Lam Research Corporation

Novellus Systems Incorporated

Arul N Dhas

Kareem Boumatar

Ming Chu Li

Jon Henri

Akhil N Singhal

Jason L Tian

Xingyuan Tang

Christopher Ramsayer

Kevin Gerber

Tu Hong

Ming Li

Joseph Bradley Laird

Brannon Kelley

Jaswinder Guiliani

Disclosed are apparatuses and methods for providing a substrate onto a substrate support in a processing chamber, generating an inert plasma in the processing chamber, and maintaining the inert plasma to heat the substrate to a steady state temperature, suitable for conducting plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), in less than 30 seconds from providing the substrate onto the substrate support. An apparatus may include a processing chamber, a process station that includes a substrate support, a process gas unit configured to flow an inert gas onto a substrate supported by the substrate support, a plasma source configured to generate an inert plasma in the process station, and a controller with instructions configured to flow the inert gas onto the substrate, generate the inert plasma in the first process station, and maintain the inert plasma to thereby heat the substrate.

Plasma enhanced wafer soak for thin film deposition

A method for processing a substrate in a substrate processing system includes selectively delivering at least one of a precursor, a deposition carrier gas, and a post deposition purge gas to a processing chamber. The method includes depositing film on the substrate by generating radio frequency (RF) plasma in the processing chamber between an upper electrode and a lower electrode while supplying an RF voltage to one of the upper electrode and the lower electrode and while the precursor and the deposition carrier gas is delivered. The method includes selectively supplying a direct current (DC) bias voltage to the upper electrode or the lower electrode; moving the substrate relative to a pedestal supporting the substrate while generating the DC bias voltage; and delivering the post deposition purge gas while supplying at least a portion of the DC bias voltage to the upper electrode or the lower electrode.

Defect control and stability of DC bias in RF plasma-based substrate processing systems using molecular reactive purge gas

A substrate processing system comprises an upper electrode and a lower electrode arranged in a processing chamber. A gas delivery system selectively delivers at least one of precursor, one or more deposition carrier gases and a post deposition purge gas. An RF generating system deposits film on the substrate by generating RF plasma in the processing chamber between the upper electrode and the lower electrode by supplying an RF voltage to one of the upper electrode and the lower electrode while the precursor and the one or more deposition carrier gases are delivered by the gas delivery system. A bias generating circuit selectively supplies a DC bias voltage to one of the upper electrode and the lower electrode while the post deposition purge gas is delivered by the gas delivery system. The post deposition purge gas that is delivered by the gas delivery system includes a molecular reactant gas.

Systems and methods for delivering liquid precursor in a substrate processing system include supplying liquid precursor using a first valve in fluid communication with a liquid precursor source; supplying purge gas using a second valve in fluid communication with a purge gas source; arranging a third valve having a first input port in fluid communication with an output port of the first valve and a second input port in fluid communication with an output port of the second valve; arranging an input port of a first divert injector valve in fluid communication with an output port of the third valve; and operating the first valve, the second valve, the third valve and the first divert injector valve in first, second, third and fourth modes.

Systems and methods for improving deposition rate uniformity and reducing defects in substrate processing systems

A method of minimizing a seam effect of a deposited TEOS oxide film during a trench filling process performed on a semiconductor substrate in a semiconductor substrate plasma processing apparatus comprises supporting a semiconductor substrate on a pedestal in a vacuum chamber thereof. Process gas including TEOS, an oxidant, and argon is flowed through a face plate of a showerhead assembly into a processing region of the vacuum chamber. RF energy energizes the process gas into a plasma wherein TEOS oxide film is deposited on the semiconductor substrate so as to fill at least one trench thereof. The argon is supplied in an amount sufficient to increase the electron density of the plasma such that the deposition rate of the TEOS oxide film towards the center of the semiconductor substrate is increased and the seam effect of the deposited TEOS oxide film in the at least one trench is reduced.

Method and apparatus to minimize seam effect during TEOS oxide film deposition

Methods for depositing film on substrates are described. In various cases, a high thermal conductivity gas such as helium is used to deposit a conditioning layer on surfaces of the reaction chamber before it is used to process substrates. The helium may be used to help atomize/vaporize a liquid reactant in a heated injection module before the reactant is delivered to the reaction chamber. In some embodiments, a purge gas including helium is used during a post-deposition purge during deposition on substrates. The disclosed embodiments allow for mixed recipe processing without having to clean the reaction chamber between recipes, and without forming a high number of particles/defects on the substrates. This allows for an improved throughput of high quality film, even where mixed recipes are used in a single reaction chamber.

Method for the reduction of defectivity in vapor deposited films

This invention provides a high throughput PECVD process for depositing TEOS films in a multi-station sequential deposition chamber. The methods significantly reduce the number of particles in the TEOS films, thereby eliminating or minimizing small bin defects. The methods of the invention involve dedicating a first station for temperature soak while flowing purge gas. Stopping the flow of reactant gas and flowing the purge gas for stationeliminates TEOS condensation on a cold wafer surface and significantly reduces the number of defects in the film, particularly for short temperature soaks.

Method of eliminating small bin defects in high throughput TEOS films

Apparatuses and methods for diverting a flow of a liquid precursor during flow stabilization and plasma stabilization stages during PECVD processes are effective at eliminating particle defects in PECVD films deposited using a liquid precursor.

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Tualatin, OR, United States of America

Arul N Dhas