Investigation of the Growth Mechanics of Laser Assisted Copper Deposition for Circuit Edit Applications

Reproducible laser-assisted metal deposition with copper hexafluoroacetylacetonate trimethylvinylsilane Cu(hfac) (TMVS) has been demonstrated on a range of relevant semiconductor insulating material surfaces including silicon dioxide (SiO₂), crystalline silicon (c-Si), and organic package material such as polyimide and printed circuit board (PCB) FR- 4. A key to reliable and chemically efficient growth is a novel copper chemistry delivery methodology using direct precursor pulsing. The laser power conditions for deposition are strongly correlated to the substrate material, with increased power for the more thermally conductive samples (0.8 – 1.0 W) and significantly less for packaging materials (50 mW). The laser-assisted copper growth results and material properties are comparable to the published literature. Examples of circuit modifications using this methodology demonstrate its valuable role in the future of circuit edit.