High performance gold plating for microdevices

Tremendous improvements in the performance of microelectronic devices have been creating increased demands on fabrication control and consequent application of a synergistic operational model, high quality gold layers have been deposited from a sulfitic gold electrolyte. Periodic recording both of existing process data and resulting layer properties yielded a synergistic model to control the plating using SEM and acoustomicroscopy. Futher factors that influence quality of gold deposits (hardness, roughness, uniformity) could be optimized by flexible process control.