Bi cluster-assembled interconnects produced using SU8 templates

Bi clusters with an average diameter of 25 nm have been deposited from an inert gas aggregation source and assembled into thin-film interconnects which are formed between planar electrical contacts and supported on Si substrates passivated with Si3N4 or thermally grown oxide. A layer of SU8 (a negative photoresist based on EPON SU-8 epoxy resin) is patterned using optical or electron-beam lithography, and it defines the position and dimensions of the cluster film. The conduction between the contacts is monitored throughout the deposition/assembly process, and subsequent I(V) characterization is performed in situ. Bi cluster-assembled interconnects have been fabricated with nanoscale widths and with up to 1:1 thickness:width aspect ratios. The conductivity of these interconnects has been increased, post-deposition, using a simple thermal annealing process.