied by time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) in combination with cyclic voltammetry measurements (CV). The PEG, thiolate, and chloride surface coverages were estimated and discussed in terms of their electrochemical suppressing/accelerating abilities. The conformational influence of both the gauche/trans thiolate molecules, as well as around C-C and C-O of PEG, on the electrochemical properties were discussed. The contribution of the hydrophobic interaction of -CH₂-CH₂- of PEG with chloride ions was only slightly reduced after the addition of SPS, while the contribution of Cu-PEG adducts diminished strongly. SPS and PEG demonstrated significant synergy by significant co-adsorption. It was shown that the suppressing abilities of PEG that rely on forming stable Cu-PEG adducts, identified in the form C₂H₄O₂Cu⁺ and C₃H₆OCu⁺, were significantly reduced after the addition of SPS. The major role of thiolate molecules adsorbed on a copper surface in reducing the suppressing abilities of PEG rely on the efficient capture of Cu²⁺ ions, diminishing the available copper ions for the ethereal oxygen of PEG.

Nanoscale patterning of a self-assembled monolayer by modification of the molecule-substrate bond

The intercalation of Cu at the interface of a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) and a Au(111)/mica substrate by underpotential deposition (UPD) is studied as a means of high resolution patterning. A SAM of 2-(4'-methylbiphenyl-4-yl)ethanethiol (BP2) prepared in a structural phase that renders the Au substrate completely passive against Cu-UPD, is patterned by modification with the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope. The tip-induced defects act as nucleation sites for Cu-UPD. The lateral diffusion of the metal at the SAM-substrate interface and, thus, the pattern dimensions are controlled by the deposition time. Patterning down to the sub-20 nm range is demonstrated. The difference in strength between the S-Au and S-Cu bond is harnessed to develop the latent Cu-UPD image into a patterned binary SAM. Demonstrated by the exchange of BP2 by adamantanethiol (AdSH) this is accomplished by a sequence of reductive desorption of BP2 in Cu free areas followed by adsorption of AdSH. The appearance of Au adatom islands upon the thiol exchange suggests that the interfacial structures of BP2 and AdSH SAMs are different.

In situ video-STM studies of methyl thiolate surface dynamics and self-assembly on Cu(100) electrodes

The atomic-scale surface dynamic behavior of adsorbed methyl thiolate on Cu(100) electrodes, prepared via the dissociative adsorption of dimethyl disulfide, was studied in 0.01 M HCl solution over a wide regime of coverages. Using video-rate in situ STM, we directly observed the motion of the adsorbates within the c(2 × 2) lattice of the chloride coadsorbates with high spatial and temporal resolution, revealing complex mutual interactions of the organic adsorbates as well as pronounced interactions with Cu adatoms, which significantly affect the thiolate self-assembly. Quantitative measurements of the tracer diffusion of isolated thiolates reveal a 35 meV lower diffusion barrier as compared to that of sulfide adsorbates with a linear potential dependence of 0.5 eV/V. The effective intermolecular interactions between the thiolates resemble those between adsorbed sulfide and are repulsive at the nearest-neighbor distance of a(0) within the c(2 × 2) lattice, attractive at the next-nearest-neighbor distance of √2a(0) and again repulsive at a distance of 2a(0). Thiolates at these small spacings are found to exhibit characteristic collective properties, which are significant for the self-assembly of these species: First, their mobility is greatly enhanced relative to that of isolated thiolates. Second, Cu adatoms can be transiently trapped in between the two thiolates of a metastable dimer with an intermolecular spacing of √2a(0). With increasing coverage, small, highly mobile molecular clusters and subsequently the formation of ordered adlayer domains with a c(2 × 6) structure are observed. Common structural elements of the clusters and c(2 × 6) domains are stripes of thiolate dimers, which are oriented in the [011] direction, spaced at distances of √2a(0) and of which a large fraction is occupied by Cu adatoms. The c(2 × 6) phase can be rationalized as a close-packed arrangement of these dimer stripes. Because of the self-acceleration of the thiolate mobility, the ordering and reorganization of the ordered c(2 × 6) adlayers occur orders of magnitude faster than the surface diffusion of isolated thiolates, illustrating the importance of collective effects in organic self-organization.

Dislocation density and Burgers vector population in fiber-textured Ni thin films determined by high-resolution X-ray line profile analysis

Nanocrystalline Ni thin films have been produced by direct current electrodeposition with different additives and current density in order to obtain 〈100〉, 〈111〉 and 〈211〉 major fiber textures. The dislocation density, the Burgers vector population and the coherently scattering domain size distribution are determined by high-resolution X-ray diffraction line profile analysis. The substructure parameters are correlated with the strength of the films by using the combined Taylor and Hall–Petch relations. The convolutional multiple whole profile method is used to obtain the substructure parameters in the different coexisting texture components. A strong variation of the dislocation density is observed as a function of the deposition conditions.