<s>
Airgap	B-Algorithm
is	O
a	O
technique	O
invented	O
by	O
IBM	O
for	O
fabricating	O
small	O
pockets	O
of	O
vacuum	B-General_Concept
in	O
between	O
copper	O
interconnects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
technique	O
belongs	O
to	O
a	O
general	O
class	O
of	O
similar	O
techniques	O
that	O
replaces	O
solid	O
low-κ	B-Algorithm
dielectrics	I-Algorithm
with	O
air-filled	O
or	O
vacuum	B-General_Concept
pockets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
insulating	O
copper	O
interconnects	O
(	O
wires	O
)	O
on	O
an	O
integrated	O
circuit	O
(	O
IC	O
)	O
with	O
vacuum	B-General_Concept
holes	O
,	O
capacitance	O
can	O
be	O
minimized	O
enabling	O
ICs	O
to	O
work	O
faster	O
or	O
draw	O
less	O
power	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
vacuum	B-General_Concept
is	O
believed	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
ultimate	O
insulator	O
for	O
wiring	O
capacitance	O
,	O
which	O
occurs	O
when	O
two	O
adjacent	O
wires	O
on	O
an	O
IC	O
draw	O
electrical	O
energy	O
from	O
one	O
another	O
,	O
generating	O
undesirable	O
heat	O
and	O
slowing	O
the	O
speed	O
at	O
which	O
data	O
can	O
move	O
through	O
an	O
IC	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
technique	O
fabricates	O
air	O
gaps	O
on	O
a	O
large	O
scale	O
by	O
exploiting	O
the	O
self-assembly	O
properties	O
of	O
certain	O
polymers	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
polymers	B-Language
can	O
be	O
easily	O
integrated	O
into	O
the	O
process	O
modules	O
(	O
a	O
collection	O
of	O
related	O
steps	O
that	O
fabricate	O
a	O
structure	O
on	O
an	O
integrated	O
circuit	O
)	O
used	O
in	O
conventional	O
CMOS	B-Device
fabrication	B-Architecture
,	O
avoiding	O
the	O
costs	O
of	O
heavily	O
modifying	O
the	O
process	O
technology	O
(	O
the	O
collection	O
of	O
process	O
modules	O
that	O
produces	O
an	O
integrated	O
circuit	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
technique	O
deposits	O
a	O
polymer	B-Language
material	O
over	O
the	O
entire	O
wafer	B-Architecture
,	O
and	O
removes	O
it	O
at	O
a	O
later	O
stage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
polymer	B-Language
is	O
removed	O
,	O
it	O
creates	O
trillions	O
of	O
evenly	O
spaced	O
vacuum	B-General_Concept
pockets	O
that	O
are	O
20	O
nanometers	O
in	O
diameter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IBM	O
has	O
demonstrated	O
this	O
technique	O
in	O
the	O
laboratory	O
,	O
and	O
has	O
deployed	O
it	O
in	O
its	O
East	O
Fishkill	O
,	O
New	O
York	O
fabrication	B-Algorithm
plant	I-Algorithm
,	O
where	O
prototype	O
POWER6	B-Device
processors	O
using	O
this	O
technology	O
have	O
been	O
fabricated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
technique	O
was	O
scheduled	O
to	O
be	O
featured	O
in	O
production-ready	O
process	O
technology	O
in	O
2009	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
IBM	O
's	O
45	B-Algorithm
nm	I-Algorithm
node	O
,	O
after	O
which	O
it	O
would	O
also	O
be	O
available	O
to	O
IBM	O
's	O
clients	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Airgap	B-Algorithm
was	O
developed	O
in	O
a	O
collaborative	O
effort	O
between	O
IBM	O
's	O
Almaden	O
Research	O
Center	O
and	O
T.J.	O
Watson	O
Research	O
Center	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
University	O
of	O
Albany	O
,	O
New	O
York	O
.	O
</s>
