Lam Research Corporation

Applied Materials, Inc.

Other

Alex Paterson

Maolin Long

Ying Wu

Jon McChesney

Saravanapriyan Sriraman

John Stephen Drewery

Juline Shoeb

Harmeet Singh

Yuhou Wang

Ricky Marsh

Damon Tyrone Genetti

Derek Witkowicki

Austin Ngo

Gowri Kamarthy

Andrew D Bailey, Iii

John Patrick Holland

Thorsten B Lill

Richard Alan Gottscho

Monica Titus

Qian Fu

Zhongkui Tan

Michael S Kang

Arthur H Sato

Vahid Vahedi

Mehmet Derya Tetiker

Thai Cheng Chua

Valentin Nikolov Todorow

Richard Howard Gould

Patricia M Liu

Tom A Kamp

Tatsuya E Sato

Yoshie Kimura

Ian J Kenworthy

Steven C Hung

Richard A Marsh

Yiting Zhang

Scott Vernon Wong

Marc Estoque

Richard Stephan Wise

Nicolas Gani

Robert G O'Neill

Radhika C Mani

Raphael Casaes

Noel Sun

Haoquan Yan

Helene Del Puppo

Do Young Kim

Ting-Ying Chung

Jen-Kan Yu

Michael S Barnes

Christopher Sean Olsen

John Edward Daugherty

Peter K Loewenhardt

Neil M Benjamin

Steven C Shannon

Dennis Stanley Grimard

Qing Xu

Alan Jeffrey Miller

Theodoros Panagopoulos

David Trussell

Jason Augustino

Valentin N Todorov

John M Yamartino

Xiang Zhou

Chen Xu

Theo Panagopoulos

Duming Zhang

Wade Zawalski

Quan Chau

Yashushi Takakura

Craig Blair

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing are described. One of the methods includes receiving a digital signal having a first state and a second state. The method further includes generating a transformer coupled plasma (TCP) radio frequency (RF) pulsed signal having a high state when the digital signal is in the first state and having a low state when the digital signal is in the second state. The method includes providing the TCP RF pulsed signal to one or more coils of a plasma chamber, generating a bias RF pulsed signal having a low state when the digital signal is in the first state and having a high state when the digital signal is in the second state, and providing the bias RF pulsed signal to a chuck of the plasma chamber.

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing

A system and method for generating a radio frequency (RF) waveform are described. The method includes defining a train of on-off pulses separated by an off state having no on-off pulses. The method further includes applying a multi-level pulse waveform that adjusts a magnitude of each of the on-off pulses to generate an RF waveform. The method includes sending the RF waveform to an electrode.

RF pulsing within pulsing for semiconductor RF plasma processing

Systems and methods for increasing peak ion energy with a low angular spread of ions are described. In one of the systems, multiple radio frequency (RF) generators that are coupled to an upper electrode associated with a plasma chamber are operated in two different states, such as two different frequency levels, for pulsing of the RF generators. The pulsing of the RF generators facilitates a transfer of ion energy during one of the states to another one of the states for increasing ion energy during the other state to further increase a rate of processing a substrate.

Systems and methods for achieving peak ion energy enhancement with a low angular spread

A matchless plasma source is described. The matchless plasma source includes a controller that is coupled to a direct current (DC) voltage source of an agile DC rail to control a shape of an amplified square waveform that is generated at an output of a half-bridge transistor circuit. The matchless plasma source further includes the half-bridge transistor circuit used to generate the amplified square waveform to power an electrode, such as an antenna, of a plasma chamber. The matchless plasma source also includes a reactive circuit between the half-bridge transistor circuit and the electrode. The reactive circuit has a high-quality factor to negate a reactance of the electrode. There is no radio frequency (RF) match and an RF cable that couples the matchless plasma source to the electrode.

Matchless plasma source for semiconductor wafer fabrication

Systems and methods for multi-level pulsing of a parameter and multi-level pulsing of a frequency of a radio frequency (RF) signal are described. The parameter is pulsed from a low level to a high level while the frequency is pulsed from a low level to a high level. The parameter and the frequency are simultaneously pulsed to increase a rate of processing a wafer, to increase mask selectivity, and to reduce angular spread of ions within a plasma chamber.

Multi-level parameter and frequency pulsing with a low angular spread

An edge ring arrangement for a processing chamber includes a first ring configured to surround and overlap a radially outer edge of an upper plate of a pedestal arranged in the processing chamber, a second ring arranged below the first moveable ring, wherein a portion of the first ring overlaps the second ring, a first actuator configured to actuate a first pillar to selectively move the first ring to a raised position and a lowered position relative to the pedestal, and a second actuator configured to actuate a second pillar to selectively move the second ring to a raised position and a lowered position relative to the pedestal.

Edge ring arrangement with moveable edge rings

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing are described. One of the systems includes a controller, first and second source radio frequency (RF) generators, and first and second bias RF generators. The controller controls the first source RF generator to generate a first source pulsed signal, and controls the second source RF generator to generate a second source pulsed signal. The system includes a first match circuit that receives the first and second source pulsed signals and combines the first and second source pulsed signals. The controller controls the first bias RF generator to generate a first bias pulsed signal, and controls the second bias RF generator to generate a second bias pulsed signal. The system includes a second match circuit that receives the first and second bias pulsed signals and combines the first and second bias pulsed signals into a combined bias signal.

Systems for reverse pulsing

A chamber is provided. The chamber includes a Faraday shield positioned above a substrate support of the chamber. A dielectric window is disposed over the Faraday shield, and the dielectric window has a center opening. A hub having an internal plenum for passing a flow of fluid received from an input conduit and removing the flow of fluid from an output conduit is further provided. The hub has sidewalls and a center cavity inside of the sidewalls for an optical probe, and the internal plenum is disposed in the sidewalls. The hub has an interface surface that is in physical contact with a back side of the Faraday shield. The physical contact provides for a thermal couple to the Faraday shield at a center region around said center opening, and an outer surface of the sidewalls of the hub are disposed within the center opening of the dielectric window.

Air cooled faraday shield and methods for using the same

A substrate processing system includes a processing chamber. A pedestal is arranged in the processing chamber. An edge coupling ring is arranged adjacent to the pedestal and around a radially outer edge of the substrate. An actuator is configured to selectively move a first portion of the edge coupling ring relative to the substrate to alter an edge coupling profile of the edge coupling ring.

Moveable edge coupling ring for edge process control during semiconductor wafer processing

Frequency tuning for a matchless plasma source is described. To perform the frequency tuning, current is measured at an output of an amplification circuit of the matchless plasma source after a change in a frequency of operation of the matchless plasma source. Upon determining that the current has increased with the change in the frequency of operation, the frequency of operation is further changed until the current has decreased. When the current has decreased, the changed frequency of operation is further modified to be an operational frequency. When the matchless plasma source operates at the operational frequency, the current at the output of the amplification circuit is maximized.

Frequency tuning for a matchless plasma source

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Alex Paterson