Bonding pad structure to prevent inter-metal dielectric cracking and to improve bondability

A method of forming a bond pad structure, on a tungsten mesh pattern, on a semiconductor substrate, with said tungsten mesh pattern comprised with an indented top surface topography, comprising the steps of

• providing an upper level, metal interconnect structure, overlying, and contacting, conductive regions, on, or in, said semiconductor substrate,
• forming an inter-metal dielectric, (IMD), layer, on said upper level, metal interconnect structure;
• performing an anisotropic reactive ion etching procedure to pattern said IMD layer, creating an mesh pattern opening in said IMD layer, and creating isolated islands of said IMD layer, with regions of said upper level, metal interconnect structure, exposed in said mesh pattern opening;
• depositing a tungsten layer, on the top surface isolated islands of said IMD layer, and partially filling said mesh pattern opening, resulting in said indented top surface topography for the portion of said tungsten layer residing in mesh pattern opening;
• performing a chemical mechanical polishing procedure, to remove regions of said tungsten layer, from the top surface of said isolated islands of said IMD layer, and forming said tungsten mesh pattern, in said mesh pattern opening, with said tungsten mesh pattern featuring said indented top surface topography;
• forming an aluminum-copper bond pad structure, with a roughened top surface topography, on said tungsten mesh pattern;
• and
• forming a gold wire bond, on said aluminum-copper bond pad structure.