Methods for depositing dielectric films with increased stability

A semiconductor processing method comprising:

• providing a silicon-containing precursor, a nitrogen-containing precursor, and argon to a processing region of a semiconductor processing chamber, wherein a substrate is disposed within the processing region;
• generating plasma effluents of the silicon-containing precursor, the nitrogen-containing precursor, and argon;
• and
• depositing a silicon-carbon-and-nitrogen-containing material on the substrate, wherein the silicon-carbon-and-nitrogen-containing material is deposited at a rate of less than or about 5,000 Å/min.

A semiconductor processing method comprising:

• providing a silicon-containing precursor, a nitrogen-containing precursor, and an inert gas to a processing region of a semiconductor processing chamber, wherein a substrate is disposed within the processing region, and wherein the silicon-containing precursor, the nitrogen-containing precursor, or both comprise carbon;
• generating plasma effluents of the silicon-containing precursor, the nitrogen-containing precursor, and the inert gas;
• depositing a silicon-containing material on the substrate, wherein the silicon-containing material is characterized by a carbon content of greater than 30 at. %;
• halting a flow rate of the silicon-containing precursor;
• and
• performing a post-deposition plasma treatment on the silicon-containing material.