NOVEL PROCESSING TECHNIQUES FOR ACHIEVING PRODUCTION-WORTHY, LOW DIELECTRIC, LOW INTERCONNECT RESISTANCE AND HIGH PERFORMANCE IC

摘要

The interconnects (18) in a semiconductor device contacting metal lines (14) comprise a low resistance metal, such as copper, gold, silver, or platinum, and are separated by a material having a low dielectric constant (20), such as benzocyclobutene or a derivative thereof. A tri-layer resist structure (16) is used, together with a lift-off process, to form the interconnects (18). The low dielectric constant material (20) provides a diffusion barrier to the diffusion of the low resistance metal (18). The tri-layer resist (16) comprises a first layer (16a) of a dissolvable polymer, a second layer (16b) of a hard mask material, and a third layer (16c) of a resist material. The resulting structure provides an integrated circuit with increased speed and ease of fabrication.