Electrically conductive laminate structures
View Patent ↗Some embodiments include electrical interconnects. The interconnects may contain laminate structures having a graphene region sandwiched between non-graphene regions. In some embodiments the graphene and non-graphene regions may be nested within one another. In some embodiments an electrically insulative material may be over an upper surface of the laminate structure, and an opening may extend through the insulative material to a portion of the laminate structure. Electrically conductive material may be within the opening and in electrical contact with at least one of the non-graphene regions of the laminate structure. Some embodiments include methods of forming electrical interconnects in which non-graphene material and graphene are alternately formed within a trench to form nested non-graphene and graphene regions.
1. A method of forming an electrical interconnect, comprising:
forming an electrically conductive laminate structure; the laminate structure comprising multiple regions nested within one another; one of said nested regions being a graphene region and others of the nested regions being non-graphene regions; the graphene region being sandwiched between a pair of non-graphene regions; the laminate structure comprising an uppermost surface that contains segments of the graphene region and of the non-graphene regions; at least one of the non-graphene regions being electrically conductive;
forming an electrically insulative material over the upper surface of the laminate structure;
forming an opening extending through the insulative material to the upper surface of the laminate structure;
providing etchant within the opening to selectively remove the graphene region relative to the non-graphene regions and thereby form space between the pair of non-graphene regions; and
forming electrically conductive material within the opening and within the space.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the non-graphene region nested within an interior of the graphene region is an inner non-graphene region, and wherein the space extends entirely around said inner non-graphene region.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the non-graphene region nested within an interior of the graphene region is an inner non-graphene region, and wherein the space extends only partially around said inner non-graphene region.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein both of said non-graphene regions are electrically conductive.
5. The method of claim 2 wherein only one of said non-graphene regions is electrically conductive.