Appeal No. 2003-1206
Application No. 09/773,063 Page 4
over a conductor core in an opening. In an attempt at remedying
the deficiencies in the teachings of the applied APA, the
examiner additionally relies on Hong and Liu.
Hong discloses the use of a top barrier layer (34, Fig. 1F)
that may be an metal oxide, such as TiO2, over a conductor (30,
Fig. 1F) to prevent metal atoms from diffusing out of the metal
conductor. See, e.g., column 5, lines 19-27 of Hong. The
barrier is formed after a second dielectric layer is deposited on
a barrier precursor or gas treated layer (32, Fig. 1E). See,
e.g., column 4, line 53 through column 5, line 18 of Hong.
Hong’s top metal barrier (34) is not recessed as required by the
appealed claims.
Liu discloses the selective growth of a copper passivation
layer 24, which layer is treated by a chemical mechanical
polishing (CMP) step until the passivation layer is coplanar with
a dielectric layer surface leaving a thin layer of the
passivation layer in a trench to protect an underlying copper
conductor from corrosion. See, e.g., Figures 1E and 1F of Liu
and the corresponding description thereof in the patent
specification.
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007