The Effect of Deposition Temperature of TiN Thin Film Deposition Using Thermal Atomic Layer Deposition

In this study, the effect of deposition temperature of TiN thin films deposited using the thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD) method was investigated. TiCl4 precursor and NH3 reactive gas were used, and the deposition rate, resistivity change, and surface morphology characteristics were compared in the deposition temperature range of 400 °C–600 °C. While resistivity decreased to 177 µΩcm as the deposition temperature increased to 600 °C, an increase in surface roughness (Rq) to 0.69 nm and a deterioration in the step coverage were identified. In order to obtain a high-quality TiN thin film with excellent resistivity and step coverage characteristics even at low deposition temperatures, the TiN thin film was post-treated with plasma in a combination of N2/He gas ratio of 3:2 to confirm the change in resistivity. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed crystallization change in the TiN thin film caused by plasma energy. As a result, the resistivity of the TiN thin film deposited at 400 °C was confirmed to be lowered by about 25%.