Lam Research Corporation

Other

Chloe Baldasseroni

Shankar Swaminathan

Adrien Lavoie

Frank Loren Pasquale

Ramesh Chandrasekharan

Hu Kang

Karl Frederick Leeser

Jun Qian

Andrew Duvall

David Charles Smith

Jennifer Leigh Petraglia

Purushottam Kumar

Edward J Augustyniak

Ted Minshall

Yukinori Sakiyama

Saangrut Sangplung

Tuan Anh Nguyen

Douglas L Keil

Ishtak Karim

Patrick G Breiling

Sesha Varadarajan

Richard Phillips

Eashwar Ranganathan

Bart Jan Van Schravendijk

Seshasayee Varadarajan

Pulkit Agarwal

Paul Konkola

Jennifer O'Loughlin

Edmund Minshall

Michael Philip Roberts

Sung Je Kim

Jeongseok Ha

Chan Myae Myae Soe

Shiva Sharan Bhandari

Yi Chung Chiu

Nishanth Manjunath

Wei-Chih Lai

Pramod Subramonium

Mohamed Sabri

Adrien LaVoie

Paul Franzen

Ryan Blaquiere

Jeremiah Baldwin

Basha Sajjad

Heather Landis

Ingi Bae

Trung T Le

Methods and apparatuses for depositing thin films using long and short conversion times during alternating cycles of atomic layer deposition (ALD) are provided herein. Embodiments involve alternating conversion duration of an ALD cycle in one or more cycles of a multi-cycle ALD process. Some embodiments involve modulation of dose, purge, pressure, plasma power or plasma energy in two or more ALD cycles.

Modulated atomic layer deposition

Apparatuses and systems for pedestals are provided. An example pedestal may have a body with an upper annular seal surface that is planar, perpendicular to a vertical center axis of the body, and has a radial thickness, a lower recess surface offset from the upper annular seal surface, and a plurality of micro-contact areas (MCAs) protruding from the lower recess surface, each MCA having a top surface offset from the lower recess surface by a second distance less, and one or more electrodes within the body. The upper annular seal surface may be configured to support an outer edge of a semiconductor substrate when the semiconductor substrate is being supported by the pedestal, and the upper annular seal surface and the tops of the MCAs may be configured to support the semiconductor substrate when the semiconductor substrate is being supported by the pedestal.

Electrostatic chuck with seal surface

A system to deposit a film on a substrate using atomic layer deposition includes a pedestal arranged in a processing chamber to support the substrate on a top surface of the pedestal when depositing the film on the substrate. A first annular recess in the pedestal extends downwardly from the top surface of the pedestal and radially inwardly from an outer edge of the pedestal towards an outer edge of the substrate. The first annular recess has an inner diameter that is greater than a diameter of the substrate. An annular ring is made of a dielectric material and is arranged around the substrate in the first annular recess. A second annular recess in the pedestal is located under the annular ring. The second annular recess has a height and extends radially inwardly from the outer edge of the pedestal towards the outer edge of the substrate.

Pedestals for modulating film properties in atomic layer deposition (ALD) substrate processing chambers

Methods and apparatus for use of a fill on demand ampoule are disclosed. The fill on demand ampoule may refill an ampoule with precursor concurrent with the performance of other deposition processes. The fill on demand may keep the level of precursor within the ampoule at a relatively constant level. The level may be calculated to result in an optimum head volume. The fill on demand may also keep the precursor at a temperature near that of an optimum precursor temperature. The fill on demand may occur during parts of the deposition process where the agitation of the precursor due to the filling of the ampoule with the precursor minimally effects the substrate deposition. Substrate throughput may be increased through the use of fill on demand.

Fill on demand ampoule refill

A pedestal for a substrate processing system includes a pedestal body including a substrate-facing surface. An annular band is arranged on the substrate-facing surface that is configured to support a radially outer edge of the substrate. A cavity is defined in the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body and is located radially inside of the annular band. The cavity creates a volume between a bottom surface of the substrate and the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body. A plurality of vents pass though the pedestal body and are in fluid communication with the cavity to equalize pressure on opposing faces of the substrate during processing.

Planar substrate edge contact with open volume equalization pathways and side containment

Methods and apparatuses for performing atomic layer deposition are provided. A method may include determining an amount of accumulated deposition material currently on an interior region of a deposition chamber interior, wherein the amount of accumulated deposition material changes over the course of processing a batch of substrates; applying the determined amount of accumulated deposition material to a relationship between a number of ALD cycles required to achieve a target deposition thickness, and a variable representing an amount of accumulated deposition material, wherein the applying returns a compensated number of ALD cycles for producing the target deposition thickness given the amount of accumulated deposition material currently on the interior region of the deposition chamber interior; and performing the compensated number of ALD cycles on one or more substrates in the batch.

Thickness compensation by modulation of number of deposition cycles as a function of chamber accumulation for wafer to wafer film thickness matching

A substrate processing system includes: a processing chamber defining a reaction volume; a showerhead including: a stem portion having one end connected adjacent to an upper surface of the processing chamber; and a base portion connected to an opposite end of the stem portion and extending radially outwardly from the stem portion, where the showerhead is configured to introduce gas into the reaction volume; a plasma generator configured to selectively generate RF plasma in the reaction volume; and a collar arranged around the stem portion of the showerhead between the base portion of the showerhead and the upper surface of the processing chamber. The collar includes one or more holes to supply purge gas from an inner cavity of the collar to between the base portion of the showerhead and the upper surface of the processing chamber.

Systems and methods for suppressing parasitic plasma and reducing within-wafer non-uniformity

A substrate processing system for depositing film on a substrate includes a processing chamber defining a reaction volume. A showerhead includes a stem portion having one end connected adjacent to an upper surface of the processing chamber. A base portion is connected to an opposite end of the stem portion and extends radially outwardly from the stem portion. The showerhead is configured to introduce at least one of process gas and purge gas into the reaction volume. A plasma generator is configured to selectively generate RF plasma in the reaction volume. An edge tuning system includes a collar and a parasitic plasma reducing element that is located around the stem portion between the collar and an upper surface of the showerhead. The parasitic plasma reducing element is configured to reduce parasitic plasma between the showerhead and the upper surface of the processing chamber.

A process chamber for depositing a film on a wafer is provided, including: a pedestal having, a central top surface having a plurality of wafer supports configured to support the wafer at a support level above the central top surface, an annular surface at a step down from the central top surface; a carrier ring configured to be supported by carrier ring supports such that a bottom surface of the carrier ring is at a first vertical separation above the annular surface, the carrier ring having a step down surface defined relative to a top surface; wherein when the carrier ring is seated on the carrier ring supports, then the step down surface of the carrier ring is positioned at a process level that is at a second vertical separation from the support level over the top surface of the pedestal.

Reducing backside deposition at wafer edge

A pedestal for a substrate processing system includes a pedestal body including a substrate-facing surface. An annular band is arranged on the substrate-facing surface that is configured to support a radially outer edge of the substrate. A cavity is defined in the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body and is located radially inside of the annular band. The cavity creates a volume between a bottom surface of the substrate and the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body. A plurality of vents pass through the pedestal body and are in fluid communication with the cavity to equalize pressure on opposing faces of the substrate during processing.

Heights of carrier ring supports are increased at a side of a wafer that is located closer to a spindle of a plasma chamber. The heights are increased relative to a height of a carrier ring support that is located closer to side walls of the plasma chamber. The increase in the height results in an increase in thickness of a thin film deposited on the wafer to further achieve uniformity in thickness of the thin film across a top surface of the wafer.

Systems and methods for tilting a wafer for achieving deposition uniformity

The present inventors have conceived of a multi-stage process gas delivery system for use in a substrate processing apparatus. In certain implementations, a first process gas may first be delivered to a substrate in a substrate processing chamber. A second process gas may be delivered, at a later time, to the substrate to aid in the even dosing of the substrate. Delivery of the first process gas and the second process gas may cease at the same time or may cease at separate times.

Hardware and process for film uniformity improvement

Growing community of inventors

Portland, OR, United States of America

Chloe Baldasseroni