Title :
High-Q copper inductors on standard silicon substrate with a low-k BCB dielectric layer
Author :
Xiao Huo ; Chen, K.J. ; Chan, P.C.H.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. & Electron. Eng., Hong Kong Univ. of Sci. & Technol., Kowloon, China
Abstract :
High-Q Cu inductors using low-k benzocyclobutene (BCB) dielectric as an interface layer have been fabricated on a standard CMOS-grade silicon substrate. Metal ohmic loss and substrate loss, the two major factors that degrade the Q-factors of on-chip inductors, are suppressed by the employment of electroplated copper and the BCB dielectric, respectively. Quality-factor as high as 25 was obtained for a 1 nH inductor at 2 GHz. The inductor fabrication process is low-cost and low-temperature, making it suitable for a post-IC process for high-performance RFIC´s and MMIC´s.
Keywords :
CMOS integrated circuits; MMIC; Q-factor; UHF integrated circuits; copper; dielectric thin films; electroplated coatings; electroplating; equivalent circuits; inductors; integrated circuit technology; silicon; 2 GHz; BCB dielectric; Cu; Si; electroplated Cu; high-Q Cu inductors; high-performance MMICs; high-performance RFICs; inductor fabrication process; interface layer; low-cost fabrication process; low-k benzocyclobutene dielectric; low-temperature fabrication process; metal ohmic loss; on-chip inductors; post-IC process; standard CMOS-grade Si substrate; substrate loss; Aluminum; CMOS technology; Copper; Dielectric losses; Dielectric substrates; Fabrication; Inductors; Q factor; Radiofrequency integrated circuits; Silicon;
Conference_Titel :
Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFIC) Symposium, 2002 IEEE
Conference_Location :
Seattle, WA, USA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-7246-8
DOI :
10.1109/RFIC.2002.1012077
