Patent ID: 6268294
Filing Date: 2001-07-31
Classification: H01L

Abstract:
A method for forming upon a substrate employed within a microelectronics fabrication an inter-level metal dielectric (IMD) layer with attenuated degradation of the dielectric layer from interaction with organic materials comprising:providing a substrate employed within a microelectronics fabrication;forming upon the substrate a series of microelectronics conductor lines;forming over the substrate a first low dielectric constant dielectric layer employing a poly(arylene) ether polymer spin-on-polymer (SOP) low dielectric constant dielectric material;forming over the substrate a second intermediate dielectric layer;forming over the substrate a first a patterned photoresist etch mask layer;etching the pattern of the first patterned photoresist etch mask layer into and through the dielectric layers;stripping the photoresist etch mask layer;treating the surface of the dielectric layers to a reactive gas environment to form a protective reacted surface layer;forming and patterning upon the substrate a second photoresist mask layer; andprocessing and stripping the second patterned photoresist etch mask layer with attenuated degradation of the dielectric layers due to the organic materials and methods used in processing same because of the protective reacted surface layer on the exposed dielectric layers.