Advances in Nanocarbon/Metal Hybrid Materials for Interconnect Applications

The continued downscaling of integrated circuits presents major challenges, particularly the increasing resistivity of copper (Cu) and difficulties in maintaining a high current‐carrying capacity in Cu interconnect lines as their dimensions shrink to the nanoscale. These limitations threaten the performance and reliability of advanced electronic devices. Consequently, research efforts have intensified to identify alternative materials that exhibit better electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties suitable for use in next‐generation interconnect technologies. To address these issues, a wide range of alternative materials has been explored, including elemental metals, intermetallic compounds, MAX phases, topological semimetals, self‐assembled monolayers, hexagonal boron nitride, MoS 2 , amorphous boron nitride, amorphous monolayer carbon, carbon materials, and nanocarbon/metal hybrid (NCMH) materials. Among these, NCMH materials have emerged as particularly promising due to their unique combination of conductivity of metals and high current‐carrying capacity of nanocarbons. This review presents a comprehensive overview of advancements in NCMH materials for interconnect applications. The review also highlights the key functional properties of NCMH materials, electrical, thermal, and mechanical that are essential for meeting the demands of downscaled interconnects. Overall, this review aims to offer a materials‐driven strategy for bridging the gap between academic research and industrial implementation in the development of future interconnect technologies.