Mechanical and dielectric characterization of low-k, porous organosilicates

Abstract

Coatings of varying porosities were generated from dense organosilicate resins and examined with respect to modulus and dielectric constant. Although initial moduli of the neat matrix resins can differ by factors of 2-3X, depending on chemical composition, corresponding porous compositions all converge at porosities exceeding 35-40 vol %. Furthermore, for a given organosilicate resin, pore-generating approaches based on nucleation & growth (N&G) as well as templating porogens (particles) exhibit little or no effect on the dielectric constant. However, templating porogens appear to improve the modulus by approximately 20 %.