Applied Materials, Inc.

Jared Ahmad Lee

Martin Jeffrey Salinas

Paul Benjamin Reuter

James P Cruse

Imad Yousif

Ezra Robert Gold

Aniruddha Pal

Andrew Nguyen

Sanjeev Baluja

Joseph F AuBuchon

Dhritiman Subha Kashyap

Michael Robert Rice

Richard Charles Fovell

Martin Jeff Salinas

Jennifer Y Sun

Biraja Prasad Kanungo

Tsutomu Tanaka

Vahid Firouzdor

Dmitry A Dzilno

Douglas Buchberger

Bruno Geoffrion

Srinivas Gandikota

Joseph Yudovsky

Li Zhang

Gregory J Wilson

Kelvin Chan

Mandyam Sriram

Kevin Griffin

Yihong Chen

Tejas Ulavi

Benjamin Schwarz

Zhuang Li

Scott M Williams

Adauto Diaz, Jr

Rakesh Ramadas

Eu Jin Lim

Sriharish Srinivasan

Xiaoliang Zhuang

Dmitry Lubomirsky

Eric Andrew Englhardt

Kartik Bhupendra Shah

Tom K Cho

Ankur Agarwal

Ming Xu

Chunlei Zhang

Fernando Silveira

Robert B Moore

Kenneth Brian Doering

Changhun Lee

Alexander Viktorovich Garachtchenko

Yi Zhou

Marc David Shull

The disclosure describes a plasma source assemblies comprising a differential screw assembly, an RF hot electrode, a top cover, an upper housing and a lower housing. The differential screw assembly is configured to provide force to align the plasma source assembly vertically matching planarity of a susceptor. More particularly, the differential screw assembly increases a distance between the top cover and the upper housing to align the gap with the susceptor. The disclosure also provides a better thermal management by cooling fins. A temperature capacity of the plasma source assemblies is extended by using titanium electrode. The disclosure provides a cladding material covering a portion of a first surface of RF hot electrode, a second surface of RF hot electrode, a bottom surface of RF hot electrode, a portion of a surface of the showerhead and a portion of lower housing surface.

Vertically adjustable plasma source

Examples of the present invention include a method for removing halogen-containing residues from a substrate. The method includes transferring a substrate to a substrate processing system through a first chamber volume of a load lock chamber. The load lock chamber is coupled to a transfer chamber of the substrate processing system. The substrate is etched in one or more processing chambers coupled to the transfer chamber of the substrate processing system with chemistry from a showerhead disposed over a heated substrate support assembly. The chemistry includes halogen. Halogen-containing residues are removed from the etched substrate in a second chamber volume of the load lock chamber. Cooling the etched substrate in a cooled substrate support assembly of the load lock chamber after removing the halogen-containing residue.

Abatement and strip process chamber in a load lock configuration

Methods of depositing a film by atomic layer deposition are described. The methods comprise exposing a substrate surface to a first process condition comprising a first reactive gas and a second reactive gas and exposing the substrate surface to a second process condition comprising the second reactive gas. The first process condition comprises less than a full amount of the second reactive gas for a CVD process.

Enhanced spatial ALD of metals through controlled precursor mixing

An article such as a susceptor includes a body of a thermally conductive material coated by a first protective layer and a second protective layer over a surface of the body. The first protective layer is a thermally conductive ceramic. The second protective layer covers the first protective layer and is a plasma resistant ceramic thin film that is resistant to cracking at temperatures of 650 degrees Celsius.

Plasma erosion resistant thin film coating for high temperature application

A plasma source assembly for use with a substrate processing chamber is described. The assembly includes a ceramic lower plate with a plurality of apertures formed therein. A method of processing a substrate in a substrate processing chamber including the plasma source assembly is also described.

Plasma source with ceramic electrode plate

Apparatus and methods for providing high velocity gas flow showerheads for deposition chambers are described. The showerhead has a faceplate in contact with a backing plate that has a concave portion to provide a plenum between the backing plate and the faceplate. A plurality of thermal elements is within the concave portion of the backing plate and extends to contact the faceplate.

Gas distribution plate for thermal deposition

Gas distribution assemblies and methods for providing a flow of gases to a process station are described. The gas distribution assemblies comprise a pumping liner with a showerhead and a gas funnel positioned therein. The pumping liner has an inner wall that slants at a first angle relative to a central axis of the gas distribution assembly so that the inner wall adjacent the bottom wall of the pumping liner is closer to the central axis than the inner wall adjacent the top wall. The gas funnel and pumping liner form a plenum between the outer wall of the gas funnel, a cavity in the bottom wall of the gas funnel and the inner wall of the pumping liner.

Thermally uniform deposition station

Examples of the present invention provide an apparatus for transferring substrates and confining a processing environment in a chamber. One example provides a hoop assembly for use in a processing chamber. The hoop assembly includes a confinement ring defining a confinement region therein. A hoop body mates with the confinement ring. The hoop body is slanted to reduce a thickness across a diameter of the hoop body. Three or more lifting fingers are attached to the hoop body and extend downwards. Each of the three or more lifting fingers has a contact tip positioned radially inward from the hoop body to form a substrate support surface below and spaced apart from the confinement region.

Method and apparatus for substrate transfer and radical confinement

Apparatus and methods to process one or more wafers are described. A processing chamber comprises a first processing station comprising a first gas injector having a first face, a first emissivity and a first temperature, a second processing station comprising a second gas injector having a second face, a second emissivity and a second temperature, and a substrate support assembly comprising a plurality of substantially coplanar support surfaces, the substrate support assembly configured to move the support surfaces between the first processing station and the second processing station. When a wafer is on the support surfaces, a temperature skew of less than about 0.5&#xb0; C. is developed upon moving the wafer between the stations in about 0.5 seconds.

Spatial wafer processing with improved temperature uniformity

Embodiments of the present invention provide a dual load lock chamber capable of processing a substrate. In one embodiment, the dual load lock chamber includes a chamber body defining a first chamber volume and a second chamber volume isolated from one another. Each of the lower and second chamber volumes is selectively connectable to two processing environments through two openings configured for substrate transferring. The dual load lock chamber also includes a heated substrate support assembly disposed in the second chamber volume. The heated substrate support assembly is configured to support and heat a substrate thereon. The dual load lock chamber also includes a remote plasma source connected to the second chamber volume for supplying a plasma to the second chamber volume.

Abatement and strip process chamber in a dual loadlock configuration

Abatement and strip process chamber in a dual load lock configuration

Examples of the present disclosure provide a load that includes a chamber body assembly. The chamber body assembly defines a first chamber volume and a second chamber volume fluidly isolated from one another. The first chamber volume and second chamber volume are selectively connectable to two environments through two sets of openings configured for substrate transferring. A third chamber volume is selectively connectable to the two environments through two sets of openings. A remote plasma source couples a processing gas source to the second chamber volume. A cooled substrate support assembly, includes a plurality of cooling channels, bounds a portion of the first chamber volume. A heated substrate support assembly can support a substrate. A gas distribution assembly, includes a showerhead, is disposed in the second chamber volume and is coupled to the remote plasma source. The showerhead can provide a processing gas to the second chamber volume.

Growing community of inventors

Santa Clara, CA, United States of America

Jared Ahmad Lee