PEALD of a Ruthenium Adhesion Layer for Copper Interconnects

Ruthenium thin films were produced by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) using an alternating supply of bis(ethylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium and plasma at a deposition temperature of 270°C. The film thickness per cycle was self-limited at 0.038 nm/cycle, which was thinner than the thickness obtained from the conventional ALD using oxygen instead of plasma. The ruthenium thin film prepared with PEALD had a preferential orientation toward (002), and it was progressively promoted with plasma power. The PEALD of ruthenium shows a merit in controlling ultrathin film thickness with less than 2 nm more precisely and more easily than the conventional ALD, due to the reduced transient period at the initial film growth stage. Also, ruthenium thin film improved the interfacial adhesion of metallorganic chemical vapor deposited copper to diffusion barrier metals by forming Cu-Ru chemical bonds at the interface without degrading the film resistivity of copper. © 2004 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.