Patent ID: 7838428

Claim:
A method of repairing process induced dielectric damage during forming of an interconnect structure in an inter-layer dielectric (ILD) material, the method comprising: providing a treatment to an exposed sidewall area of the ILD material to create a carbon-rich area by irradiating the exposed sidewall area with a gas cluster ion beam (GCIB) generated through a gas including a straight chain or branched, aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon, wherein the ILD material includes a porous material of an ultra-low dielectric constant (ULK), and wherein the porous material has pore diameters of 1 to 2 nm; stabilizing the carbon-rich area by exposing the carbon-rich area to e-beam irradiation in a temperature between 200 and 400° C.; and metallizing the carbon-rich area.