Micromechanics Associated With Fracture In Integrated Microelectronics

University Of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara CA

Investigators

Abstract

MICRO-MECHANICS ASSOCIATED WITH FRACTURE IN INTEGRATED MICROELECTRONICS The research addresses two contemporary micro-mechanics issues concerning fracture in microelectronic devices. One is the mechanics of dielectric fracture produced by electromigration in constrained interconnect structures. The other is how stresses accumulate in packaged devices, particularly under thermal cycling conditions, with particular emphasis on conditions of mechanical "shakedown" and "ratcheting" (a condition favoring cracking). The principal experimental tool used in the proposed research will be optical piezospectroscopy, using Raman spectroscopy and photostimulated luminescence. Piezospectroscopy is a developing, non-destructive and non-contact method of strain measurement with a spatial resolution of ~ 1micron when implemented using an optical microprobe.