1. Continuous process for mixing highly viscous polymer melts as main stream in a flow tube with additives from a liquid side stream, characterized in that the additives (11) are premixed with part of the polymer melt (12) in the side stream, that the additive-containing side stream (13) is fed through a feed line (14) arranged in particular centrally in the flow tube, into the main stream (8), the combined streams are intensively mixed in a first static mixer (10 directly connected downstream, and this premixture is finely divided in a mixing tube (15) of enlarged cross-section and in a second static mixer (16) of finer structure (mesh width).
2. Process according to claim 1, characterised in that the cross-section of the mixing tube of the second static mixer is by a factor of at least 1.2 larger than the cross-section of the mixing tube of the first static mixer.
3. Process according to claim 1 characterised in that the cross-section of the mixing tube of the second static mixer is by a factor of at least 2 larger than the cross-section of the mixing tube of the first static mixer.
4. Process according to claim 1 characterised in that the number of the product throughput openings (per unit surface area) in the second static mixer is at least 1.5 times the number of throughput openings (per unit surface area) in the first static mixer.
5. Process according to claim 1 characterised in that the highly viscous polymer melt is polycarbonate.
6. The mixture of thermoplastic polycarbonate and at least one additive prepared by the process of claim 1.
7. The process of claim 1 wherein the side stream is formed from recycled polycarbonate.
8. The process according to claim 1 wherein the weight ratio of the side stream to the main stream is 1:4 to 1:30.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method of forming an interconnect structure comprising:
providing a structure including an interconnect dielectric material having an opening located therein;
forming a diffusion barrier on an uppermost surface of the interconnect dielectric material and on wall portions of the interconnect dielectric material within said opening;
forming a contiguous conductive metal liner on said diffusion barrier that is located on the uppermost surface of the interconnect dielectric material and on the wall portions of the interconnect dielectric material within said opening;
performing a reflow anneal, wherein said reflow anneal partially fills said opening with a conductive metal that comprises a reflown portion of said contiguous metal liner, wherein a cavity that does not extend an entire width and height of said opening is provided within said opening by said reflow anneal;
forming a metallic layer containing at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Ru, Ir, Rh, Pt, Co, Mn, and Al and that is more resistant to corrosion and oxidation than that of the conductive metal within said cavity and atop remaining portions of the contiguous conductive metal liner that are located atop the diffusion barrier that is located outside the opening and on the uppermost surface of the interconnect dielectric material; and
removing a portion of the metallic layer, said remaining portions of the contiguous conductive metal liner, and a portion of said diffusion barrier that are located outside of said opening to provide a metallic cap containing a remaining portion of said metallic layer located within said cavity and on a portion of a conductive metal feature containing a remaining portion of said conductive metal within said opening, wherein said conductive metal feature has laterally extending portions located on, and in direct physical contact with, each vertical edge of the metallic cap, and each of the laterally extending portions of the conductive metal feature has an uppermost surface that is coplanar with an uppermost surface of the metallic cap, and wherein said metallic cap is separated from sidewalls of said interconnect dielectric material by an upper portion of a remaining portion of the diffusion barrier and said laterally extending portions of said conductive metal feature.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein each laterally extending portion of the conductive metal feature is positioned between one vertical edge of said metallic cap and an upper portion of a remaining portion of said diffusion barrier.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the uppermost surface of each laterally extending portion of the conductive metal feature and the uppermost surface of the metallic cap are coplanar with an uppermost surface of the interconnect dielectric material.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein said metallic cap covers from 80 to 99% of the conductive metal feature.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein said reflow anneal is performed in a hydrogen-containing ambient at a temperature of 150\xb0 C. to 400\xb0 C. for a time period from 5 minutes to 500 minutes.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein said reflow anneal is performed in a hydrogen-containing ambient at a temperature from 200\xb0 C. to 300\xb0 C. for a time period from 20 minutes to 100 minutes.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein said after said reflow anneal a remaining portion of the contiguous conductive metal liner remains outside the opening and atop the uppermost surface of the interconnect dielectric material, said remaining portion of the contiguous conductive metal liner is in direct physical contact with said conductive metal within said opening.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein said opening extends entirely through the interconnect dielectric material.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein said opening extends partially into said interconnect dielectric material.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein said opening is provided utilizing at least one iteration of lithography and etching.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein a vacuum is maintained between each of said forming the diffusion barrier, forming the contiguous conductive metal liner, said reflow annealing, and said forming the metallic layer.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein a vacuum is broken between said forming the diffusion barrier and forming the contiguous conductive metal liner, or between said forming the contiguous conductive metal liner and said reflow annealing, or between said reflow annealing and said forming the metallic layer.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein said removing said portion of the metallic layer, said remaining portions of the contiguous conductive metal liner, and said portion of the diffusion barrier that are located outside of said opening is performed by planarization.
14. The method of claim 1, wherein said conductive metal comprises the contiguous conductive metal liner that is subjected to said reflow anneal.
15. The method of claim 1, wherein said metallic layer contains at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Co.