Defect and microstructural evolution in thermally cycled Cu through-silicon vias

In this study, the effect of thermal cycling on defect generation, microstructure, and RF signal integrity of blind Cu through-silicon vias (TSVs) were investigated. Three different thermal cycling profiles were used; each differentiated by their peak cycling temperature (100 degrees C, 150 degrees C, 200 degrees C) and the time needed to complete one cycle (cycle time). The study was performed on two Cu TSV wafer sample types; one containing large processing-induced voids (voided sample), the other without (non-voided sample). It was found that the RF signal return loss vertical bar S-11 vertical bar of the Cu TSVs increased upon thermal cycling for both the voided and the non-voided sample types. This was attributed to the increase in the void area due to the formation of new voids, rather than the growth of preexisting voids. On the other hand, the grain orientation and grain sizes of the Cu TSVs were found to be unaffected by all studied thermal cycling conditions and sample types. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved