Kinetic study of wet chemical treatments on the surface roughness of epoxy polymer layers for buildup layers - II. Oxidative treatment of the surface

The adhesion of plated metal layers to epoxy polymer surfaces is of prime importance for the reliability of interconnections in microelectronics. An increase in the roughness of the polymer surface, caused by chemical treatment, plays an important part in the adhesion strength of plated metal layers by increasing the total area of interaction between both layers. This kinetic study of the influence of chemical treatments on the surface of the polymer consists of two parts. In Part I the kinetics of sweller treatments and of the solvent were examined in detail and a kinetic model for the influence of sweller and solvent was developed. In this second part the kinetics of the formation of roughness at the polymer surface due to oxidative liquid treatments is examined. A kinetic model is developed based on experimental studies, compromising the combined effects of sweller-oxidizer treatments and the influence of diffusion of the different components. A number of examples are given and verified by experiment. The roughness of the treated polymer samples is measured experimentally by atomic force microscopy. Time-dependant mass measurements were used to record mass changes due to diffusion and reaction. (C) 2004 The Electrochemical Society.