Lam Research Corporation

Novellus Systems Incorporated

James Forest Lee

Lisa Marie Gytri

Eugene Smargiassi

Stephen Yu-Hong Lau

Matthew Mudrow

Joseph Brett Harris

Jeff Gordon

Carmen Balderrama

Ming Xi

George D Kamian

Fayaz A Shaikh

Nick Ray Linebarger, Jr

Michael John Janicki

Brian Joseph Williams

Adriana Vintila

Xiaolan Chen

George Andrew Antonelli

Keith Fox

Curtis Warren Bailey

Andrew John McKerrow

Kevin M McLaughlin

Damodar Rajaram Shanbhag

Stephen Lau

Alexander R Fox

Troy Daniel Ribaudo

Casey Holder

Kevin Gerber

Jonathan Church

Boaz Kenane

Mitchell Lamar

Xin Yin

Mathew Joseph Weissinger

A plasma processing chamber for depositing a film on an underside surface of a wafer, includes a showerhead pedestal. The showerhead pedestal includes a first zone and a second zone. The first zone is configured for depositing a first film to the underside surface of the wafer and the second zone is configured for depositing a second film to the underside surface of the wafer.

Spatially tunable deposition to compensate within wafer differential bow

Various embodiments include apparatuses, systems, and methods for using a remote-plasma cleaning system with a directional-flow device for concurrently cleaning multiple processing stations in a processing tool used in the semiconductor and allied fields. In one example, an apparatus used to perform a remote-plasma clean (RPC) in a multi-station process chamber is disclosed and includes an RPC directional-flow device that is to be coupled between an RPC reactor and the process chamber. The RPC directional-flow device includes a number of ramped gas-diversion areas to direct at least a radical species generated by the RPC reactor to a separate one of the processing stations. An incoming cleaning-gas diversion hub is to receive the radical species and distribute at least the species substantially-uniformly to each of the of the ramped gas-diversion areas. Other apparatuses, systems, and methods are disclosed.

Remote-plasma clean (RPC) directional-flow device

A plasma processing chamber for depositing a film on an underside surface of a wafer, includes showerhead pedestal. The showerhead pedestal includes a first zone and a second zone. An upper separator fin is disposed over a top surface of the showerhead pedestal and a lower separator fin is disposed under the top surface of the showerhead pedestal and aligned with the upper separator fin. The first zone is configured for depositing a first film to the underside surface of the wafer and the second zone is configured for depositing a second film to the underside surface of the wafer. In another embodiment, a top surface of the showerhead pedestal may be configured to receive a masking plate instead of the upper separator fin. The masking plate is configured with a first area that has openings and a second area that is masked. The first areas is used to provide the process gas to a portion of the underside surface of the wafer for depositing a film.

Porogen accumulation in a UV-cure chamber is reduced by removing outgassed porogen through a heated outlet while purge gas is flowed across a window through which a wafer is exposed to UV light. A purge ring having specific major and minor exhaust to inlet area ratios may be partially made of flame polished quartz to improve flow dynamics. The reduction in porogen accumulation allows more wafers to be processed between chamber cleans, thus improving throughput and cost.

Method and apparatuses for reducing porogen accumulation from a UV-cure chamber

Apparatuses and methods for cleaning a semiconductor processing chamber is provided. The semiconductor processing chamber may include a UV radiation source, a substrate holder, and a UV transmissive window. The UV transmissive window may include one or multiple panes. One or more panes of the UV transmissive window may be non-reactive with fluorine containing chemistries. In multi-pane windows a purge gas flow path may be formed in the gap between windows. A purge gas may be flowed through the purge gas flow path to prevent process gases used in the chamber interior from reaching one or more panes of the UV transmissive window.

Clean resistant windows for ultraviolet thermal processing

A method for cleaning a processing chamber of a substrate processing system includes supplying nitrogen trifluoride (NF) gas to a remote plasma source (RPS); generating RPS plasma using the RPS; supplying the RPS plasma to the processing chamber; supplying NFgas as bypass gas to the processing chamber; striking in-situ plasma in the processing chamber while the RPS plasma is supplied; and cleaning the processing chamber during a cleaning period using both the RPS plasma and the in-situ plasma.

Rapid chamber clean using concurrent in-situ and remote plasma sources

A vaporizer useful for depositing material on a semiconductor substrate in a chamber of a chemical vapor deposition apparatus includes a first inlet configured to receive an atomized precursor, a second inlet configured to receive carrier gas, a flow path in fluid communication with the first and second inlets and configured to effect turbulent flow of an atomized precursor and carrier gas stream supplied to the first and second inlets. A plurality of heating elements includes a first heater element configured to heat a first zone of the flow path and a second heater element configured to heat a second zone of the flow path. An outlet in fluid communication with the flow path is configured to deliver vapor produced from the atomized precursor.

Turbulent flow spiral multi-zone precursor vaporizer

Method for reducing porogen accumulation from a UV-cure chamber

Porogen accumulation in a UV-cure chamber may be reduced by removing outgassed porogen by flowing a purge gas across a window through which a wafer is exposed to UV light. Porogens in the purge gas stream may, as they flow through the chamber and into an exhaust baffle, deposit on surfaces within the chamber, including on the exhaust baffle. The exhaust baffle may have particular features that cause such porogen deposition to be more uniformly distributed across the exhaust baffle, thus reducing the amount of time that may be required to fully clean the baffle of accumulated porogens during a cleaning process.

Exhaust flow spreading baffle-riser to optimize remote plasma window clean

A method for supplying a first gas and a second gas using a purge ring in a photonic processing system includes arranging a first layer and a second layer to define a first plenum and a first baffle, arranging the second layer and a third layer to define a second plenum and a second baffle, receiving a first gas at the first plenum that flows through the first plenum and the first baffle to an inner region, and receiving a second gas at the second plenum that flows through the second plenum and the second baffle to the inner region. The second baffle is one of less restrictive and more restrictive than the first baffle.

Method for using a purge ring with split baffles in photonic thermal processing systems

A substrate processing chamber includes a lift actuator that moves a pedestal between a substrate loading position and a substrate processing position. An adjustable seal defines an expandable sealed volume between a bottom surface of the pedestal and a bottom surface of the substrate processing chamber and is moveable between the substrate loading position and the substrate processing position. When the pedestal is in the substrate processing position, the pedestal and the adjustable seal define a first inert volume and a first process volume. When the pedestal is in the substrate loading position, the pedestal and the adjustable seal define a second inert volume and a second process volume. The second inert volume is less than the first inert volume and the second process volume is greater than the first process volume.

Reduction of a process volume of a processing chamber using a nested dynamic inert volume

A purge ring for a photonic temperature processing system includes a first layer, a second layer, and a third layer. The first layer, the second layer and the third layer define an inner region. The first layer and the second layer define a first plenum and a first baffle. The first plenum receives a first gas that flows through the first plenum and the first baffle to the inner region. The second layer and the third layer define a second plenum and a second baffle. The second plenum receives a second gas that flows through the second plenum and the second baffle to the inner region, and wherein the second baffle is one of less restrictive and more restrictive than the first baffle.

Purge ring with split baffles for photonic thermal processing systems

Growing community of inventors

Damascus, OR, United States of America

James Forest Lee