Area-Selective Atomic Layer Deposition Using Chemisorbed Carboxylate Inhibitors

使用化学吸附的羧酸盐抑制剂进行区域选择性原子层沉积

• 批准号: 1911276
• 负责人: Ayanjeet Ghosh
• 金额: $ 50.08万
• 依托单位: University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-08-15 至 2024-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1911276&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Area; Selective; Atomic; Layer; Deposition

Computer chip manufacturing is the foundation for mobile computing, cloud computing, fifth generation (5G) cellular network technology, artificial intelligence and other applications. Manufacturing computing chips now demands the capability that can place materials on substrates with unprecedented precision in composition, spatial location and dimensions. However, development of such manufacturing capability is still in early stages and demands new enabling knowledge. This award supports fundamental research to generate knowledge for the development of atomic-scale additive manufacturing. This new process enables a scalable method of manufacturing material systems with atomic precise control. Such material systems could also lead to new opportunities such as new catalysts for environmentally-friendly manufacturing and pollution control. The results from this research lead to production of useful, high performance materials and new knowledge to accelerate the development of a novel chip manufacturing process, thus promoting the progress of science and helping the U.S. sustain its leading role in advanced manufacturing. This research is cross-disciplinary and trains students in skills in manufacturing, vacuum technology, surface chemistry, materials science and analytical chemistry. The project involves engaging students, especially, women and underrepresented minorities in research, thus improving engineering education. Area-selective atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a key enabling technology to reduce functional device dimensions, reduce manufacturing complexity and cost for integrated circuits and reduce the energy consumption by computing chips. However, the potential of this technology is severely limited by the narrow choices of selective growth chemistries, as well as poor understanding of the heterogeneity of surface chemistry on the selectivity of nucleation in ALD. This research aims at establishing selectively-chemisorbed carboxylate self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) as inhibitors to block or inhibit nucleation during ALD. This research fills the knowledge gap of the inhibition mechanisms and the gradual loss of the inhibitor's ability in blocking nucleation during ALD, and eventually leads to new strategies to improve the inhibitor in blocking nucleation. The collaborative team achieves these goals by studying the formation of carboxylates and selectivity of the nucleation of ALD chemistries with in situ characterizations of the substrate's mass and chemistry, and gaseous byproducts, and with ex situ atomic force microscope-infrared (AFM-IR) spectroscopy to exam the heterogeneity of surface chemistries and establish the relationship of chemistry-process parameter-nucleation inhibition.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

计算机芯片制造是移动计算、云计算、第五代（5G）蜂窝网络技术、人工智能等应用的基础。现在，制造计算芯片需要能够以前所未有的精度在成分、空间位置和尺寸上将材料放置在基板上。然而，这种制造能力的发展仍处于早期阶段，需要新的支持知识。该奖项支持基础研究，为原子级增材制造的发展提供知识。这种新工艺实现了一种可扩展的制造具有原子精确控制的材料系统的方法。这种材料系统还可能带来新的机遇，例如用于环保制造和污染控制的新催化剂。这项研究的结果导致生产有用的高性能材料和新知识，以加速新型芯片制造工艺的开发，从而促进科学进步并帮助美国保持其在先进制造领域的领先地位。这项研究是跨学科的，培养学生制造、真空技术、表面化学、材料科学和分析化学方面的技能。该项目涉及让学生，特别是女性和代表性不足的少数群体参与研究，从而改善工程教育。区域选择性原子层沉积（ALD）是减少功能器件尺寸、降低集成电路制造复杂性和成本以及减少计算芯片能耗的关键技术。然而，由于选择性生长化学物质的选择范围狭窄，以及对表面化学的异质性对 ALD 成核选择性的影响了解甚少，该技术的潜力受到严重限制。本研究旨在建立选择性化学吸附的羧酸盐自组装单层 (SAM) 作为抑制剂，以阻断或抑制 ALD 过程中的成核。该研究填补了ALD过程中抑制机制和抑制剂阻断成核能力逐渐丧失的知识空白，并最终提出了改进抑制剂阻断成核能力的新策略。该合作团队通过研究羧酸盐的形成和 ALD 化学成核的选择性，以及基体质量和化学以及气态副产物的原位表征，并使用异位原子力显微镜红外 (AFM-IR) 光谱来检查表面化学的异质性并建立化学过程的关系，从而实现了这些目标 该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。