The structure, texture and grain boundary character distribution in the copper interconnects, for ten different line-widths varying from 0.35 to 100 μm, were investigated. Field Emission Gun-SEM orientation imaging microscopy was used in the investigation. The shape of the grains changed with increasing line-widths. The frequency of occurrence of more than one grain along the width and grain size increased with increasing line-width. The mean grain size was found to be 0.2 μm in the smallest lines with width 0.35 μm and as high as 2.5 μm in the 100 μm lines which were the largest in width. The grain size distribution was skew-symmetric with an inclination towards smaller size. The (111) pole figures, inverse pole figures and the area fraction of the grain boundaries with different misorientation angles were computed for all the line-widths. The 0.4 and 0.5 μm lines had stronger {111} component in the direction transverse to the trenches. The intensity of the component increased with decreasing width. The 0.35 μm lines, which were narrowest in width had two {111} components with <110> direction parallel to transverse and longitudinal directions. The higher line-widths had predominantly (111) fiber texture though presence of {111}<110> could also be identified. Number fraction of the grain boundaries with misorientation angle between 55-62° was maximum in all line-widths. The ∑3 and ∑9 coincidence site lattice (CSL) boundaries were present in significant number in all the investigated lines. Presence of twins running along the width could be easily identified in the submicron lines.

Annealing Cu and dilute Cu(Ti), Cu(Sn) and Cu(Al) alloy films resulted in the strengthening of film texture, with the strongest <111> fiber texture being found for Cu(Ti). Annealing also resulted in a decrease of electrical resistivity and the growth of grains, with the largest grain size and lowest resistivity being seen for pure Cu itself. Among the alloy films, the lowest resistivity was found for Cu(Ti) and the largest grain size for Cu(Al). Electron beam evaporated films with compositions in the range of 2.0-3.0 at% and thicknesses in the range of 420-540 nm were annealed at 400°C for 5 hours. Four point probe resistance measurement, xray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy were used to follow the changes in film resistivity, texture and grain size.

In this work, the influence of the discharge parameter oxygen partial pressure during reactive magnetron sputtering on the structure and morphology of In0.9Sn0.1Ox films is investigated. The oxygen partial pressure was varied in order to deposit In0.9Sn0.1Ox films with 0 ≤ x ≤ 1.76. The composition x was measured by Rutherford backscattering (RBS). For low x values, these films are metallic and opaque, while at x ≈ 1.5 the layers exhibit good properties as transparent and conducting electrodes. Further increase in x leads to transparent insulating films. The morphology of the films, investigated by SEM, shows significant variations with the composition x. While the metallic films consist of coarse globular grains, made up of polycrystalline indium-tin, a small addition of oxygen leads to nearly amorphous metal-oxide mixtures with smooth surfaces. Around x ≈ 1.5 the films are polycrystalline with the cubic In2O3 bixbyite structure and show a resistivity minimum. The cross sectional morphology of these films exhibits a columnar structure of broad bundles (≈250 nm), composed of narrow needle-like crystallites of about 20 nm diameter. At very high oxygen partial pressures, the grain size decreases while the strain and the resistivity increase significantly.

The textured film growth of polycrystalline MoSx films on Si substrates deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering with H2S from a molybdenum target has been investigated. Over a wide range of gas flow ratios FH2S/(FH2S+FAr) from 1% to 75% only x-ray diffraction patterns of randomly stacked S-Mo-S layers of the MoS2 phase were detected which indicates turbostratic growth of the van-der-Waals layers comparable to the growth of graphite at low temperatures. The extended distance of the c-lattice planes depends on the sputtering conditions and can also be explained by the turbostratic model. Low deposition rates and high substrate temperatures improved the quality of the films towards the requested (001) texture and low c-lattice strain. The results from the in situ-energy dispersive x-ray diffraction (EDXRD) technique using synchrotron radiation allowed kinetic calculations of the time dependent behaviour of the peak area of the (0 0 21) Bragg reflection signals according to the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami model. They revealed that the grain growth is restricted in dimensions if a completed nucleation is assumed.

Rocking curve texture measurements were made on thin films of zinc oxide (ZnO) and platinum (Pt) using a powder x-ray diffractometer, and, in the case of ZnO, an area detector. The intensity corrections for defocussing and other geometric factors were made using a technique and associated software (Texture Plus*) developed at NIST. In both thin film systems, the texture was axisymmetric (fiber) and sharp, with full width at half maximum values of about 2.5°. Care was taken in the Pt case to ensure that the linear range of the x-ray detector was used to measure the intensities; for the ZnO data the degree of detector non-linearity was determined, and corrections were applied where necessary. The suitability of the Pt films for thin film texture standards was studied.

The electrical resistivities of copper films sputtered in either argon or an argon-hydrogen atmosphere are measured in real time, during growth. The electrical resistivities for both cases are observed to be functions of the film's thickness, with the films grown in the hydrogen containing atmosphere possessing a resistivity of 4.5 +/- 0.2 μΩ-cm at 40 nm, lower than the resistivity of 5.0 +/-0.3 μΩ-cm for 40 nm thick films grown in the argon atmosphere. Furthermore, the electrical resistivities for both sets of films were observed to continue to evolve after the termination of deposition. The amount of change and the rate of change were observed to depend on the film's thickness as well as atmosphere the films were grown in. Measurements made by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) indicate that the presence of hydrogen also influences the preferential crystallographic orientation as well as grain size distribution. These measurements indicate that the differences in the microstructure are correlated to the observed differences in the behavior of the electrical resistivities.

We develop a rate-equation model for ion beam assisted homoepitaxy. The model describes how island diffusion, detachment and breakup, generation of surface damage and interlayer transitions of adatoms and monovacancies affect the growth. We simulate the (100) and (110) surfaces of silver and the (100) surface of copper using potential energy barriers calculated using either surface embedded atom method (SEAM) or the effective medium theory (EMT). We study how the choice of the potential barriers affects the growth and comment on the suitability of SEAM and EMT for calculating barriers for surface simulation. We demonstrate how different processes affect the microstructure of the film, compare the growth on different surfaces and study the scaling properties of the results.

Spin coherent transport in carbon nanotubes enables single-nanotube devices for magnetic field sensing. This unique transport property of single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) has been studied for development into advanced sensors for nondestructive evaluation (NDE). Coupling of a single walled carbon nanotube to ferromagnetic electrodes is predicted to form a carbon nanotube magnetic tunnel junction. Fabrication of such devices has been performed through scanning probe and electron beam lithography. Purified single walled carbon nanotubes are deposited across electrodes to complete device fabrication. A spincoherent quantum transport theory based on a nonequilibrium Green's function method has been established to predict conductance and magnetoconductance across junctions. Experimental measurements of the room temperature conductance of Cobalt/SWCNT/Cobalt junctions have been performed.

The rapid adoption of damascene copper technology has brought about an increased need to understand and control microstructure in the barrier and metal layers during processing. We have developed and implemented a methodology for rapidly characterizing thin film polycrystalline microstructures on 200 mm Si substrates using an X-ray diffraction (XRD) based metrology tool to measure crystallographic texture and phase in a time frame suitable for in-line applications. The acquired data can be used as a direct measure of the deposition process in terms of film quality, reproducibility and stability over time. The spatial distribution of crystallographic texture and phase can be measured on a single wafer in order to check within wafer uniformity. These same measurements can also be carried out at predetermined intervals on wafers from single deposition tools, with the results used to create a database that can be applied to process control trend charting and to the establishment of acceptance criteria. The methodology developed makes use of several novel data analysis and collection techniques, such as the use of a direct matrix transformation method to determine the orientation distribution function (ODF) from a group of truncated pole figures. Useful quantitative outputs of the ODF, such as volumetric fractions of crystallographic texture components, can be used in quantifying texture evolution within and between wafers. On-the-fly texture compensation can also be used to generate useful quantitative phase and film thickness measurements. We present the principles of operation of this metrology tool and selected examples collected in the IBM's Advanced Semiconductor Technology Center (ASTC), East Fishkill, NY.

Sputtering of aluminium doped zinc oxide thin films from a ceramic ZnO:Al target requires a controlled addition of oxygen to the sputtering atmosphere in order to obtain films with low resistivity and high transparency. In this paper the influence of the oxygen addition and of the substrate temperature on the structural, morphological and electrical properties of ZnO:Al films is investigated. The oxygen addition leads to a minimum resistivity when the oxygen content during sputtering is 0.2%. This small amount of oxygen not only improves the transparency of the films, it also induces to a significant grain growth as revealed by scanning electron microscopy. A further increase of the oxygen content leads to highly resistive films, due to a complete oxidation of the dopant Al. As expected, higher substrate temperatures from about 373 to 673 K improve the of crystallinity and hence the resistivity. The lowest resistivity achieved was about 1.2.10-3 Ωcm. At still higher temperatures the resistivity increases which seems to be due to an outdiffusion of sodium into the ZnO:Al films from the soda lime glass, compensating part of the donors.

We studied submonolayer and multilayer deposition of Co on Au(111) using in-situ oblique-incidence optical reflectance difference (OI-RD). We show that the optical technique is highly sensitive and accurate in determining the electrodeposited film thickness and growth mode. We found that the optically determined thickness of the ultrathin Co film is in very good agreement with that deduced from the integration of the anodic current during cyclic voltammetry (CV). From a weak oscillatory behavior of the optical reflectance difference signal, it seems that the growth of electrodeposited Co on Au(111) under pulsed deposition condition proceeds by a combination of three dimensional island and quasi layer-by-layer growth modes.

In magnetic recording technology, barriers based on fundamental physical limits on the data density are being approached for the current longitudinal recording modes. However, demands for higher data storage density have escalated in recent years. Discrete perpendicular recording is a viable method to achieve 100 Gb per square inch and beyond. We report on the development of a novel technique to fabricate uniform arrays of nano-sized magnetic dots. Uniform arrays of nanometer-sized magnetic dots are obtained by magnetron sputtering deposition through a nanochannel glass replica mask. The platinum replica masks are fabricated using thin film deposition on etched nanochannel glass and contain uniform hexagonally patterned voids with diameters as small as 50 nanometers. The magnetic dot density can be as high as 1011 per square inch. Our method provides a simple yet effective way to create regularly arranged discrete magnetic media that can be used for perpendicular magnetic recording. The magnetic properties of the dots are studied with a vibrating sample magnetometer.

This paper presents anomalous grain growth in sputtered hcp CoCrMn thin films: The grain size is about 250 nm wide and a few micrometers long in the film of only 50 nm thickness. Both selected area diffraction (SAD) and x-ray texture analysis indicate that the perpendicular direction to the substrate is parallel to the zone axis of hcp<100> and hcp<110>. SAD also indicates that short axis of elongated grains is the c-axis of hcp structure, i.e. grains are elongated in the orthogonal direction to the c-axis. In addition, these elongated grains compose a grain bunch, in which grains are parallel to each other. Phi (φ) scan at grazing incidence x-ray diffraction (GID) geometry reveals that bunches are, as a whole, randomly oriented. However, neighboring bunches are misoriented about 10-20 degrees with each other, which is consistent with TEM observation. Such an anomalous grain growth of CoCrMn thin film is explained in views of mechanisms of nucleation and surface energy minimization.

Granular-like amorphous CoxC1-x nanocomposite thin films, with x in the range of 60-75% in atomic percentage, have been prepared by pulsed filtered vacuum arc deposition. The structures of the films were characterized by non-Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, transmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The in-plane magnetic hysteresis loops were measured by a superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer at room temperature. The electrical transport properties were measured by the four-probe technique at various temperatures ranging from 20 to 300 K. The films were found to be magnetically soft with coercivities in the range of 2 to 12 Oe, resistivities in the range of 130 to 300 μΩcm, and magnetic saturation flux densities in the range of 6 to 13 kG. The films also showed good thermal stability in their structural, electrical and magnetic properties upon annealing up to 200°C in a vacuum furnace.

We propose a new integrated device for spintronics application, which is based on a hybrid metal-semiconductor structure. The device consists of a Si-based p-i-n photodetector sandwiched between two layers of a ferromagnetic metal (3d ferromagnet or half-metallic compound). The photocurrent flowing in such a system is shown to depend on its magnetic configuration. This, in turn, allows controlling the device performance by an externally applied magnetic field. We have estimated magnitude of the effect and also determined the role of relevant material parameters.

Gold thin films have a {111} texture component that strengthens during heating. We show that this texture can be affected by the formation of twins, which may be influenced by the substrate material. Gold thin films were evaporated onto rock salt and glass substrates, and incrementally annealed without removal from the substrate. The texture was mapped using an area detector x-ray diffractometer. The films showed a primary {111} fiber texture and a secondary {200} fiber texture on both substrates with the addition of a {511} fiber texture component, which is much more pronounced on rock salt than on other substrates. The {511} surface normal derives from a twin rotation, showing that there is more twinning on rock salt than on glass although there is no lattice matching between the rock salt and gold.

The fundamental physical property used for data storage in a ferroelectric non-volatile memory (FRAM) is the remanent polarization of a ferroelectric capacitor. In order to sense the data state of the capacitor, the charge pulse generated by either a switching or non-switching ferroelectric polarization is detected. Since the polarization of the ferroelectric is a vector property, the switchable polarization response of a ferroelectric capacitor is necessarily dependent on the texture of the ferroelectric material used to make the capacitor. A series of Ca, Sr, and La doped PbZr0.4Ti0.6O3 (PZT) capacitor test samples were produced with texture ranging from nearly complete {111} texture to random orientation. The volume fraction of the textured material was quantified by X-ray diffraction. An experimental correlation between texture and the switchable polarization was established using pulse switching measurements. A mathematical model was developed to explain the dependence of the switchable polarization on the crystallographic texture. It was found that the dependence of the saturated switchable polarization on texture required that there was no 90° domain reorientation. The impact of these findings will be related to the performance of FRAM.

Conditions to prepare good single-crystal CoCrPt magnetic thin film with the easy magnetization axis perpendicular to the film plane were investigated using oxide single-crystal substrates, Al2O3(0001), LaAlO3(0001), mica(0001), SrTiO3(111), and MgO(111). The best CoCrPt(0001) single-crystal thin film was obtained on an Al2O3(0001) substrate employing a non-magnetic CoCrRu underlayer. The crystallographic quality of single-crystal thin film was investigated using X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. Some intrinsic magnetic properties (Hk, Ku) were determined for the single-crystal CoCrxPty thin films for a compositional range of x=17-20at% and y=0-17at%.

Stress voiding describes a phenomenon in thin interconnect lines where hillocks and voids are formed during thermal cycling due to the stresses caused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficients of metal used in the interconnect lines and the substrate material. The effect of texture on stress voiding in aluminum interconnects is investigated using orientation imaging microscopy (OIM© ) and scanning electron microscopy. Aluminum films were deposited by PVD deposition onto sublayers of Ti and Ti plus TiN and were analyzed for crystallographic texture and grain boundary structure using OIM©. These films were later annealed at 400°C for 1 hour and cooled. The specimens were examined for the presence of hillocks and voids using a scanning electron microscope. The results show strongly textured (111) films are more resistant to hillock and void formation.

Latest first-principles density functional theoretical calculations using the generalized gradient approximation and highly accurate all-eleectron full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method, show that bulk hcp Cr would be a paramagnet and that no ferromagnetic state could be stabilized over a wide range of volume [1]. To understand the recent observation of the weakly ferromagnetic state of Cr in hcp Cr/Ru (0001) superlattices [2], the same theoretical calculations have been carried out for the hcp Cr3/Ru7 (0001) and hcp Cr3/fcc Cu6 (111) superlattices. The Cr/Ru superlattice is found to be ferromagnetic with a small magnetic moment of ∼0.31μB/Cr while in contrast, Cr/Cu superlattice is found to be nonmagnetic.