90 nm generation Cu/CVD low-k (k < 2.5) interconnect technology
Eight level Cu/CVD low-k (k<2.5) + one top level Cu/USG 90 nm multilevel interconnection with 0.12/0.12 /spl mu/m for line width/space and 0.13 /spl mu/m for via has been demonstrated for the first time using 193 nm lithography with OPC developed for TSMC 200 mm/300 mm technologies. The 8-level Cu/CVD low-k dual damascenes were constructed by nitrogen-free dielectric layers without middle trench etch stop to achieve keff=2.6. No film delamination was found by film and CMP optimization. Electrical results showed that excellent and thermally stable metal-line Rs and via-chain Rc yields from iso or dense Cu areas and 1M via chains were obtained. authors: T.I. Bao, C.C. Ko, J.Y. Song, L.P. Li, H.H. Lu, Y.C. Lu, Y.H. Chen, S.M. Jang, M.S. Liang
Interconnect
On-chip Interconnect
On-chip interconnect today is based on copper/low-k wiring – in today’s chips, there can be more than 100 km of copper wires.
TSMC’s leading edge technologies use a novel copper gap-fill solution to enable the fabrication of smaller conductor lines. Newly-developed materials and processes allow significant reduction in line and via resistance to improve chip performance. A comprehensive suite of innovations on integration scheme, low-k material, and low-k process with selective deposition further enhance both performance (through capacitance reduction) and reliability. Beyond copper interconnect, explorations of single metallic elements, binary and ternary alloys, and 2D materials for future interconnect materials are underway both within TSMC and with our academic partners.
