METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PREPARING A SUBSTRATE WITH A SEMI-NOBLE METAL LAYER
First Claim
1. A method of preparing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer for plating copper on the substrate, the method comprising:
- providing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer formed thereon in a processing chamber;
exposing the semi-noble metal layer to a reducing treatment under conditions that reduce an oxide of the metal to a metal in the form of a film integrated with the semi-noble metal layer; and
depositing a copper seed layer on the semi-noble metal layer using a plating bath with a plating solution, wherein the plating solution includes a copper source and either at least two copper complexing agents having at least two different polydentate ligands or a single hexadentate copper complexing agent, wherein the single hexadentate copper complexing agent has a concentration at least twice that of the copper source.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Method and apparatus for preparing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer are disclosed. The substrate can be pretreated so that a metal oxide surface on the semi-noble metal layer can be reduced to a modified metal surface integrated with the semi-noble metal layer. The substrate can be pretreated using a remote plasma treatment. A copper seed layer can be formed on the semi-noble metal layer using either an acidic or alkaline bath with a plating solution including either at least two copper complexing agents with varying dentacity or a single hexadentate copper complexing agent that is in excess of the copper source. The copper complexing agents can include a hexadentate ligand and a bidentate ligand. In some embodiments, a bulk layer of copper can be subsequently deposited on the copper seed layer using an acidic bath.
33 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method of preparing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer for plating copper on the substrate, the method comprising:
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providing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer formed thereon in a processing chamber; exposing the semi-noble metal layer to a reducing treatment under conditions that reduce an oxide of the metal to a metal in the form of a film integrated with the semi-noble metal layer; and depositing a copper seed layer on the semi-noble metal layer using a plating bath with a plating solution, wherein the plating solution includes a copper source and either at least two copper complexing agents having at least two different polydentate ligands or a single hexadentate copper complexing agent, wherein the single hexadentate copper complexing agent has a concentration at least twice that of the copper source. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An apparatus for preparing a substrate with a semi-noble metal layer, the apparatus comprising:
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a processing chamber; a substrate support for holding the substrate in the processing chamber; a controller configured to provide instructions for performing the following operations; (a) providing a substrate in a processing chamber; (b) exposing the substrate to a reducing treatment under conditions that reduce an oxide of a metal to a metal in the form of a film integrated with a semi-noble metal layer disposed on the substrate; and (c) depositing a copper seed layer on the semi-noble metal layer using a plating bath with a plating solution, wherein the plating solution includes a copper source and either at least two copper complexing agents having at least two different polydentate ligands or a single hexadentate copper complexing agent, wherein the single hexadentate copper complexing agent has a concentration at least twice that of the copper source. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification