Fullerene based materials for ultra-low-k application

Fullerene-based materials are considered to be a candidate for ultra-low-k material applications. We have incorporated fullerene C60 into a siloxane material by means of the sol-gel method. Thickness of obtained film was investigated by atomic force microscope, dielectric constant was measured by the capacitance-voltage characterization (CV). Interactions between the components within the films were investigated by using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy. We found that the ratio of carbon, oxygen and silicon atoms within obtained film equals 2.7∶1.9∶1. The microscopic and CV investigations show that the sample´s composition is inhomogenous although the fullerene´s concentration within the material is low. However, dielectric constant is in the range of 2.3 to 2.5.