Techinsights Inc.

Northern Telecom Limited

Heinz Josef Nentwich

Jason Abt

Christopher Pawlowicz

Ian Jones

Robert K Foster

Vu Q Ho

Robert Gordon Poulsen

Hussein M Naquib

Sidney Ivor Ingrey

There is provided a method, system and computer program product to delayer a layer of a sample, the layer comprising one or more materials, in an ion beam mill by adjusting one or more operating parameters of the ion beam mill and selectively removing each of the one or more materials at their respective predetermined rates. There is also provided a method and system for obtaining rate of removal of a material from a sample in an ion beam mill.

Method and system for ion beam delayering of a sample and control thereof

Particularly for use in MOS (metal-oxide-semiconductor) VLSI (very large scale integrated) circuits, an aluminum conductor coated with a layer of refractory metal or refractory metal silicide has the advantages of being resistant both to electromigration and to hillock growth. By this invention, to reduce the resistivity of this composite conductor and to eliminate hillock formation, the conductor is subjected to an ion implantation step to cause interface mixing between the aluminum and the adjacent refractory metal or refractory metal silicide.

Forming low resistivity hillock free conductors in VLSI devices

Gaseous plasma etching of aluminum with conventional plasma etch gases has not hitherto been commercially possible due to a layer of aluminum oxide (Al.sub.2 O.sub.3) which forms on freshly prepared aluminum surfaces. By first plasma etching in the presence of a gaseous trihalide, preferably in a so-called 'pancake' or radial-flow type reactor, the oxide layer is removed. Aluminum etching can then continue, either with or without plasma conditions, depending upon the etch gas used.

Gaseous plasma etching of aluminum and aluminum oxide

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Ottawa, Canada

Heinz Josef Nentwich