Author

Paniccia M, Reifenberger R, Flinn P

Institution

Dept. of Phys., Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN, USA.

Title

In-situ observation of electromigration in Au using atomic force microscopy.

Source

American Institute of Physics Conference Proceedings, no.305, 1994,
pp.211-19. USA.

Conference Information

Second International Workshop on Stress-Induced Phenomena in Metallization.
Austin, TX, USA. 29-31 March 1993.

Abstract

In-situ atomic force microscopy studies of electromigration in 4 mu m wide by 1 mu m thick electroplated Au wires were performed. The topographical features that develop on a sub-micrometer length scale were studied for current densities up to 7.5*10/sup 6/ A/cm/sup 2/ and temperatures up to 280 degrees C for time intervals ranging from a few minutes up to a few days. Scanning probe images of the same area taken before, during and after current stressing reveal substantial changes in surface morphology. Both hillock growth and void formation have been observed in situ. Time lapse AFM images can be pieced together to give a microscopic picture of mass flow due to electromigration. These studies show that changes in surface morphology caused by electromigration can now be quantitatively characterized with high resolution from the scanning probe images. (20 References).