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ASM International has claimed a breakthrough "Pore Sealing Process," using its "Eagle" PECVD system for porous low-k insulator materials to potentially be used with copper interconnects at the 65nm node.

The Plasma BCB Polymerization Technology was developed jointly with a major IC manufacturer. According to the company the Plasma BCB Deposition Process will work on most other industry-developed low-k PECVD dielectrics and an-organic spinon dielectrics.

Although many suppliers have developed next-generation porous ULK materials, key problems within the integration scheme have proved difficult to overcome. The ability to cap the porous low-k without destroying the "effective k" of the material is a first step towards solving the integration challenges.

" Developed on ASM's Eagle PECVD system, the Plasma BCB Deposition Process has demonstrated excellent controllability in the ultra-thin film regime. Due to the particular properties of the BCB molecule, the dielectric constant of the ULK material remains low", stated Ivo Raaijmakers, Chief Technology Officer and Director of R&D of ASM's front-end operations.

Capability demonstrations on 300mm wafers will are planned to begin in late 2004, according to ASM.