Microleveling mechanisms and applications of electropolishing on planarization of copper metallization

Abstract

The optimization of Cu electropolishing processes was explored to be in the mass-transfer-limited plateau with a stable limiting current density and in concentrated phosphoric acid by elucidating surface morphologies and potentiodynamic polarization. After electropolishing, the average roughness of polished surfaces achieved to 1.1 nm. Both the x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy suggest that the existence of a passivation film on the polished surface contributed to the microleveling effect of Cu electropolishing. Moreover, this passivation layer also induces an application of end point in electropolishing. (C) 2002 American Vacuum Society.