Ion beam irradiated via-connect through an insulating polymer layer

Abstract

Ion beams can render a polymer film conductive (ρ∼3×10−3 Ω cm measured by a four-probe technique). Using this effect we show that an insulating polymer layer used as an isolating layer between two conducting layers can be electrically shorted by heavy ion beam irradiation. This technique, besides enabling a measurement of the resistivity in the orthogonal direction, demonstrates the feasibility of using a polymer as an insulating layer with a direct via-connect produced across it by ion beam irradiation. The measured resistivities perpendicular (ρ⊥ ) and parallel (ρ∥ ) to the film plane within experimental measurements show that ion-beam induced conductivity in these films is isotropic. The isotropy of the conductivity suggests nonspecular scattering of the carriers in these disordered films.