Hitachi, Ltd.

Makoto Nawata

Seiichi Watanabe

Saburo Kanai

Ryooji Fukuyama

Yutaka Kakehi

Yoshinao Kawasaki

Yoshiaki Sato

Norio Nakazato

Kazuaki Ichihashi

Hironobu Kawahara

Yoshimi Torii

Akira Kawaraya

Yoshie Sato

Sachihiro Yoshimatsu

Ryoji Fukuyama

Tetsunori Kaji

Takeshi Harada

Yutaka Ohmoto

Katsuya Watanabe

Muneo Furuse

Youichi Itou

Fumio Shibata

Katsuyoshi Kudo

Masaharu Nishiumi

Kengo Sugiyama

Yutaka Omoto

Katsuaki Nagatomo

Yasuo Tasaka

Hironobu Ueda

Sadao Masuda

Tomoyuki Tamura

Keiji Ueyama

Mamoru Yakushiji

Takeshi Tsubaki

Hidenori Takesue

A plasma etching system using a ground electrode made of silicon carbide and a cover made of a dielectric material not containing aluminum, where the cover is laid over the substrate electrode, thereby preventing aluminum from being produced out of these parts and reducing device damage. Namely, a plasma etching system has a substrate electrode mounted in a vacuum process chamber, a ground electrode and a plasma generating source, and uses plasma to provide etching of substrates mounted on said substrate electrode. The plasma etching system is characterized in that the ground electrode is made of carbon or silicon carbide, and the dielectric material containing a Si compound covers the surface portion of the substrate electrode facing inside the substrate installation portion of the vacuum process chamber, except for the substrate installation portion.

Plasma etching system

A post-etch treatment method capable of imparting high corrosion prevention performance to the aluminum-containing wiring films. The sample of aluminum-containing wiring material that is etched using the halogen-type gas is treated with the plasma of a gas that has the oxygen component, and the resist formed on the aluminum-containing wiring material is reacted with oxygen and is removed. Further, the plasma is generated using a gas having the hydrogen component or this gas is liquefied into droplets thereof on the sample surface, so that halogen components (Cl, Br, etc.) adhered to the aluminum-containing wiring material through the etching treatment are reacted with hydrogen and are effectively removed in the form of hydrogen chloride (HCl) or hydrogen bromide (HBr). This makes it possible to obtain the aluminum-containing wiring material having high corrosion prevention performance.

Apparatus for treating samples

A plasma-etching apparatus is capable of etching a film of a workpiece with a plasma produced in an evacuated etching chamber at a high etch selectivity relative to an underlying film or a resist film. The frequency of a RF bias voltage applied to a sample table by a RF power source is adjusted so that the ion energy of the plasma is distributed in a saddle-peak energy distribution pattern. The film is etched at a high etch selectivity relative to a material having a threshold ion energy.

Plasma-processing method and an apparatus for carrying out the same

A microwave plasma processing method and apparatus of the type wherein a waveguide section includes electric discharge means isolated from a waveguide for the propagation of microwaves and having a plasma generation region therein, which method and apparatus are well suited for subjecting samples, such as semiconductor device substrates, to an etching process, a film forming process, etc. The microwaves are introduced into the electric discharge means in correspondence with only the traveling direction thereof, whereby uniformity in a plasma density distribution corresponding to the surface to-be-processed of the sample can be sharply enhanced, so that the sample processed by utilizing such plasma can attain an enhanced processing homogeneity within the surface to-be-processed. The temperature of the electric discharge block is controlled to decrease an amount of plasma polymers deposited on the electric discharge block, increase an amount existing in the plasma and increase an amount deposited on the sample to improve a selection ratio.

Microwave plasma processing method and apparatus

The present invention relates to a microwave plasma processing method and apparatus. According to the present invention, the microwaves are introduced into the electric discharge means in correspondence with only the traveling direction thereof, whereby uniformity in a plasma density distribution corresponding to the surface to-be-processed of the sample can be sharply enhanced, so that the sample processed by utilizing such plasma can attain an enhanced processing homogeneity within the surface to be processed. In addition, homogeneity and stability of the plasma are improved by inserting a cavity resonator between the microwave generator and plasma processing (plasma generating) chamber, and coupling the cavity resonator and plasma processing chamber such that microwaves substantially only of a desired mode (e.g., TE.sub.11) pass into the plasma processing chamber. Such coupling to provide microwaves substantially only of circular TE.sub.11 mode can be achieved by providing the coupling such that a ratio of diameter of the discharge block, where the plasma is generated, to the diameter of the cavity resonator, is 0.345.

The present invention relates to a microwave plasma processing method and apparatus. More particularly, it relates to a microwave plasma processing method and apparatus of the type wherein a waveguide section includes electric discharge means isolated from a waveguide for the propagation of microwaves and having a plasma generation region therein, which method and apparatus are well suited for subjecting samples, such as semiconductor device substrates, to an etching process, a film forming process, etc. According to the present invention, the microwaves are introduced into the electric discharge means in correspondence with only the traveling direction thereof, whereby uniformity in a plasma density distribution corresponding to the surface to-be-processed of the sample can be sharply enhanced, so that the sample processed by utilizing such plasma can attain an enhanced processing homogeneity within the surface to-be-processed.

The present invention improves ashing speed for a treated object and ashing speed uniformity over the treated object by improving microwave transmission efficiency and by generating uniform and strong plasma in a plasma generating chamber. According to the present invention, the microwave treatment apparatus comprises expanding wave guide tubes having an expanded room of a given size on the microwave inlet side of a microwave inlet window 9 which forms a plasma generating chamber, and a partition board with a hole having an aspect ratio other than one in the room. Therewith, a microwave resonant space is formed with interposing the partition board inside the space of the expanded wave guide tube to generate a uniform and strong electric field inside the space of the expanded wave guide tube, and then the microwave is injected into the plasma generating chamber through the microwave inlet window to generate uniform and strong plasma in the plasma generating chamber.

Microwave plasma treatment apparatus

Method of treating samples

Microwave plasma processing apparatus

In a microwave plasma generating method and apparatus according to the present invention, a slow wave structure is disposed in the propagation region of microwaves, and the microwaves are introduced at a delayed phase velocity into a discharge chamber so that treating gases are transformed into plasma. Thus, the phase velocity of the microwaves is adjusted to a relatively low velocity, at which charged particles are distributed most densely in the plasma, so that the energy may be efficiently transformed to many more charged particles in the plasma. Thus, the plasma of high density is generated to improve a plasma treating rate.

Microwave plasma generating method and apparatus

This invention relates to a microwave plasma processing method and apparatus. An electromagnetic field intensity distribution of a microwave, which is incident into a plasma generation chamber and is again incident due to irregular reflection, is made uniform by uniforming means fixed inside a waveguide, a processing gas is converted to plasma by use of the microwave having the uniformed electromagnetic field intensity distribution, and a sample is plasma-processed by the resulting plasma. Accordingly, the electro-magnetic field of the microwave, which is incident, and is again incident, into the plasma generation region and locally increases a plasma density, is absorbed, attenuated or diffused by the uniforming means so that the distribution of the plasma density is made uniform and uniform processing can be effected.

The present invention relates to a plasma processor, and the plasma processor comprises a processing chamber, means to reduce a pressure in the processing chamber so as to evacuate the interior thereof, means to introduce a processing gas into the processing chamber, means to generate an electric field within the processing chamber, and means to establish a magnetic field orthogonal to the electric field, this means being rotatable relative to a surface to-be-processed of a sample which is processed in a plasma arising under the action of the electric field and the magnetic field, whereby a space required for the movement of the means to establish the magnetic field orthogonal to the electric field can be reduced to miniaturize the processor, and the uniform processing of the sample can be attained using rotatable plasma.

Plasma processor

The present invention is concerned with a dry-etching method wherein a gaseous mixture of boron trichloride, chlorine and a hydrocarbon, to be used as an etching gas, is converted into plasma to etch aluminum or its alloys with ions or radicals formed thereby. The invention makes it possible to accomplish the anisotropic etching of aluminum or its alloys at high speeds with a low RF power density.

Dry etching method

This invention relates to an air separation method and apparatus for liquefying and separating feed air into oxygen and nitrogen by use of a single rectification column. The temperature of the feed air, which is liquefied, is reduced to the temperature necessary for the condensation and liquefaction of pure vaporous nitrogen inside the single rectification column and is used to condense and liquefy the pure vaporous nitrogen and vaporize the feed air. After the pressure of the feed air thus vaporized is raised to the pressure necessary for the condensation and liquefaction of the pure vaporous nitrogen inside the single rectification column, the vaporized feed air is introduced into the single rectification column so that pure gaseous nitrogen can be withdrawn from the top of the single rectification column, pure gaseous oxygen from a lower portion of the column and waste gas rich in nitrogen from an intermediate portion of the column. Thus, the present invention makes it possible to carry out air separation with a high rate of recovery of oxygen using a single rectification column.

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Kudamatsu, Japan

Makoto Nawata