BARRIER SLURRY COMPOSITIONS AND BARRIER CMP METHODS
A new barrier slurry composition enables metal and barrier layer material (as well as cap layer material, if necessary) to be removed at a practical rate whilst eliminating, or significantly reducing, the removal of underlying low-k or ultra-low-k dielectric material. The barrier slurry composition comprises: water, an oxidizing agent such as hydrogen peroxide, an abrasive such as colloidal silica abrasive, a complexing agent such as citrate, and may comprise a corrosion inhibitor such as benzotriazole. The preferential removal of cap layer material relative to underlying ULK dielectric material can be enhanced by including in the barrier slurry composition a first additive, such as sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate. The removal rate of the barrier layer material can be tuned by including in the barrier slurry composition a second additive, such as ammonium nitrate.
1 . An aqueous barrier slurry composition having a pH of 7.0 or below, said composition comprising:
a) 0.001% to 0.43% by weight of oxidizing agent;
b) 1 to 10% by weight of abrasive;
c) 0.01 to 3% by weight of complexing agent;
d) 0 to 2% by weight of corrosion inhibitor;
each amount of components (a) to (d) being expressed with respect to the total weight of the aqueous composition.
2 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 1 , wherein the oxidizing agent is hydrogen peroxide.
3 .- 7 . (canceled)
8 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 1 , wherein the abrasive is an inorganic oxide.
9 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 8 , wherein the abrasive contains silica particles.
10 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 1 , wherein the complexing agent comprises a molecule containing hydroxyl- and/or carboxylate functional groups.
11 .- 13 . (canceled)
14 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 1 , wherein the pH lies within the range of 4.0 to 5.7.
15 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 14 , wherein the pH lies within the range of 4.7 to 5.0.
16 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 1 , wherein the composition further comprises a compound (1) having the following structure:
where:
PG is a polar group or charged group,
C is a dicarboxylate unit of formula —O—C(O)—R—C(O)—, where the carboxylate groups form ester linkages with X 1 and X 2 , and the R group is covalently bound to polar or charged group PG;
X 1 and X 2 are each non-polar chains or a chain at least a portion of which is non-polar;
Y 1 and Y 2 are each a non-polar chain branching off from X 1 and X 2 ;
wherein X 1 may have one or more branches additional to Y 1 and X 2 may have one or more branches additional to Y 2 .
17 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein the polar group PG is a sulfate, a phosphate, an alkyl ammonium, a carboxylate, a sulfonate, a thiol, an alcohol, an ether, a thioether, an ethylene oxide, a propylene oxide, or an amine.
18 . (canceled)
19 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein the dicarboxylate unit C has from 3 to 6 carbon atoms.
20 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein X 1 and X 2 may be unsubstituted or substituted alkyl or alkenyl chains, or chains that consist of or comprise polysilane or polysiloxane or fluorocarbon (fluoroalkyl) chains.
21 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 20 , wherein X 1 and X 2 are alkyl chains comprising 2 to 20 carbon atoms.
22 . (canceled)
23 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein branches Y 1 and Y 2 are alkyl or alkenyl chains containing 1 to 20 carbon atoms.
24 . (canceled)
25 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein the added compound (1) is a branched dialkyl sulfosuccinate.
26 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein the polar group is an anionic group having a counter-ion selected from the group consisting of sodium, potassium, ammonium or alkylammonium.
27 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 25 , wherein the added compound (1) is sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (AOT).
28 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , wherein the compound (1) is added in an amount of 0.005 to 0.02 wt. % with respect to the total weight of the composition.
29 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 16 , the composition further comprising a salt selected from the family consisting of: nitrates, chlorides and sulphates of ammonium, potassium and sodium.
30 . The aqueous barrier slurry composition according to claim 29 , wherein the salt is present in the composition in an amount ranging from 0.02 to 0.5 wt. % with respect to the total weight of the composition.
31 . (canceled)
32 . A barrier chemical mechanical polishing method (CMP) for polishing a metal-diffusion barrier material in a structure provided on a semiconductor wafer, the structure having a low-k dielectric layer, comprising:
applying an aqueous barrier slurry composition; the composition comprising:
a) 0.001% to 0.43% by weight of oxidizing agent;
b) 1 to 10% by weight of abrasive;
c) 0.01 to 3% by weight of complexing agent;
d) 0 to 2% by weight of corrosion inhibitor;
each amount of components (a) to (d) being expressed with respect to the total weight of the aqueous composition.
33 .- 35 . (canceled)