Abstract
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy has been employed to study the effect of CF4 rf plasmas on gold surfaces. The data indicate that the CF4 plasma converts the inert gold surface into a chemically active surface composed of gold, gold oxide, and gold fluoride. Upon exposure to air, the gold fluoride is hydrolyzed. The modified surface actively adsorbs water. The significance of the results is discussed in terms of microelectronic reliability considerations.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Coburn
J. W.
, Plasma Etching and Reactive Ion Etching ,
Rey Whetten
N.
, Ed. (AVS Monograph Series, New York , 1980 ).
2.
Bollinger
D.
Iida
S.
, and
Matsumoto
O.
, Solid State Tech. 27 , 167 (1984 ).
3.
Flamm
D. L.
Donnelly
V. M.
, and
Ibbotson
D. E.
, J. Vac. Sci. Tech. B. 1 , 23 (1983 ).
4.
Linn
J. H.
and
Swartz
W. E.
Jr.
, Appl. Surf. Sci. 20 , 154 (1984 ).
5.
Swartz
W. E.
Jr.
Linn
J. H.
Ammons
J. M.
, and
Kovac
M. G.
, Thin Solid Films 114 , 349 (1984 ).
6.
Bancroft
G. M.
Adams
I.
Coatsworth
L. L.
Bennewitz
C. D.
Brown
J. D.
, and
Westwood
W. D.
, Anal. Chem. 47 , 586 (1975 ).
7.
Keyser
T. R.
, Applications of Deconvolution Techniques Applied to ESCA Spectra , M.S. Thesis, University of South Florida (1976 ).
8.
Swartz
W. E.
Jr.
Linn
J. H.
Ammons
J. M.
Kovac
M. G.
, and
Wilson
K.
, Annual Proc. Reliab. Phys. Symp. 21 , 52 (1983 ).
9.
Dickinson
T.
Povey
A. F.
, and
Sherwood
P. M. A.
, J. Chem. Soc. Faraday Trans. I 71 , 298 (1975 ).
10.
Pireaux
J. J.
Lieher
M.
Thiry
P. A.
Delrue
J. P.
, and
Caudano
R.
, Surf. Sci. 141 , 221 (1984 ).
11.
Wagner
C. D.
Riggs
W. M.
Davis
L. E.
Moulder
J. F.
, and
Mullenberg
G. E.
, Handbook of X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy , (Perkin-Elmer Corporation, Physical Electronics Div. , Eden Prairie, MN , 1979 ).
12.
Kay
E.
Dilks
A.
, and
Seybold
D.
, J. Appl. Phys. 51 , 5678 (1980 ).
13.
Kay
E.
and
Dilks
A.
, J. Vac. Sci. Tech. 18 , 1 (1981 ).
14.
Clark
D. T.
Feast
W. J.
Musgrave
W. K. R.
, and
Ritchie
I. J.
, Polym. Sci. Polym. Chem. Edn. 13 , 857 (1975 ).
15.
Nakajima
K.
Bell
A. T.
, and
Shen
M.
, J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 23 , 2627 (1979 ).
16.Personal communication , IBM Corporation, Endicott Laboratories , Endicott, NY , December, 1984 .