摘要
Electromigration has been observed and quite extensively investigated in the compositionally homogeneous conducting lines in the integrated circuit devices; however, the effect of electric current upon the interfacial reactions has not been discussed. This study investigated the effect of electric current upon the chemically driven interfacial reactions in the Al/Ni system. Al/Ni reaction couples annealed at 400°C with and without the passing of electric current were examined. Two intensities of electric currents, 5×102 A/cm2 and 103 A/cm2, were used in this study. Same intermetallics, Al3Ni and Al3Ni2, were formed at the interfaces; however, the thickness of the reaction layer in the reaction couples with the passing of electric current was much larger than those without electric current. This novel phenomenon has never been reported in the literature, and the understanding of its mechanism needs further investigation.