Fracture toughness, adhesion and mechanical properties of low-K dielectric thin films measured by nanoindentation

The semiconductor industry is gradually moving from well-established AlySiO technology to the new Cuylow-k interconnects, 2 which brings a challenge in terms of poor thermal andyor mechanical properties of low-K dielectric films.Extensive nanoindentation studies have been undertaken on organo-silicate glass (OSG) low-K films to explore their mechanical and fracture properties.A cube corner indentation method was used to measure the fracture toughness of the OSG films, which ranges from 0.01 to 0.05 MPaOm .Film fracture was also observed during superlayer indentation adhesion testing.Interfacial cracks kinked into the film 1y2