A time dependent dielectric breakdown model for field accelerated low-k breakdown due to copper ions

We have previously shown that the choice of J(t,L)=0 boundary condition in the model of copper ion drift causes an internal field enhancement at the cathode due to the accumulation of copper ions. The ultimate breakdown of the dielectric occurs due to a combination of the field increase exceeding the intrinsic breakdown strength as well as the intrinsic bond breakage due to thermal and field effects. Here, we show that the field dependence of the intrinsic bond breakage shows an E2 dependence in the presence of copper ions enabling an excellent fit to the failure data on Cu∕SiO2∕Si devices.