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Interfacial Adhesion Energies of Uniformly Self-Formed Cr2O3 Barriers for Advanced Co Interconnects

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Abstract

The effects of Cr doping and postannealing on the interfacial adhesion energies between a Co interconnect and a SiO2 dielectric layer prepared by physical vapor deposition were systematically evaluated using a four-point bending test. Co, as a promising interconnect due to its scalability, is vulnerable to electromigration on its interface because the poor adhesion energy between Co and a barrier metal provides a diffusion path for atoms. To solve this problem, we suggest doping of Cr, which easily diffuses from the Co metal to the Co/SiO2 interface during postannealing, to form a uniformly distributed layer on the Co interface. Atomic force microscopy analysis clearly showed uniformly segregated Cr at the Co–Cr/SiO2 interface without hillocks or voids. The roughness root mean square values of annealed Co/TiN/Ti, annealed Co-4.7 at% Cr, and annealed Co-7.5 at% Cr were 0.72, 0.18, and 0.21 nm, respectively. In the four-point bending test, Co-4.7 at% Cr/SiO2 and Co-7.5 at% Cr/SiO2 were not delaminated at their interface, unlike pure Co and Co with the conventional barrier metal, which were delaminated at the interface with SiO2. In the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis of the Co–Cr/SiO2 interface, an increase in Cr–O bonding was clearly detected after annealing. Therefore, a properly annealed Cr2O3 self-forming barrier with strong interfacial reliability appears to be a promising diffusion barrier for Co interconnects.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology(KIAT) grant funded by the Korea Government(MOTIE)(P0008458, HRD Program for Industrial Innovation) and, the Technology Innovation Program (20017189, 20011119) funded By the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy(MOTIE, Korea).

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Author notes

  1. S. Lee, S. Hwang and G. Kim have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Korea

    Seongi Lee, Soon-Gyu Hwang, Cheol Kim & Young-Chang Joo

  2. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Andong National University, Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 36729, Korea

    Gahui Kim, Woobin Kwon & Young-Bae Park

  3. Semiconductor R&D Center, Samsung Electronics Co, Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, 18448, Korea

    Soon-Gyu Hwang

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  1. Seongi Lee
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Lee, S., Hwang, SG., Kim, G. et al. Interfacial Adhesion Energies of Uniformly Self-Formed Cr2O3 Barriers for Advanced Co Interconnects. Electron. Mater. Lett. 18, 447–455 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13391-022-00360-w

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