Characterization of additive systems for damascene Cu electroplating by the superfilling profile monitor

Gap-filling dynamics of several different species of additives for copper electrodeposition was investigated by monitoring the cross section of a partially filled copper profile on the scanning electron microscopy photo. The filling ration Deltay/Deltax between "bottom-up" with "sidewall shift" was found to be proportional to the filing power of additives. The adsorption-diffusion model combined with cathode polarization and cyclic voltammetric stripping measurements was employed to explain the attribution of additives in superfilling phenomena. The superfilling dynamics was achieved under behavior of additives providing selective inhibition gradient within the damascene feature. By means of those analyses, we have optimized the appropriate amount of additives and achieved the superfilling performance for 0.15 mum vias with aspect ratio 6 by an acid-copper electrolyte with polyethylene glycol, Cl-, and 2-mercaptopyridine (2-MP). Due to the additive of 2-MP, chelate formed which enhanced adsorption ability on Cu-0 surface, and the concentration gradient between side-wall shift and bottom-up in the damascene became high enough to attend superfilling electroplating. (C) 2000 American Vacuum Society. [S0734-211X(00)13506-1].