March 2, 2001–Somerville, New Jersey–The AZ Electronic Materials business of Clariant now offers polysilazane spin-on dielectric materials. AZ introduced them at SPIE’s International Symposium on Microlithography.

These low-k materials are primarily used as an inter-layer dielectric (ILD) for advanced generation semiconductor devices such as 256 Mb DRAM and high-speed logic devices. They also are used for a variety of applications including LCDs, touch-panel screens, and hard coatings for sensors. AZ has added these materials to its portfolio through a technology transfer agreement with a Japanese corporation.

Polysilazane is composed of silicon-nitrogen bonds. When the polymer is dissolved in an organic solvent and is coated on a substrate and heated in air, it reacts with moisture and oxygen to form a dense, high-purity silica (amorphous SiO2) film. Polysilazane has a lower dielectric constant than chemical vapor deposition materials and is processed more easily than Sol-Gel materials. In addition it shows high density, planarity, and gap-filling characteristics suitable for pre-metal dielectric (PMD) or shallow trench isolation (STI).