Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080268645 | METHOD FOR FRONT END OF LINE FABRICATION - In one embodiment, a method for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided which includes supporting a substrate containing silicon oxide within a processing chamber, generating a plasma of reactive species from a gas mixture within the processing chamber, cooling the substrate to a first temperature of less than about 65° C. within the processing chamber, and directing the reactive species to the cooled substrate to react with the silicon oxide thereon while forming a film on the substrate. The film usually contains ammonium hexafluorosilicate. The method further provides positioning the substrate in close proximity to a gas distribution plate, and heating the substrate to a second temperature of about 100° C. or greater within the processing chamber to sublimate or remove the film. The gas mixture may contain ammonia, nitrogen trifluoride, and a carrier gas. | 10-30-2008 |
20090095621 | SUPPORT ASSEMBLY - A method and apparatus for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided. In one aspect, the apparatus comprises a support assembly. In one embodiment, the support assembly includes a shaft coupled to a disk-shaped body. The shaft has a vacuum conduit, a heat transfer fluid conduit and a gas conduit formed therein. The disk-shaped body includes an upper surface, a lower surface and a cylindrical outer surface. A thermocouple is embedded in the disk-shaped body. A flange extends radially outward from the cylindrical outer surface, wherein the lower surface of the disk-shaped body comprises one side of the flange. A fluid channel is formed in the disk-shaped body proximate the flange and lower surface. The fluid channel is coupled to the heat transfer fluid conduit of the shaft. A plurality of grooves are formed in the upper surface of the disk-shaped body, and are coupled by a hole in the disk-shaped body to the vacuum conduit of the shaft. A gas conduit is formed through the disk-shaped body and couples the gas conduit of the shaft to the cylindrical outer surface of the disk-shaped body. The gas conduit in the disk-shaped body has an orientation substantially perpendicular to a centerline of the disk-shaped body. | 04-16-2009 |
20090104764 | Methods and Systems for Forming at Least One Dielectric Layer - A method for forming a structure includes forming at least one feature across a surface of a substrate. A nitrogen-containing dielectric layer is formed over the at least one feature. A first portion of the nitrogen-containing layer on at least one sidewall of the at least one feature is removed at a first rate and a second portion of the nitrogen-containing layer over the substrate adjacent to a bottom region of the at least one feature is removed at a second rate. The first rate is greater than the second rate. A dielectric layer is formed over the nitrogen-containing dielectric layer. | 04-23-2009 |
20090104782 | SELECTIVE ETCHING OF SILICON NITRIDE - Methods for etching dielectric layers comprising silicon and nitrogen are provided herein. In some embodiments, such methods may include providing a substrate having a dielectric layer comprising silicon and nitrogen disposed thereon, forming reactive species from a process gas comprising hydrogen (H | 04-23-2009 |
20090111280 | METHOD FOR REMOVING OXIDES - A method for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided. In one embodiment, the method comprises positioning a substrate having an oxide layer into a processing chamber, generating a plasma of a reactive species from a gas mixture within the processing chamber, exposing the substrate to the reactive species while forming a volatile film on the substrate and maintaining the substrate at a temperature below 65° C., heating the substrate to a temperature of at least about 75° C. to vaporize the volatile film and remove the oxide layer, and depositing a first layer on the substrate after heating the substrate. | 04-30-2009 |
20090191703 | PROCESS WITH SATURATION AT LOW ETCH AMOUNT FOR HIGH CONTACT BOTTOM CLEANING EFFICIENCY FOR CHEMICAL DRY CLEAN PROCESS - A method for removing oxides from the bottom surface of a contact hole is provided. The method provides efficient cleaning of the bottom surface without distortion of the contact hole upper and sidewall surfaces. | 07-30-2009 |
20090218324 | DIRECT REAL-TIME MONITORING AND FEEDBACK CONTROL OF RF PLASMA OUTPUT FOR WAFER PROCESSING - A method and apparatus for controlling power output of a capacitatively-coupled plasma are provided. A detector is disposed on the power delivery conduit carrying power to one electrode to detect fluctuations in power output to the electrode. The detector is coupled to a signal generator, which converts the RF input signal to a constant control signal. A controller adjusts power input to the RF generator by comparing the control signal to a reference. | 09-03-2009 |
20090269930 | THERMAL ANNEALING METHOD FOR PREVENTING DEFECTS IN DOPED SILICON OXIDE SURFACES DURING EXPOSURE TO ATMOSPHERE - A thermal anneal process for preventing formation of certain BPSG surface defects following an etch or silicon clean step using a fluorine and hydrogen chemistry. The thermal anneal process is carried out while protecting the wafer from moisture, by heating the wafer to a sufficiently high temperature for a sufficient duration of time to thermally diffuse boron and/or phosphorus materials separated from silicon near the surface of the doped glass layer into the bulk of the layer. The thermal anneal process is completed by cooling the wafer to a sufficiently low temperature to fix the distribution of the boron and/or phosphorus materials in bulk of the doped glass layer. | 10-29-2009 |
20090269934 | PLASMA TREATMENT METHOD FOR PREVENTING DEFECTS IN DOPED SILICON OXIDE SURFACES DURING EXPOSURE TO ATMOSPHERE - Formation of BPSG surface defects upon exposure to atmosphere is prevented by a plasma treatment method for converting boron and/or phosphorus materials separated from silicon near the surface of the doped glass layer to gas phase compounds. The treatment plasma is generated from a treatment process gas containing one of (a) a fluorine compound or (b) a hydrogen compound. | 10-29-2009 |
20090305500 | Contact Clean by Remote Plasma and Repair of Silicide Surface - Method for recovering treated metal silicide surfaces or layers are provided. In at least one embodiment, a substrate having an at least partially oxidized metal silicide surface disposed thereon is cleaned to remove the oxidized regions to provide an altered metal silicide surface. The altered metal silicide surface is then exposed to one or more silicon-containing compounds at conditions sufficient to recover the metal silicide surface. | 12-10-2009 |
20100099263 | NF3/H2 REMOTE PLASMA PROCESS WITH HIGH ETCH SELECTIVITY OF PSG/BPSG OVER THERMAL OXIDE AND LOW DENSITY SURFACE DEFECTS - A method and apparatus for selectively etching doped semiconductor oxides faster than undoped oxides. The method comprises applying dissociative energy to a mixture of nitrogen trifluoride and hydrogen gas remotely, flowing the activated gas toward a processing chamber to allow time for charged species to be extinguished, and applying the activated gas to the substrate. Reducing the ratio of hydrogen to nitrogen trifluoride increases etch selectivity. A similar process may be used to smooth surface defects in a silicon surface. | 04-22-2010 |
20100129958 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRENCH AND VIA PROFILE MODIFICATION - Embodiments of the present invention generally relates to an apparatus and a method for processing semiconductor substrates. Particularly, embodiments of the present invention relates to methods and apparatus for trench and via profile modification prior to filling the trench and via. One embodiment of the present invention comprises forming a sacrifice layer to pinch off a top opening of a trench structure by exposing the trench structure to an etchant. In one embodiment, the etchant is configured to remove the first material by reacting with the first material and generating a by-product, which forms the sacrifice layer. | 05-27-2010 |
20100129982 | INTEGRATION SEQUENCES WITH TOP SURFACE PROFILE MODIFICATION - Embodiments of the present invention generally relates to an apparatus and a method for processing semiconductor substrates. Particularly, embodiments of the present invention relates to apparatus and methods for forming shallow trench isolations having recesses with rounded bottoms. One embodiment of the present invention comprises forming a recess in a filled trench structure by removing a portion of a material from the filled trench structure and rounding bottom corners of the recess. Rounding bottom corners is performed by depositing a conformal layer of the same material filled in the trench structure over the substrate and removing the conformal layer of the material from sidewalls of the recess. | 05-27-2010 |
20110104897 | CONTACT CLEAN BY REMOTE PLASMA AND REPAIR OF SILICIDE SURFACE - Embodiments provide methods for treating a metal silicide contact which includes positioning a substrate having an oxide layer disposed on a metal silicide contact surface within a processing chamber, cleaning the metal silicide contact surface to remove the oxide layer while forming a cleaned silicide contact surface during a cleaning process, and exposing the cleaned silicide contact surface to a silicon-containing compound to form a recovered silicide contact surface during a regeneration process. In some examples, the cleaning of the metal silicide contact surface includes cooling the substrate to an initial temperature of less than 65° C., forming reactive species from a gas mixture of ammonia and nitrogen trifluoride by igniting a plasma, exposing the oxide layer to the reactive species to form a thin film, and heating the substrate to about 100° C. or greater to remove the thin film from the substrate while forming the cleaned silicide contact surface. | 05-05-2011 |
20110151676 | METHODS OF THIN FILM PROCESS - A method for forming a semiconductor structure includes forming a plurality of features across a surface of a substrate, with at least one space being between two adjacent features. A first dielectric layer is formed on the features and within the at least one space. A portion of the first dielectric layer interacts with a reactant derived from a first precursor and a second precursor to form a first solid product. The first solid product is decomposed to substantially remove the portion of the first dielectric layer. A second dielectric layer is formed to substantially fill the at least one space. | 06-23-2011 |
20110223755 | METHOD FOR REMOVING OXIDES - A method for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided. In one embodiment, the method comprises positioning a substrate having an oxide layer into a processing chamber, generating a plasma of a reactive species from a gas mixture within the processing chamber, exposing the substrate to the reactive species while forming a volatile film on the substrate and maintaining the substrate at a temperature below 65° C., heating the substrate to a temperature of at least about 75° C. to vaporize the volatile film and remove the oxide layer, and depositing a first layer on the substrate after heating the substrate. | 09-15-2011 |
20110265721 | PROCESS CHAMBER LID DESIGN WITH BUILT-IN PLASMA SOURCE FOR SHORT LIFETIME SPECIES - An apparatus and a method for depositing materials, and more particularly a vapor deposition chamber configured to deposit a material during a plasma-enhanced process are provided. In one embodiment a chamber comprises a chamber body defining a process volume, a substrate support disposed in the process volume and configured to support one or more substrates, a process lid assembly disposed over the substrate support, wherein the process lid assembly has a plasma cavity configured to generate a plasma and provide one or more radical species to the process volume, a RF (radio frequency) power source coupled to the gas distribution assembly, a plasma forming gas source coupled with the process lid assembly, and a reactant gas source coupled with the process lid assembly. | 11-03-2011 |
20110294258 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR TRENCH AND VIA PROFILE MODIFICATION - Embodiments of the present invention generally relates to an apparatus and a method for processing semiconductor substrates. Particularly, embodiments of the present invention relates to methods and apparatus for profile modification prior to filling a structure, such as a trench or a via. One embodiment of the present invention comprises forming a sacrifice layer to pinch off a top opening of a structure by exposing the structure to an etchant. In one embodiment, the etchant is configured to remove the first material by reacting with the first material and generating a by-product, which forms the sacrifice layer. | 12-01-2011 |
20120244704 | METHOD FOR REMOVING OXIDES - A method for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided. In one embodiment, the method comprises positioning a substrate having an oxide layer into a processing chamber, exposing the substrate to a gas mixture while forming a volatile film on the substrate and maintaining the substrate at a temperature below 65° C., heating the substrate to a temperature of at least about 75° C. to sublimate the volatile film and remove the oxide layer, and depositing a first layer on the substrate after heating the substrate. | 09-27-2012 |
20120267346 | SUPPORT ASSEMBLY - A method and apparatus for removing native oxides from a substrate surface is provided. In one aspect, the apparatus comprises a support assembly. In one embodiment, the support assembly includes a shaft coupled to a disk-shaped body. The disk-shaped body includes an upper surface, a lower surface and a cylindrical outer surface. A flange extends radially outward from the cylindrical outer surface. A fluid channel is formed in the disk-shaped body and is coupled to the heat transfer fluid conduit of the shaft. A plurality of grooves formed in the upper surface are coupled by a hole to the vacuum conduit of the shaft. A gas conduit formed through the disk-shaped body couples the gas conduit of the shaft to the cylindrical outer surface of the disk-shaped body. | 10-25-2012 |
20130098477 | Apparatus and Method for Providing Uniform Flow of Gas - Provided are gas distribution apparatus with a delivery channel having an inlet end, an outlet end and a plurality of apertures spaced along the length. The inlet end is connectable to an inlet gas source and the outlet end is connectible with a vacuum source. Also provided are gas distribution apparatus with spiral delivery channels, intertwined spiral delivery channels, splitting delivery channels, merging delivery channels and shaped delivery channels in which an inlet end and outlet end are configured for rapid exchange of gas within the delivery channels. | 04-25-2013 |
20140076234 | MULTI CHAMBER PROCESSING SYSTEM - A multi-chamber processing system includes a transfer chamber, a first processing chamber outfitted to perform CVD, a second processing chamber, and a robot positioned to transfer substrates between the transfer chamber, the first processing chamber, and the second processing chamber. The second processing chamber may include one or a combination of a first electrode and a second electrode comprising a plasma cavity formed therein. | 03-20-2014 |
20140137961 | MODULAR CHEMICAL DELIVERY SYSTEM - In some embodiments, a modular chemical delivery system may include a plurality of gas delivery units directly and removably coupled to each other, wherein each gas delivery unit includes a body with a first volume, a plurality of gas sticks disposed in the first volume, wherein each of the plurality of gas sticks is configured to be coupled to at least one gas supply through one or more inlets in the body, a plurality of valves disposed in the first volume, each valve respectively disposed in line with a corresponding one of the at least one gas supply, at least one outlet conduit to deliver at least one process gas to one or more gas delivery zones in a process chamber, and an electrical controller disposed in the first volume and configured to control the plurality of gas sticks and the plurality of valves. | 05-22-2014 |
20140165911 | APPARATUS FOR PROVIDING PLASMA TO A PROCESS CHAMBER - Embodiments of apparatus for providing plasma to a process chamber are provided. In some embodiments, an apparatus may include a first ground plate; an electrode disposed beneath and spaced apart from the first ground plate by a first electrical insulator to define a first gap between the first ground plate and the electrode; a second ground plate disposed beneath and spaced apart from the electrode by a second electrical insulator to define a second gap between the electrode and the second ground plate; a gas inlet to provide a process gas to the first gap; a plurality of through holes disposed through the electrode coupling the first gap to the second gap; and a plurality of first gas outlet holes disposed through the second ground plate to fluidly couple the second gap to an area beneath the second plate. | 06-19-2014 |
20140165912 | APPARATUS FOR PROVIDING PLASMA TO A PROCESS CHAMBER - Apparatus for providing plasma to a process chamber may include an electrode; a first ground plate disposed beneath the electrode defining a cavity therebetween; an insulator disposed between the electrode and first ground plate to prevent direct contact therebetween; a second ground plate disposed beneath the first ground plate defining a first channel; a plurality of first through holes through the first ground plate to fluidly couple the channel and cavity; a first gas inlet coupled to the first channel; a third ground plate disposed beneath the second ground plate defining a second channel; a plurality of conduits through the ground plates to fluidly couple the cavity to an area beneath the third ground plate; a plurality of gas outlet holes through the third ground plate to fluidly couple the second channel to the area beneath the third ground plate; and a second gas inlet coupled to the second channel. | 06-19-2014 |
20140174362 | Apparatus And Methods For Symmetrical Gas Distribution With High Purge Efficiency - Provided are apparatus and methods for depositing materials by vapor deposition and plasma enhanced vapor deposition techniques, and more particularly a gas distribution assembly and vapor deposition chamber to deposit a material. The gas distribution assembly comprises a plurality of sections with each section containing a flow channel with passages extending from the flow channel to the processing region of a processing chamber. | 06-26-2014 |
20140252015 | High Temperature Process Chamber Lid - Lid assemblies for processing chamber and processing chambers including the lid assemblies are described. The lid assemblies include a high temperature lid module and a housing. The high temperature lid module being positioned adjacent a process liner of a processing chamber. The flexible housing positioned around the high temperature lid module and joined to the high temperature lid module with an elastomeric ring. | 09-11-2014 |