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Title: Planarization of metal films for multilevel interconnects

Patent ·
OSTI ID:5656740

In the fabrication of multilevel integrated circuits, each metal layer is planarized by heating to momentarily melt the layer. The layer is melted by sweeping lase pulses of suitable width, typically about 1 microsecond duration, over the layer in small increments. The planarization of each metal layer eliminates irregular and discontinuous conditions between successive layers. The planarization method is particularly applicable to circuits having ground or power planes and allows for multilevel interconnects. Dielectric layers can also be planarized to produce a fully planar multilevel interconnect structure. The method is useful for the fabrication of VLSI circuits, particularly for wafer-scale integration.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
Assignee:
Dept. of Energy
Application Number:
ON: DE86013743
OSTI ID:
5656740
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Portions of this document are illegible in microfiche products
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English