Organosilicon Thin Films Deposited from Cyclic and Acyclic Precursors Using Water as an Oxidant

Abstract

Pulsed-plasma chemical vapor deposition was used to deposit thin films from four different organosilicon precursors using water as the oxidant. The precursors varied in structure, chemical composition, and type of organic substituent. Differences in film structure were observed based on precursor structure and type of organic substituents. More reactive substituents, such as vinyl groups, facilitated cross-linking. At low power (200 W), film structure was dictated by precursor identity. At high power (400 W) film structure became more uniform and precursor identity was less important. Mechanical and thermal properties correlated with plasma power and could be explained by the continuous random network theory and percolation of rigidity arguments. Low-power samples are relatively soft, with hardness values between 0.13 and 0.54 GPa. High-power samples are more extensively cross-linked and oxidized, resulting in enhanced mechanical properties, and had hardness values between 0.68 and 3.2 GPa, depending upon precursor identity. Thermal stability was strongly correlated to the degree of cross-linking, with non-cross-linked films showing up to 30% thickness loss upon annealing. Cross-linked films exhibited less than 8% thickness loss. Dielectric constants for the films ranged between 2.4 and 4.3 and were primarily dependent upon the extent of oxidation and organic content remaining in the films. © 2004 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.

Deposition and Characterization of Dielectric Thin Films from Allyltrimethylsilane Glow Discharges

“…A deeper analysis of the SiCH 3 stretching region is reported in the insets of Figure 3. SiCH 3 actually consists of three components, which correspond to groups characterized by different numbers of methyl groups bonded to silicon: the mono‐substituted, SiCH 3 , at ≈1 270 cm −1 , which is a chain‐crosslinking group, the di‐substituted, Si(CH 3 ) 2 , at ≈1 260 cm −1 , a chain‐propagating unit, and the tri‐substituted, Si(CH 3 ) 3 , at ≈1 255 cm −1 , a chain‐terminating unit 5d, 8. The presence of Si(CH 3 ) 2 and Si(CH 3 ) 3 is also evident from the absorptions at 803 and 840 cm −1 , respectively, which partially overlap the SiOSi bending at 800 cm −1 , both of which arise from the CH 3 rocking mode 4d.…”

From Low-k to Ultralow-k Thin-Film Deposition by Organosilicon Glow Discharges

“…Thus, there is a tradeoff between lowering permittivity and preserving good thermal and mechanical properties, as observed by other authors using different precursors. 19 This means that the sample showing a slightly higher k value but a significantly lower thickness loss is preferable and can be considered the best obtained. Samples prepared for electric measurements reported in Fig.…”

“…This clearly shows that the band of the as-deposited film consists of three components corresponding to a different number of methyl groups bonded to silicon: the monosubstituted, Si-CH 3 , appears at ϳ1275 cm −1 and is a chain crosslinking group, the disubstituted, Si-͑CH 3 ͒ 2 at ϳ1260 cm −1 is a chain-propagating unit, and the trisubstituted, Si-͑CH 3 ͒ 3 appearing at ϳ1255 cm −1 is a chain-terminating unit. 19,27 The presence of the di-and trisubstituted moieties is also evident from the absorptions at 803 and 840 cm −1 , respectively, both due to the CH 3 rocking mode, and they partially overlap to the Si-O-Si bending mode signal at 800 cm −1 . 13 Upon annealing at 400°C, the band shape of the Si-CH 3 is basically retained and the area decreases 20%.…”

“…A fourth component was also observed by other authors at 1190 cm −1 for the short chain Si-O-Si with terminal -CH 3 and -OH. 19,28 Double bonds and Si-H groups are removed as well as hydroxyl groups. When switching to 250°C it is clear that the film is much more inorganic because of the low C content and the much less intense shoulder of the Si-O-Si band.…”

A Group of Cyclic Siloxane and Silazane Polymer Films as Nanoscale Electrolytes for Microbattery Architectures

“…The planar configuration induces strain in the V3D3 rings, while the puckered structure of V4D4 results in zero ring strain. 29,30 We hypothesize that reducing ring strain energy is the primary driving force, which reduces stability of the PV3D3 films relative to PV4D4 films. Specifically, the strained V3D3 ring structures are more easily cleaved during chemical processing steps.…”