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Updated: Apr 28, 2026

Fabrication of Gate-tunable Graphene Devices for Scanning Tunneling Microscopy Studies with Coulomb Impurities

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Published on: July 24, 2015

Graphene as an atomically thin barrier to Cu diffusion into Si.

Juree Hong¹, Sanggeun Lee, Seulah Lee

¹Nanobio Device Laboratory, School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-Gu, Seoul, 120-749, Republic of Korea. taeyoon.lee@yonsei.ac.kr.

|June 3, 2014

Summary

Atomically thin graphene layers serve as effective diffusion barriers in copper interconnects. Large-grain single-layer graphene demonstrates superior performance over multi-layer graphene, highlighting grain boundary density

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Nanotechnology
Semiconductor Device Fabrication

Background:

Copper interconnects are crucial for advanced microelectronics.
Ultrathin diffusion barriers are needed to prevent copper diffusion into insulating layers.
Graphene's unique properties make it a candidate for diffusion barrier applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the efficacy of graphene as an ultrathin diffusion barrier for copper interconnects.
To evaluate the impact of graphene grain size and thickness on barrier performance.
To assess the thermal stability and device-level reliability of graphene-based diffusion barriers.

Main Methods:

Fabrication of copper/graphene/silicon stacks using small-grain single-layer graphene (SLG), large-grain SLG, and multi-layer graphene (MLG).
Thermal annealing of stacks at temperatures from 500 to 900 °C.
Characterization using X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy.
Evaluation of barrier performance using time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) tests.

Main Results:

Small-grain SLG was stable up to 700 °C, while large-grain SLG and MLG were stable up to 900 °C.
Large-grain SLG and MLG exhibited excellent barrier performance in TDDB tests.
Large-grain SLG outperformed thicker MLG, indicating grain boundary density is critical.

Conclusions:

Near-zero-thickness single-layer graphene, particularly large-grain SLG, is a promising diffusion barrier for copper metallization.
Graphene's effectiveness as a diffusion barrier is influenced more by grain boundary density than thickness.
Graphene offers a viable solution for advanced interconnects requiring robust diffusion barriers.