March 14, 2001–Milpitas, California–NuTool, Inc. has been granted a U.S. patent covering a process for depositing interconnect material in submicron structures of an IC, creating a planar film while preventing unwanted accumulation of the film on the wafer’s surface. The first application is for copper interconnect, the new material in use for the most advanced ICs.

“We are excited about our patent, as it establishes NuTool as the preeminent supplier of ECMD Technology. By depositing and planarizing copper efficiently in a single process, we reduce the necessity for chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) by more than 50%,” says Homayoun Talieh, founder and chief executive officer of NuTool, Inc. “Furthermore, this technology significantly reduces production costs for chipmakers, while improving yield and performance.”

NuTool’s technology currently is in advanced beta testing systems with several of the world’s top 10 semiconductor manufacturers. Results have demonstrated that the patented electrochemical mechanical deposition process is less expensive and produces fewer defects than conventional electroplating techniques now in use, according to NuTool.