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Copper electrodeposition acts as a crucial step in the manufacture of high-density interconnect board. The stability of plating solution and the uniformity of copper electrodeposit are the hotspot and difficulty for the research of electrodeposition. Because a large number of factors are included in electrodeposition, experimentally determining all parameters and electrodeposition conditions becomes unmanageable. Therefore, a multiphysics coupling technology was introduced to investigate microvia filling process, and the mechanism of copper electrodeposition was analyzed. The results provide a strong theoretical basis and technical guidance for the actual electroplating experiments. The purpose of this paper is to provide an excellent tool for quickly and cheaply studying the process behavior of copper electrodeposition without actually needing to execute time-consuming and costly experiments.

The interactions among additives used in acidic copper plating solution for microvia filling and the effect on the copper deposition potential were characterized through galvanostatic measurement (GM). The adsorption behavior and surface coverage of additives with various concentrations under different rotating speeds of working electrode were investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements. Further, a microvia filling model was constructed using multiphysics coupling technology based on the finite element method.

GM tests showed that accelerator, inhibitor and leveler affected the potential of copper electrodeposition, and bis(3-sulfopropyl) disulfide (SPS), ethylene oxide-propylene oxide (EO/PO) co-polymer, and self-made leveler were the effective additives in acidic copper plating solution. CV tests showed that EO/PO–Cu⁺-Cl⁻ complex was adsorbed on the electrode surface by intermolecular forces, thus inhibiting copper electrodeposition. Numerical simulation indicated that the process of microvia filling included initial growth period, the outbreak period and the stable growth period, and modeling result was compared with the measured data, and a good agreement was observed.

The research is still in progress with the development of high-performance computers.

A multiphysics coupling platform is an excellent tool for quickly and cheaply studying the electrodeposited process behaviors under a variety of operating conditions.

The numerical simulation method has laid the foundation for mechanism of copper electrodeposition.

By using multiphysics coupling technology, the authors built a bridge between theoretical and experimental study for microvia filling. This method can help explain the mechanism of copper electrodeposition.