The mechanical properties of ultra-low-dielectric-constant films

Size dependence of nanostructures: Impact of bond order deficiency

“…Low-dielectric thin films also show 2e3 times higher value of hardness and Young's modulus near the surface at the ambient temperature. When the measuring temperature rises, the stress drops and changes from tensile to compressive [212]. However, the Y values for the polymer nanostructures drop with size according to the relation Y ¼ 0.014 ln(x) þ 0.903 AE 0.045 [213], with x being the particle size.…”

Investigation of the properties of organically modified ordered mesoporous silica films

“…Because of this, mechanical properties were extracted from the flat region in Fig. 9 [28]. Surprisingly, it was observed that the elastic modulus and hardness of the film were increased with all MTES/TEOS molar ratios except 0.2.…”

Integration of Low‐ k Dielectric Films in Damascene Processes

“…Introducing pores in a dielectric poses several challenges for successful integration into microelectronic circuits [17,18]. The mechanical strength of the dielectric is reduced by porosity, potentially leading to failure during chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) [19,20,21,22] or during wire bonding to the fi nished chip [23]. In addition, moisture, wet chemicals and gaseous species (such as precursors used during CVD) can penetrate into porous low-k materials, giving rise to an increase in both the dielectric constant and the leakage current [24].…”

“…22 Schematic representation of an integration route using a dielectric liner in order to achieve pore sealing…”