Spreading Antenna Effect of PID in Damascene Interconnect Process

Plasma-induced charging damage (PID) in a damascene interconnect process was investigated in detail. We found that the antenna area dependence of the PID in the damascene interconnect process is not a simple relation to the upper surface area of the metal wiring. Since the charges are injected through the dielectric films on the wiring, the effective antenna area that can collect the charges became larger than the area that is defined by the upper surface area of the metal wiring. The effective antenna area was studied by electrical field simulation, and a spreading antenna width was proposed and defined.