Applied Materials, Inc.

Ilya Lavitsky

Keith A Miller

John C Forster

Xianmin Tang

Kirankumar Neelasandra Savandaiah

Tza-Jing Gung

Goichi Yoshidome

Michael Rosenstein

Marc O Schweitzer

Randy D Schmieding

Peijun Ding

Yong Cao

Martin Lee Riker

Jothilingam Ramalingam

Srinivasa Rao Yedla

Shane Lavan

William Fruchterman

Alex Shenderovich

Michael Feltsman

Alvin Lau

Joseph Michael Ranish

Wolfgang R Aderhold

Blake R Koelmel

Prashanth Kothnur

Thanh X Nguyen

John Joseph Mazzocco

Alan Liu

Self-retained low friction pad

A physical vapor deposition processing chamber is described. The processing chamber includes a target backing plate in a top portion of the processing chamber, a substrate support in a bottom portion of the processing chamber, a deposition ring positioned at an outer periphery of the substrate support and a shield. The substrate support has a support surface spaced a distance from the target backing plate to form a process cavity. The shield forms an outer bound of the process cavity. In-chamber cleaning methods are also described. In an embodiment, the method includes closing a bottom gas flow path of a processing chamber to a process cavity, flowing an inert gas from the bottom gas flow path, flowing a reactant into the process cavity through an opening in the shield, and evacuating the reaction gas from the process cavity.

Cleaning of SIN with CCP plasma or RPS clean

Cleaning of sin with CCP plasma or RPS clean

Apparatus for physical vapor deposition are provided herein. In some embodiments, a clamp for use in a physical vapor deposition (PVD) chamber includes a clamp body and an outwardly extending shelf that extends from the clamp body, wherein the outwardly extending shelf includes a clamping surface configured to clamp an isolator ring to a chamber body of the PVD chamber, wherein a height of the outwardly extending shelf is about 15 percent to about 40 percent of a height of the clamp body and wherein the clamp body includes a central opening configured to retain a fastener therein.

Isolator ring clamp and physical vapor deposition chamber incorporating same

Embodiments of target assemblies for use in substrate processing chambers are provided herein. In some embodiments, a target assembly includes a plate comprising a first side including a central portion and a support portion, a target disposed on the central portion, a plurality of recesses formed in the support portion; and a plurality of self-retained low-friction pads partially disposed in the plurality of recesses, wherein each of the plurality of low-friction pads includes a solid body portion, and a self-retaining stem that extends outward from a bottom of the solid body portion, wherein the self-retaining stem includes a first stem portion disposed in the first through-hole portion, and a second stem portion disposed within the second through-hole portion.

PVD target having self-retained low friction pads

Sputter target for a physical vapor deposition chamber

Embodiments of a process shield for use in a process chamber are provided herein. In some embodiments, a process shield for use in a process chamber includes a body having a cylindrical shape, wherein the body includes an upper portion and a lower portion, the upper portion having an outer lip and the lower portion extending downward and radially inward from the upper portion, wherein the outer lip includes a plurality of openings to accommodate fasteners, a plurality of alignment slots extending radially inward from an outer surface of the outer lip, and a notched lower peripheral edge, and wherein a lower surface of the outer lip includes a plurality of grooves.

Heated shield for physical vapor deposition chamber

Process shield for a substrate processing chamber

Deposition ring for a substrate processing chamber

Embodiments of process chambers are provided herein. In some embodiments, a process chamber includes: a chamber wall defining an inner volume within the process chamber; a substrate support disposed in the inner volume having a support surface to support a substrate, wherein the inner volume includes a processing volume disposed above the support surface and a non-processing volume disposed at least partially below the support surface; a gas supply plenum fluidly coupled to the processing volume via a gas supply channel disposed above the support surface; a pumping plenum fluidly coupled to the processing volume via an exhaust channel disposed above the support surface; and a sealing apparatus configured to fluidly isolate the processing volume from the non-processing volume when the substrate support is in a processing position, wherein the processing volume and the non-processing volume are fluidly coupled when the substrate support is in a non-processing position.

Substrate processing chamber having improved process volume sealing

Apparatus for physical vapor deposition of dielectric material is provided herein. In some embodiments, a chamber lid of a physical vapor deposition chamber includes an inner magnetron assembly coupled to an inner target assembly, and an outer magnet assembly coupled to an outer target assembly, wherein the inner magnetron assembly and the inner target assembly are electrically isolated from the outer magnet assembly and the outer target assembly.

Apparatus for PVD dielectric deposition

Processing chamber shutter blade and robot blade assemblies are constructed to eliminate thermal effects on the placement of elements in processing chambers. Such blade assemblies may contain at least two parts, which may include a positioning member including a low CTE material and a thermal compensating member including a high CTE material. The positioning member includes a coupling point and a reference point on a reference axis separated by a first distance. The thermal compensating member includes a connection point and a controlled point separated by another distance that is less than the first distance. A distance ratio of the first distance to the other distance is substantially equal to a CTE ratio of the high CTE material to the low CTE material, and the positioning member is joined to the thermal compensating member through the coupling point and the connection point.

Shutter blade and robot blade with CTE compensation

Embodiments of the invention generally relate to a support ring to support a substrate in a process chamber. In one embodiment, the support ring comprises an inner ring, an outer ring connecting to an outer perimeter of the inner ring through a flat portion, an edge lip extending radially inwardly from an inner perimeter of the inner ring to form a supporting ledge to support the substrate, and a substrate support formed on a top surface of the edge lip. The substrate support may include multiple projections extending upwardly and perpendicularly from a top surface of the edge lip, or multiple U-shaped clips securable to an edge portion of the edge lip. The substrate support thermally disconnects the substrate from the edge lip to prevent heat loss through the edge lip, resulting in an improved temperature profile across the substrate with a minimum edge temperature gradient.

Edge ring lip

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Ilya Lavitsky