Evaluation and analysis for mechanical strengths of low k dielectrics by a finite element method

We evaluated elastic modulus of various porous and nonporous inorganic low-k films by means of a nano-indentation. The elastic modulus of various low-k films shows a linear dependence on the film density for porous and nonporous inorganic low-k materials, respectively. We have studied the effect of pore aggregation on the elastic modulus of thin films by the finite element method (FEM) using the 2-dimensional random pore generation model. The FEM results for the elastic modulus, which were calculated for the 2-dimensional random pore model, fit extremely well with the experimental data obtained by the nano-indentation method.