(Invited) Metal-Atom Ionization and Diffusion under Electric Field around Metal/Insulator Interfaces; First-Principles View

2017 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 285-293
Author(s):  
Takashi Nakayama ◽  
Yoshihiro Asayama ◽  
Riki Nagasawa
Keyword(s):  
Electric Field ◽  
Metal Atom ◽  
First Principles ◽  
Metal Insulator ◽  
And Diffusion ◽  
Atom Ionization

Ru Passivated and Ru Doped e-TaN surfaces as Combined Barrier and Liner Material for Copper Interconnects: A First Principles Study

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suresh Natarajan ◽  
Cara-Lena Nies ◽  
Michael Nolan
Keyword(s):  
First Principles ◽  
Film Growth ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Copper Interconnects ◽  
Liner Material ◽  
Critical Dimensions ◽  
Industry Standard ◽  
Cu Film ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
And Diffusion

<div>As the critical dimensions of transistors continue to be scaled down to facilitate improved performance and device speeds, new ultrathin materials that combine diffusion barrier and seed/liner properties are needed for copper interconnects at these length scales. Ideally, to facilitate coating of high aspect ratio structures, this alternative barrier+liner material should only consist of one or as few layers as possible. We studied TaN, the current industry standard for Cu diffusion barriers, and Ru, which is a</div><div>suitable liner material for Cu electroplating, to explore how combining these two materials in a barrier+liner material influences the adsorption of Cu atoms in the early stage of Cu film growth. To this end, we carried out first-principles simulations of the adsorption and diffusion of Cu adatoms at Ru-passivated and Ru-doped e-TaN(1 1 0) surfaces. For comparison, we also studied the behaviour of Cu and Ru adatoms at the low index surfaces of e-TaN, as well as the interaction of Cu adatoms with the (0 0 1) surface of hexagonal Ru. Our results confirm the barrier and liner properties of TaN and Ru, respectively while also highlighting the weaknesses of both materials. Ru passivated TaN was found to have improved binding with Cu adatoms as compared to the bare TaN and Ru surfaces.</div><div>On the other hand, the energetic barrier for Cu diffusion at Ru passivated TaN surface was lower than at the bare TaN surface which can promote Cu agglomeration. For Ru-doped TaN however, a decrease in Cu binding energy was found in addition to favourable migration of the Cu adatoms toward the doped Ru atom and unfavourable migration away from it or into the bulk. This suggests that Ru doping sites in the TaN surface can act as nucleation points for Cu growth with high migration barrier preventing agglomeration and allow electroplating of Cu. Therefore Ru-doped TaN is proposed as a candidate for a combined barrier+liner material with reduced thickness.</div>

scholarly journals Design of a Liquid-Crystal-Tunable Terahertz Demultiplexer Based on a Metal-Insulator-Metal Waveguide

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 644
Author(s):  
Xue-Shi Li ◽  
Naixing Feng ◽  
Yuan-Mei Xu ◽  
Liang-Lun Cheng ◽  
Qing Liu
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Crystal ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Metal Insulator ◽  
Resonance Modes ◽  
External Bias ◽  
Bias Electric Field ◽  
Metal Waveguide ◽  
Metal Insulator Metal ◽  
Fabry Perot ◽  
Mim Waveguide

A tunable demultiplexer with three output channels infiltrated by liquid crystal (LC) is presented, which is based on a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide. The operating frequencies of the three output channels can be tuned simultaneously at will by changing the external bias electric field applied to the LC. By analyzing the Fabry-Pérot (FP) resonance modes of the finite-length MIM waveguide both theoretically and numerically, the locations of the three channels are delicately determined to achieve the best demultiplexing effects. Terahertz (THz) signals input from the main channel can be demultiplexed by channels 1, 2 and 3 at 0.7135 THz, 1.068 THz and 1.429 THz, respectively. By applying an external electric field to alter the tilt angle of the infiltrating LC material, the operating frequencies of channels 1, 2 and 3 can be relatively shifted up to 12.3%, 9.6% and 9.7%, respectively. The designed demultiplexer can not only provide a flexible means to demultiplex signals but also tune operating bands of output channels at the same time.

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