Modified atomic layer deposition of RuO2 thin films for capacitor electrodes

The authors investigated the modified atomic layer deposition (ALD) of RuO2 films using bis(ethylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium [Ru(EtCp)2] at a deposition temperature of 265°C. Oxygen gas diluted with argon was supplied throughout all of the ALD steps. The growth rate of the modified ALD RuO2 was about 1.4A∕cycle, which is higher than that of conventional Ru ALD due to the increase in the amount of Ru(EtCp)2 adsorption per cycle, as well as the difference in the unit cell volumes of Ru and RuO2. The film thickness increased linearly with the number of cycles, and the incubation cycle in the initial stage was negligible.