Nitrogen plasma treatment to prevent field device leakage in VLSI processing

A method for forming multiple metal, spin-on-glass multilayer metallurgy for a one micrometer or less feature size integrated circuit without field inversion comprising:

• providing a semiconductor substrate having a pattern of field effect device source/drain regions therein with a pattern of gate dielectric and gate electrode structures associated therewith and a pattern of field isolation structures at least partially within said semiconductor substrate electrically separating certain of these source/drain regions from one another;
• forming a passivation layer over the surfaces of said patterns;
• and forming said multilayer metallurgy thereover by:
• opening a pattern of openings through said passivation layer to at least some of said source/drain regions,
• depositing and patterning a first metallurgy layer in contact with said pattern of openings;
• forming a first silicon oxide via dielectric layer over said pattern of first metallurgy layer;
• exposing said first silicon oxide dielectric layer to a nitrogen containing plasma containing no hydrogen ions at a temperature of less than about 450.degree. C.;
• forming a spin-on-glass layer over said via dielectric layer and curing the layer;
• forming a second silicon oxide via dielectric layer over said spin-on-glass layer;
• forming a pattern of openings in said second via layer, said spin-on-glass layer, and said first via layer;
• and
• depositing and patterning a second metallurgy layer in contact with said pattern of openings to make electrical contact with said first metallurgy layer wherein said multilevel metallurgy integrated circuit without field inversion is completed.