Patent ID: 7855147

Claim:
A method of depositing a copper seed layer on a semiconductor substrate having a plurality of recessed features, the method comprising: (a) providing a semiconductor substrate having a barrier layer residing at least on the bottom portions and on the sidewalls of the recessed features; (b) forming an adhesion layer over at least a portion of the barrier layer, wherein the adhesion layer comprises exposed copper atoms, and wherein forming the adhesion layer comprises (i) depositing a layer of copper at least over the barrier material residing in the bottom portions of the recessed features; (ii) resputtering the deposited copper from the bottom portions of the recessed features onto the sidewalls of the recessed features, thereby depositing copper atoms onto the layer of barrier material on the sidewalls; and (iii) resputtering the barrier material residing at the bottom portions of the recessed features onto the sidewalls of the recessed features, thereby intermixing the copper atoms with the barrier material on the sidewalls of the recessed features; and (c) depositing the copper seed layer on at least a portion of the adhesion layer, wherein the adhesion layer has a different composition from the seed layer and the barrier layer.