**Author details**

low-*k* dielectric films, indicating that the minimum hardness for integration of the

potential critical path for porous low-*k* dielectric breakdown owing to field

The other problem of Cu CMP problem is that the V-shape corners in the porous low-*k* trenches are formed due to the higher mechanical force. This would become a

To improve the performance of ICs, porous low-*k* dielectric materials have been

used as an interconnecting insulator for providing lower parasitic capacitance between the wires to reduce RC time delay. Porous low-*k* dielectric materials can be achieved by introducing low-polarizability chemical bonds and porosity into the film. During the integration, the semiconductor processing induces damage on the porous low-*k* dielectric material, making the dielectric material densification hydrophilic, facilitating moisture uptake, and inducing Cu and barrier metal penetration. These lead to *k* value increase and reliability degradation for the porous low-*k* dielectric material. Moreover, high porosity and large pore size in the porous low-*k* dielectric materials make them sensitive to integration-induced damages. Moreover, porosity in the low-*k* dielectric material weakens the hardness and enhances the local field of the film, resulting in CMP damage and reliability challenges. Therefore, in order to achieve a successful implementation of advanced porous low-*k* dielectric films in the future BEOL interconnects, optimization and

innovation of material science and integration processing are needed.

porous low-*k* dielectric film into BEOL interconnects is 1.2 GPa.

*Hardness of porous low-*k *dielectric materials as a function of UV curing time [107].*

enhancement along the CMP interface.

**6. Conclusions**

**184**

**Figure 10.**

*Nanofluid Flow in Porous Media*

Yi-Lung Cheng\* and Chih-Yen Lee Department of Electrical Engineering, National Chi-Nan University, Taiwan, ROC

\*Address all correspondence to: yjcheng@ncnu.edu.tw

© 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
