Method of metal surface treatment using gcib for next generation interconnect

A method of processing metal features in a semiconductor substrate, the method comprising:

• providing a semiconductor substrate comprising a metal-containing interconnect material, wherein the metal-containing interconnect material comprises a metal selected from Ru, Mo, Nb, W, Ti, TiN, Ta, TaN, and Co;
• directing an amorphizing gas cluster ion beam at the metal-containing interconnect material to provide an amorphized metal-containing interconnect material;
• and
• annealing the amorphized metal-containing interconnect material in an amount effective to provide a recrystallized metal-containing interconnect material;
• wherein the metal-containing interconnect material is patterned during the method to form an interconnect.