The crystallographic textures of sputtered Ta and electrodeposited Cu on SiOF low dielectric films were investigated. Severe degradation of crystallographic texture of the Ta film deposited on SiOF compared to that on SiO2 was observed. There are two causes of the degradation of Ta crystallinity and (002) preferred texture. One is a rough interface formation at the Ta/SiOF interface in the early stage of Ta deposition. The other factor may be the formation of Ta compounds and F incorporation into the Ta layer occurring through the defluorination of SiOF surface that accompanies Ta sputter deposition as well as the strong interaction between the constituents themselves. Furthermore, the degradation of Ta crystallinity led to the degradation of seed Cu(lll) texture due to deficient interfacial heteroepitaxy between seed Cu and Ta. Finally. the texture of the electroplated Cu film was directly influenced by that of seed Cu and consequently that of the underlying Ta. (C) 2001 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.