Comparative Measurements and Characteristics of Cu Diffusion into Low-Dielectric Constant para-xylene based Plasma Polymer Thin Films

Diffusion of Cu into the low-k para-xylene based plasma polymer (pXPP) thin films deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition using the para-xylene precursor was comparatively measured using various methods. Cu layer was deposited on the surfaces of pXPPs treated by $N_2$ plasma generated in a magnetically enhanced inductively coupled plasma reactor. Diffusion characteristics of Cu into pXPPs were measured using Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS), secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (XTEM), and current-voltage (I-V) measurements for the vacuum-annealed Cu/pXPPs for 1 hour at $450^{\circ}C$ and were compared. The results showed a correlation between the I-V measurement and SIMS data are correlated and have a sensitivity enough to evaluate the dielectric properties but the RBS or XTEM measurements are not sufficient to conclude the electrical properties of low-k dielectrics with Cu in the film bulk. The additional results indicate that the pXPP layers are quite resistant to Cu diffusion at the annealing temperature of $450^{\circ}C$ compared to the other previously reported organic low-k materials.