Electrochemical evaluation of the reliability of plasma-polymerized methylcyclohexane films

Plasma-polymerized thin films are developed for electronic devices to satisfy the important requirement of a low dielectric constant in the interlayer dielectrics. Three types of methylcyclohexane coatings are deposited on copper as interlayer dielectrics by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition at three different deposition temperatures. The coating performance is evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization testing in a 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. The coatings are also analyzed by surface analyses, including atomic force microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and contact angle measurements. The electrochemical behavior of the coatings is improved by increasing the deposition temperature. The methylcyclohexane films on the copper substrate show high protective efficiency, charge transfer resistance and low porosity, which indicate that the coating performance increased with increasing deposition temperature. Atomic force microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and contact angle measurements confirm the enhanced formation of C-H, C-C, and C C stretching configurations, improved surface roughness and wettability with increasing deposition temperature. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.