Mechanical integrity of BEOL and 3D interconnects by nanoindentation

The PhD offers an exciting opportunity to investigate the fracture mechanics and mechanical stability of Back-End-Of-Line (BEOL) and 3D interconnect structures. These interconnect structures are essential for enabling continued scaling and performance improvements in next-generation integrated circuits (ICs). Although their complex architectures provide significant advantages from an electrical point-of-view, their mechanical robustness is heavily challenged during processing and during/after packaging.

Understanding the mechanical stability and failure behavior of these highly scaled structures is particularly challenging due to their complex three-dimensional architectures, the limited amount of suitable experimental methodologies, and technique-related limitations. Therefore, there is a strong need to develop advanced experimental approaches that can quantify the fracture behavior and mechanical reliability of these structures and interfaces.

During this PhD, you will develop experimental methodologies to characterize the fracture mechanics of a wide variety of 3D and BEOL interconnect structures and interfaces. State-of-the-art nanomechanical testing tools will be used to locally apply controlled mechanical loads and induce fracture/delamination. The experimental results will be tightly coupled with advanced finite element simulations and cohesive zone modelling (CZM) to unravel the underlying deformation and fracture mechanisms and quantitatively assess the mechanical stability of different interconnect architectures.

This PhD position offers a unique opportunity to work at the intersection of fracture mechanics, failure analysis and advanced computational modelling. You will have access to dedicated test vehicles and samples, as well as state-of-the-art mechanical testing and characterization techniques. By combining cutting-edge experimental techniques with advanced cohesive zone modelling, your research will contribute to understanding and improving the mechanical reliability of the complex interconnect structures that enable the next generation of integrated circuits.