Lam Research Corporation

Applied Materials, Inc.

John P Parks

Fred Conrad Redeker

Clint Thomas

Fritz C Redeker

Yezdi N Dordi

John Martin De Larios

Aleksander Owczarz

Alan M Schoepp

William Thie

Tiruchirapalli Arunagiri

Mikhail Korolik

Carl Woods

John M Boyd

Todd Alan Balisky

Jacob Wylie

John Boyd

Michael Santiago Cox

Michael Ravkin

Mike Ravkin

Katrina Mikhaylichenko

Canfeng Lai

Erik Freer

Michael G R Smith

Robert B Majewski

David P Wanamaker

Christopher F Lane

Shamouil Shamouilian

Peter K Loewenhardt

Diane J Hymes

Ben Mooring

Michael S Barnes

Arthur M Howald

Hyungsuk Alexander Yoon

David J Hemker

Mark Henry Wilcoxson

Ji Zhu

Yen-Kun Victor Wang

James Paul Garcia

Benjamin W Mooring

Jason A Ryder

Fong M Chang

Yeh-Jen Kao

Charles N Ditmore

Michael L Orbock

Jeffrey G Gasparitsch

Glenn W Davis

A semiconductor wafer electroless plating apparatus includes a platen and a fluid bowl. The platen has a top surface defined to support a wafer, and an outer surface extending downward from a periphery of the top surface to a lower surface of the platen. The fluid bowl has an inner volume defined by an interior surface so as to receive the platen, and wafer to be supported thereon, within the inner volume. A seal is disposed around the interior surface of the fluid bowl so as to form a liquid tight barrier when engaged between the interior surface of the fluid bowl and the outer surface of the platen. A number of fluid dispense nozzles are positioned to dispense electroplating solution within the fluid bowl above the seal so as to rise up and flow over the platen, thereby flowing over the wafer when present on the platen.

Method and apparatus for wafer electroless plating

A cluster architecture and methods for processing a substrate are disclosed. The cluster architecture includes a lab-ambient controlled transfer module that is coupled to one or more wet substrate processing modules. The lab-ambient controlled transfer module and the one or more wet substrate processing modules are configured to manage a first ambient environment. A vacuum transfer module that is coupled to the lab-ambient controlled transfer module and one or more plasma processing modules is also provided. The vacuum transfer module and the one or more plasma processing modules are configured to manage a second ambient environment. And, a controlled ambient transfer module that is coupled to the vacuum transfer module and one or more ambient processing modules is also included. The controlled ambient transfer module and the one or more ambient processing modules are configured to manage a third ambient environment. The cluster architecture therefore enables controlled processing of the substrate in either the first, second or third ambient environments, as well as during associated transitions.

Controlled ambient system for interface engineering

A chemical fluid handling system is defined to supply a number of chemicals to a number of fluid inputs of a mixing manifold. The chemical fluid handling system includes a number of fluid recirculation loops for separately pre-conditioning and controlling the supply of each of the number of chemicals. Each of the fluid recirculation loops is defined to degas, heat, and filter a particular one of the number of chemical components. The mixing manifold is defined to mix the number of chemicals to form the electroless plating solution. The mixing manifold includes a fluid output connected to a supply line. The supply line is connected to supply the electroless plating solution to a fluid bowl within an electroless plating chamber.

Fluid handling system for wafer electroless plating and associated methods

Methods, systems, and computer programs are presented for processing a substrate in a processing chamber which includes a first chamber and a second chamber. A first surface of the substrate is exposed to the first chamber and a second surface of the substrate is exposed to the second chamber. One method includes an operation for applying a first fluid to the first surface of the substrate, where the first fluid is at a first temperature. Further, the method includes another operation for applying a second fluid to the second surface of the substrate, where the second fluid is at a second temperature. During processing of the substrate, the second temperature is higher than the first temperature, and the second fluid heats the substrate.

Wafer heating and temperature control by backside fluid injection

A cleaning material is disposed over a substrate. The cleaning material includes solid components dispersed within a liquid medium. A force is applied to the solid components within the liquid medium to bring the solid components within proximity to contaminants present on the substrate. The force applied to the solid components can be exerted by an immiscible component within the liquid medium. When the solid components are brought within sufficient proximity to the contaminants, an interaction is established between the solid components and the contaminants. Then, the solid components are moved away from the substrate such that the contaminants having interacted with the solid components are removed from the substrate.

Method and apparatus for removing contamination from substrate

An apparatus for cleaning a substrate is disclosed. The apparatus having a first head unit and a second head unit. The first head unit is positioned proximate to the surface of the substrate and has a first row of channels defined within configured to supply a foam to the surface of the substrate. The second head unit is positioned substantially adjacent to the first head unit and proximate to the surface of the substrate. A second and a third row of channels are defined within the second head unit. The second row of channels is configured to supply a fluid to the surface of the substrate. The third row of channels is configured to apply a vacuum to the surface of the substrate.

Apparatus and system for cleaning a substrate

In one of the many embodiments, an apparatus for processing a substrate is provided which includes a substrate processing chamber where the substrate is positioned within the substrate processing chamber so the substrate at least partially separates the substrate processing chamber into a first chamber and a second chamber. The apparatus further includes a first chamber inlet configured to input a first fluid of a first temperature into the first chamber at a first pressure and a second chamber inlet configured to input a second fluid of a second temperature into the second chamber at a second pressure wherein the first pressure and the second pressure are substantially equal. The second temperature is capable of being utilized to manage substrate temperature.

A dry-in/dry-out system is disclosed for wafer electroless plating. The system includes an upper zone for wafer ingress/egress and drying operations. Proximity heads are provided in the upper zone to perform the drying operations. The system also includes a lower zone for electroless plating operations. The lower zone includes an electroless plating apparatus that implements a wafer submersion by fluid upwelling method. The upper and lower zones of the system are enclosed by a dual-walled chamber, wherein the inner wall is a chemically inert plastic and the outer wall is a structural metal. The system interfaces with a fluid handling system which provides the necessary chemistry supply and control for the system. The system is ambient controlled. Also, the system interfaces with an ambient controlled managed transfer module (MTM).

Wafer electroless plating system and associated methods

A wafer processing chamber 'chamber' is provided. Broadly speaking, the chamber allows a fluid flow and a fluid pressure within the chamber to be controlled in a variable manner. More specifically, the chamber utilizes removable plates that can be configured to control the fluid flow and the fluid pressure in an inner volume within the chamber. Also, the removable plates can be used to separate the inner volume within the chamber from an outer volume within the chamber. In this manner, the removable plates can be used to create a pressure differential between the inner volume within the chamber and the outer volume within the chamber. A lower pressure in the outer volume within the chamber requires less outer chamber strength to withstand the lower pressure. A lower outer chamber strength requirement translates into an overall decrease in chamber size.

Chamber for wafer cleaning and method for making the same

An apparatus, system and method for cleaning a substrate edge include a composite applicator that cleans bevel polymers deposited on wafer edges using frictional contact in the presence of fluids. The composite applicator includes a support material and a plurality of abrasive particles distributed within and throughout the support material. The composite applicator cleans the edge of the wafer by allowing frictional contact of the plurality of abrasive particles with the edge of the wafer in the presence of fluids, such as liquid chemicals, to cut, rip and tear the bevel polymer from the edge of the wafer.

Apparatus for cleaning edge of substrate and method for using the same

An apparatus and a method is provided for using high-frequency acoustic energy with a supercritical fluid to perform a semiconductor wafer ('wafer') cleaning process. High-frequency acoustic energy is applied to the supercritical fluid to impart energy to particulate contamination present on the wafer surface. Energy imparted to particulate contamination via the high-frequency acoustic energy and supercritical fluid is used to dislodge and remove the particulate contamination from the wafer. Additionally, the wafer cleaning process benefits from the supercritical fluid properties of near zero surface tension, high diffusivity, high density, and chemical mixing capability.

Method and apparatus for semiconductor wafer cleaning using high-frequency acoustic energy with supercritical fluid

A method for transporting a substrate is provided. In this method, a non-Newtonian fluid is provided and the substrate is suspended in the non-Newtonian fluid. The non-Newtonian fluid is capable of supporting the substrate. Thereafter, a supply force is applied on the non-Newtonian fluid to cause the non-Newtonian fluid to flow, whereby the flow is capable of moving the substrate along a direction of the flow. Apparatuses and systems for transporting the substrate using the non-Newtonian fluid also are described.

Method and apparatus for transporting a substrate using non-newtonian fluid

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

John P Parks