Lam Research Corporation

Lam Corporation

Andrew D Bailey, Iii

Yunsang Kim

Andras Kuthi

Rajinder Dhindsa

Eric A Hudson

Alan M Schoepp

Gregory Sexton

Mehmet Derya Tetiker

Saravanapriyan Sriraman

Shrikant Lohokare

Alexei Marakhtanov

Mark Henry Wilcoxson

Jack Chen

Jorge Luque

Arthur M Howald

Hyungsuk Alexander Yoon

Marcus Musselman

Alex Paterson

Richard Alan Gottscho

Yassine Kabouzi

Gerardo Delgadino

William S Kennedy

Ye Feng

Puneet Yadav

Luc Albarede

Richard Stephan Wise

Thorsten B Lill

Vahid Vahedi

David J Hemker

Lumin Li

Sang Ki Nam

Yoko Yamaguchi

Jason A Ryder

Keechan Kim

Ryan Bise

Greg Sexton

Ben Mooring

Yan Zhang

Julien Mailfert

John D Boniface

Mike Kellogg

Jim Rogers

Stephen J Cain

John Boyd

Yezdi N Dordi

Harmeet Singh

S M Reza Sadjadi

Mirzafer K Abatchev

Douglas L Keil

William Thie

Iqbal A Shareef

Anthony De La Llera

Qing Xu

Alan Jeffrey Miller

Bing Ji

Ben-Li Sheu

Eller Y Juco

Darrell Ehrlich

Stephen M Sirard

Joel M Cook

Benjamin W Mooring

Michael G R Smith

Butch Berney

Wan-Lin Chen

Tong Fang

George Stojakovic

Neungho Shin

Vinay Pohray

Seonkyung Lee

Candi Kristoffersen

Evelio Sevillano

Ramkumar Subramanian

Maryam Moravej

Prashanth Kumar

Alexei Marakhatnov

Olivier Rigoutat

Mikhail Korolik

Qian Fu

Michael Ravkin

Tuqiang Q Ni

Nicolas J Bright

Meihua Shen

Michael C Kellogg

Jon McChesney

Gary Bultman

Kenji Takeshita

Juline Shoeb

Aaron Eppler

Babak Kadkhodayan

Bi-Ming Yen

Hua Xiang

Robert C Hefty

Scott Vernon Wong

Chung Ho Huang

Bi Ming Yen

Alexei Marakhatanov

Dmitry Opaits

Simon McClatchie

Alan H Schoen

Daniel Le

Computer-implemented methods of optimizing a process simulation model that predicts a result of a semiconductor device fabrication operation to process parameter values characterizing the semiconductor device fabrication operation are disclosed. The methods involve generating cost values using a computationally predicted result of the semiconductor device fabrication operation and a metrology result produced, at least in part, by performing the semiconductor device fabrication operation in a reaction chamber operating under a set of fixed process parameter values. The determination of the parameters of the process simulation model may employ pre-process profiles, via optimization of the resultant post-process profiles of the parameters against profile metrology results. Cost values for, e.g., optical scatterometry, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy may be used to guide optimization.

Method of etch model calibration using optical scatterometry

Embodiments for processing a substrate in a pulsed plasma chamber are provided. A processing apparatus with two chambers, separated by a plate fluidly connecting the chambers, includes a continuous wave (CW) controller, a pulse controller, and a system controller. The CW controller sets the voltage and the frequency for a first radio frequency (RF) power source coupled to a top electrode. The pulse controller is operable to set voltage, frequency, ON-period duration, and OFF-period duration for a pulsed RF signal generated by a second RF power source coupled to the bottom electrode. The system controller is operable to regulate the flow of species between the chambers to assist in the negative-ion etching, to neutralize excessive positive charge on the wafer surface during afterglow in the OFF-period, and to assist in the re-striking of the bottom plasma during the ON-period.

Pulsed plasma chamber in dual chamber configuration

A plasma processing system includes a plasma chamber having a substrate support, and a multi-zone gas injection upper electrode disposed opposite the substrate support. An inner plasma region is defined between the upper electrode and the substrate support. The multi-zone gas injection upper electrode has a plurality of concentric gas injection zones. A confinement structure, which surrounds the inner plasma region, has an upper horizontal wall that interfaces with the outer electrode of the upper electrode. The confinement structure has a lower horizontal wall that interfaces with the substrate support, and includes a perforated confinement ring and a vertical wall that extends from the upper horizontal wall to the lower horizontal wall. The lower surface of the upper horizontal wall, an inner surface of the vertical wall, and an upper surface of the lower horizontal wall define a boundary of an outer plasma region, which surrounds the inner plasma region.

Multi zone gas injection upper electrode system

A method for dry processing a substrate in a processing chamber is provided. The substrate is placed in the processing chamber. The substrate is dry processed, wherein the dry processing creates at least one gas byproduct. A concentration of the at least one gas byproduct is measured. The concentration of the at least one gas byproduct is used to determine processing rate of the substrate.

Method and apparatus for determining process rate

A system includes sensors, an interface and a controller. The interface receives feedback signals from the sensors. At least some of the sensors are disposed in an electrostatic chuck. The feedback signals are indicative respectively of fields of a heating plate of the electrostatic chuck. The controller, based on the fields and sets of calibration values, estimates values of a first field respectively for multiple points on a substrate. Each of the sets of calibration values corresponds respectively to one of multiple actuators. The calibration values, in each of the sets of calibration values, define amounts of contribution provided by a respective one of the actuators to the first field for the points. The controller changes physical states of the actuators based on the estimated values of the first field of the points to provide a predetermined temperature distribution profile across the electrostatic chuck.

Systems and methods for calibrating scalar field contribution values for a limited number of sensors including a temperature value of an electrostatic chuck and estimating temperature distribution profiles  based on calibrated values

A substrate support in a substrate processing system includes an inner portion arranged to support a substrate, an edge ring surrounding the inner portion, and a controller. The controller at least one of raises the edge ring to selectively cause the edge ring to engage the substrate and lowers the inner portion to selectively cause the edge ring to engage the substrate. The controller determines when the edge ring engages the substrate and calculates at least one characteristic of the substrate processing system based on the determination of when the edge ring engages the substrate.

Systems and methods for performing edge ring characterization

Methods and systems for using a time-series of spectra to identify endpoint of an etch process. One method includes accessing a virtual carpet that is generated from a time-series of spectra for an etch process. A polynomial with coefficients represents the virtual carpet. The method includes processing a fabrication etch process on a fabrication wafer and generating a carpet defined from a time-series of spectra while processing the fabrication etch process. While the processing the fabrication etch process and generating the carpet, comparing portions of the carpet and the virtual carpet to identify an endpoint metric of the fabrication etch process.

Method of feature exaction from time-series of spectra to control endpoint of process

A system for controlling a condition of a wafer processing chamber is disclosed. According the principles of the present disclosure, the system includes memory and a first controller. The memory stores a plurality of profiles of respective ones of a plurality of first control elements. The plurality of first control elements are arranged throughout the chamber. The first controller determines non-uniformities in a substrate processing parameter associated with the plurality of first control elements. The substrate processing parameter is different than the condition of the chamber. The first controller adjusts at least one of the plurality of profiles based on the non-uniformities in the substrate processing parameter and a sensitivity of the substrate processing parameter to the condition.

System and method for determining field non-uniformities of a wafer processing chamber using a wafer processing parameter

A system and method of plasma processing includes a plasma processing system including a plasma chamber and a controller coupled to the plasma chamber. The plasma chamber including a substrate support and an upper electrode opposite the substrate support, the upper electrode having a plurality of concentric gas injection zones.

Disclosed are methods of generating a proximity-corrected design layout for photoresist to be used in an etch operation. The methods may include identifying a feature in an initial design layout, and estimating one or more quantities characteristic of an in-feature plasma flux (IFPF) within the feature during the etch operation. The methods may further include estimating a quantity characteristic of an edge placement error (EPE) of the feature by comparing the one or more quantities characteristic of the IFPF to those in a look-up table (LUT, and/or through application of a multivariate model trained on the LUT, e.g., constructed through machine learning methods (MLM)) which associates values of the quantity characteristic of EPE with values of the one or more quantities characteristics of the IFPF. Thereafter, the initial design layout may be modified based on at the determined quantity characteristic of EPE.

Photoresist design layout pattern proximity correction through fast edge placement error prediction via a physics-based etch profile modeling framework

Embodiments for processing a substrate in a pulsed plasma chamber are provided. A processing apparatus with two chambers, separated by a plate fluidly connecting the chambers, includes a continuous wave (CW) controller, a pulse controller, and a system controller. The CW controller sets the voltage and the frequency for a first radio frequency (RF) power source coupled to a top electrode. The pulse controller is operable to set voltage, frequency, ON-period duration, and OFF-period duration for a pulsed RF signal generated by a second RF power source coupled to the bottom electrode. The system controller is operable to set parameters to regulate the flow of species between the chambers to assist in the negative-ion etching, to neutralize excessive positive charge on the wafer surface during afterglow in the OFF period, and to assist in the re-striking of the bottom plasma during the ON period.

Layout pattern proximity correction through edge placement error prediction

A substrate etching system includes an etching control module, a filtering module, and an endpoint module. The etching control module selectively begins plasma etching of a substrate within an etching chamber. The filtering module, during the plasma etching of the substrate: receives a signal including endpoint information; decomposes the signal using empirical mode decomposition (EMD); and generates a filtered signal based on results of the EMD. The endpoint module indicates when an endpoint of the plasma etching of the substrate has been reached based on the filtered signal. The etching control module ends the plasma etching of the substrate in response to the indication that the endpoint of the plasma etching of the substrate has been reached.

Plasma etching systems and methods using empirical mode decomposition

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Pleasanton, CA, United States of America

Andrew D Bailey, Iii