Lam Research Corporation

Novellus Systems Incorporated

Tokyo Electron Limited

John Stephen Drewery

Alex Paterson

Steven T Mayer

Ying Wu

Qian Fu

Maolin Long

Zhongkui Tan

Jozef Brcka

Mirko Vukovic

Tom A Kamp

Qing Xu

Henner Meinhold

Glyn J Reynolds

Michael James Grapperhaus

John Edward Daugherty

Saravanapriyan Sriraman

Jon McChesney

Sanjay Gopinath

Eric G Webb

Jeremie James Dalton

Yoshie Kimura

Richard S Hill

Ming-Kuei Tseng

Wonchul Lee

Avishai Kepten

Jason M Blackburn

Timothy Mark Archer

Haoquan Yan

Ali Sucipto Tan

Bruce Edmund Freeman

Jonathan David Reid

Alexander Miller Paterson

Gerrit J Leusink

Neil Martin Paul Benjamin

Frank M Cerio, Jr

Tugrul Yasar

Willibrordus Gerardus Maria Van Den Hoek

Francisco J Juarez

Thomas J Licata

Xiang Zhou

Mark L Rea

Derrek Andrew Russell

Bruce David Gittleman

Bart Jan Van Schravendijk

Sridhar Karthik Kailasam

Neil M Benjamin

Arthur H Sato

Kaihan Abidi Ashtiani

Eliot K Broadbent

Robert J Contolini

Ronald Allan Powell

Nerissa Sue Draeger

James E Tappan

James Adams

Jason Augustino

Ricky Marsh

Julia S Svirchevski

Ismail Emesh

John Pease

Michael J Wood

Chen Xu

John R Kelly

Lakshminarayana Nittala

Duming Zhang

Yoko Yamaguchi Adams

Fred J Chetcuti

Vikram Singh

Marshall Stowell

Johanes H Sukamto

Naohiro Shoda

Tony Zemlock

Sachin M Chinchwadkar

Zhuoxian Wang

Mathew Dennis Evans

Cristofer Addison Flowers

Wilbert G H Van Den Hoek

Bruce David Gittelman

Frank Michael Cerio

A coil is disposed next to a plasma processing chamber. A first direct-drive radiofrequency (RF) power supply has an output through which a first shaped-amplified square waveform signal is transmitted. A first reactive circuit is connected between the output of the first direct-drive RF power supply and a first end of the coil. The first reactive circuit transforms the first shaped-amplified square waveform signal into a first shaped-sinusoidal signal in route to the first end of the coil. A second direct-drive RF power supply has an output through which a second shaped-amplified square waveform signal is transmitted. A second reactive circuit is connected between the output of the second direct-drive RF power supply and a second end of the coil. The second reactive circuit transforms the second shaped-amplified square waveform signal into a second shaped-sinusoidal signal in route to the second end of the coil.

Symmetric coupling of coil to direct-drive radiofrequency power supplies

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing are described. One of the methods includes receiving a digital signal having a first state and a second state. The method further includes generating a transformer coupled plasma (TCP) radio frequency (RF) pulsed signal having a high state when the digital signal is in the first state and having a low state when the digital signal is in the second state. The method includes providing the TCP RF pulsed signal to one or more coils of a plasma chamber, generating a bias RF pulsed signal having a low state when the digital signal is in the first state and having a high state when the digital signal is in the second state, and providing the bias RF pulsed signal to a chuck of the plasma chamber.

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing

Systems and techniques for providing for semiconductor processing chambers configured for use with two concentric edge rings with dual-lift mechanisms are disclosed. The dual-lift mechanisms may each have a first lifter structure and a second lifter structure which may be each at least partially independently actuatable. The first lifter structure may be used to move a lower edge ring of the edge rings between two or more vertically offset positions, and the second lifter structure may be used to raise and lower an upper edge ring of the edge rings. The dual-lift mechanism may be interfaced to the chamber housing of the semiconductor processing chamber.

Semiconductor processing chamber with dual-lift mechanism for edge ring elevation management

A temperature control system comprises an enclosure having an intake aperture and an exhaust aperture. An air amplifier disposed inside the enclosure. A gas supply line is connected to the air amplifier through the intake aperture. The gas supply line supplies a first flow of gas to the air amplifier. The air amplifier amplifies the first flow of gas to a second flow of gas inside the enclosure. The second flow of gas exits through the exhaust aperture.

Enhanced closed loop gas based heat exchange

Systems and methods for multi-level pulsing are described. The systems and methods include generating four or more states. During each of the four or more states, a radio frequency (RF) generator generates an RF signal. The RF signal has four or more power levels, and each of the four or more power levels corresponds to the four or more states. The multi-level pulsing facilitates a finer control in processing a substrate.

Systems and methods for multi-level pulsing in RF plasma tools

A substrate support assembly to support a semiconductor substrate in a processing chamber includes a baseplate arranged in the processing chamber, a dielectric layer arranged on the baseplate to support the semiconductor substrate, an electrode disposed in the dielectric layer along a horizontal plane, and a plurality of channels to carry a fluid. The plurality of channels are disposed in the dielectric layer along the horizontal plane on a side of the electrode facing away from the baseplate.

Electrostatic chuck with spatially tunable RF coupling to a wafer

A substrate is disposed on a substrate holder within a process module. The substrate includes a mask material overlying a target material with at least one portion of the target material exposed through an opening in the mask material. A plasma is generated in exposure to the substrate. For a first duration, a bias voltage is applied at the substrate holder at a first bias voltage setting corresponding to a high bias voltage level. For a second duration, after completion of the first duration, a bias voltage is applied at the substrate holder at a second bias voltage setting corresponding to a low bias voltage level. The second bias voltage setting is greater than 0 V. The first and second durations are repeated in an alternating and successive manner for an overall period of time necessary to remove a required amount of the target material exposed on the substrate.

Methods and systems for advanced ion control for etching processes

A processing chamber such as a plasma etch chamber can perform deposition and etch operations, where byproducts of the deposition and etch operations can build up in a vacuum pump system fluidly coupled to the processing chamber. A vacuum pump system may have multiple roughing pumps so that etch gases can be diverted a roughing pump and deposition precursors can be diverted to another roughing pump. A divert line may route unused deposition precursors through a separate roughing pump. Deposition byproducts can be prevented from forming by incorporating one or more gas ejectors or venturi pumps at an outlet of a primary pump in a vacuum pump system. Cleaning operations, such as waferless automated cleaning operations, using certain clean chemistries may remove deposition byproducts before or after etch operations.

Vacuum pump protection against deposition byproduct buildup

Systems and methods for synchronization of radio frequency (RF) generators are described. One of the methods includes receiving, by a first RF generator, a first recipe set, which includes information regarding a first plurality of pulse blocks for operating the first RF generator. The method further includes receiving, by a second RF generator, a second recipe set, which includes information regarding a second plurality of pulse blocks for operating a second RF generator. Upon receiving a digital pulsed signal, the method includes executing the first recipe set and executing the second recipe set. The method further includes outputting a first one of the pulse blocks of the first plurality based on the first recipe set in synchronization with a synchronization signal. The method includes outputting a first one of the pulse blocks of the second plurality based on the second recipe set in synchronization with the synchronization signal.

Synchronization of RF generators

A voltage transient detector includes circuitry for transmitting electrical current through a light emitting diode and a fuse that is serially connected between the light emitting diode and a reference potential, such that the light emitting diode is illuminated when the fuse is not blown. The voltage transient detector also includes circuitry for transmitting a controlled amount of electrical current through the fuse in conjunction with an occurrence of a voltage transient at a voltage measurement location, where the voltage transient exceeds a set transient threshold voltage. The controlled amount of electrical current transmitted through the fuse causing the fuse to blow and the light emitting diode to turn off, thereby indicating occurrence of the voltage transient at the voltage measurement location.

Voltage transient detector and current transient detector

Systems and methods for compensating for radio frequency (RF) power loss are described. One of the methods includes conducting a no plasma test to determine a resistance associated with an output of an impedance matching circuit. After conducting the no plasma test, a substrate is processed in a plasma chamber. During processing of the substrate, power loss associated with the output of the impedance matching circuit is determined. The power loss is used to determine an amount of power to be delivered by an RF generator. The amount of power delivered is adjusted until the power loss is stabilized. The stabilization of the power loss facilitates uniform process of the substrate and additional substrates in the plasma chamber.

Systems and methods for compensating for RF power loss

Systems and methods for reverse pulsing are described. One of the systems includes a controller, first and second source radio frequency (RF) generators, and first and second bias RF generators. The controller controls the first source RF generator to generate a first source pulsed signal, and controls the second source RF generator to generate a second source pulsed signal. The system includes a first match circuit that receives the first and second source pulsed signals and combines the first and second source pulsed signals. The controller controls the first bias RF generator to generate a first bias pulsed signal, and controls the second bias RF generator to generate a second bias pulsed signal. The system includes a second match circuit that receives the first and second bias pulsed signals and combines the first and second bias pulsed signals into a combined bias signal.

Systems for reverse pulsing

A chamber is provided. The chamber includes a Faraday shield positioned above a substrate support of the chamber. A dielectric window is disposed over the Faraday shield, and the dielectric window has a center opening. A hub having an internal plenum for passing a flow of fluid received from an input conduit and removing the flow of fluid from an output conduit is further provided. The hub has sidewalls and a center cavity inside of the sidewalls for an optical probe, and the internal plenum is disposed in the sidewalls. The hub has an interface surface that is in physical contact with a back side of the Faraday shield. The physical contact provides for a thermal couple to the Faraday shield at a center region around said center opening, and an outer surface of the sidewalls of the hub are disposed within the center opening of the dielectric window.

Air cooled faraday shield and methods for using the same

In one embodiment, the disclosed apparatus is a heat-pipe cooling system that includes a conical structure having an upper portion that is truncated. The conical structure is configured to be formed above a dielectric window with the conical structure being configured to condense vapor from a heat-transfer fluid placed or formed within a volume formed between the dielectric window and the conical structure. At least one cooling coil is formed on an exterior portion of the conical structure. Other apparatuses and systems are disclosed.

Cooling for a plasma-based reactor

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

John Stephen Drewery