EM 388F Term Paper: Subcritical Cracking of Low-k Dielectrics
Abstract
With the scaling of VLSI, ultra low-k dielectrics with porosity are being introduced to reduce the capacitance coupling. But due to the weak bonding strengths, low-k dielectrics may fail by environmental-assisted subcritical cracking, fracture at stresses far below the loads required for catastrophic failure, causing reliability issues. In this term paper, several references are reviewed to investigate the mechanism of subcritical cracking at multiscale levels.