Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc.

Axcelis Technologies, Inc.

Eaton Corporation

Other

Leading Edge Crystal Technologies, Inc.

Peter Lawrence Kellerman

Frank Sinclair

Frederick M Carlson

Victor M Benveniste

Dawei Sun

David J Morrell

Brian H Mackintosh

Nandish Desai

Shu Qin

Svetlana Radovanov

William F DiVergilio

Douglas A Brown

James D Bernstein

Brian S Freer

Ala Moradian

A Stuart Denholm

Gregory Thronson

Kevin Thomas Ryan

Julian G Blake

Nicholas P T Bateman

Michael A Graf

Roger Bradford Fish

Robert C Lindberg

Kourosh Saadatmand

Ernest Everett Allen

Ernie Allen

William Davis Lee

Anthony Renau

Kenneth Harry Purser

Alexander S Perel

Shengwu Chang

Robert J Mitchell

Jay Thomas Scheuer

Dale K Stone

Christopher A Rowland

James S Buff

George Gammel

Tyler Burton Rockwell

Jun Lu

Brian Kernan

Michel Pharand

David S Harvey

Jiong Chen

Mehran Asdigha

Brian T Helenbrook

Ana Samolov

Fredrick Carlson

Keneth H Purser

William F DiVergili

Michael P Bradley

Alec S Denholm

George Stejic

Jiong Cheng

John J Schussler

David Morrell

Brian MacKintosh

Gregory D Thronson

Frederick Carlson

An apparatus for controlling heat flow within a melt. The apparatus may include a crucible configured to contain the melt where the melt has an exposed surface. The apparatus may also include a heater disposed below a first side of the crucible and configured to supply heat through the melt to the exposed surface, and a heat diffusion barrier assembly comprising at least one heat diffusion barrier disposed within the crucible and defining an isolation region in the melt and an outer region in the melt.

Method for controlling heat flow within a silicon melt using a heat diffusion barrier assembly

An apparatus for growing a crystalline sheet from a melt includes a cold block assembly. The cold block assembly may include a cold block and a shield surrounding the cold block and being at an elevated temperature with respect to that of the cold block, the shield defining an opening disposed along a surface of the cold block proximate a melt surface that defines a cold area comprising a width along a first direction of the cold block, the cold area operable to provide localized cooling of a region of the melt surface proximate the cold block. The apparatus may further include a crystal puller arranged to draw a crystalline seed in a direction perpendicular to the first direction when the cold block assembly is disposed proximate the melt surface.

Method for achieving sustained anisotropic crystal growth on the surface of a silicon melt

An apparatus for drawing a crystalline sheet from a melt. The apparatus may include a crucible configured to contain the melt and having a dam structure, where the melt comprises an exposed surface having a level defined by a top of the dam structure. The apparatus may further include a support apparatus disposed within the crucible and having an upper surface, wherein the crystalline sheet is maintained flush with the exposed surface of the melt when drawn over the support apparatus, and may include a melt-back heater directing heat through the upper surface of the support apparatus to partially melt the crystalline sheet when the crystalline sheet is drawn over the support apparatus.

Apparatus for forming crystalline sheet from a melt

An apparatus may include an electrode assembly, the electrode assembly comprising a plurality of electrodes, arranged in a plurality of electrode pairs arranged to conduct an ion beam therethrough. A given electrode pair lies along a radius of an arc describing a nominal central ray trajectory, wherein a radius of a first electrode pair and an adjacent electrode pair define an angular spacing. The plurality of electrode pairs may define a plurality of angular spacings, wherein, in a first configuration, the plurality of angular spacings are not all equal. The apparatus may also include a power supply in communication with the EM, the power supply configured to independently supply voltage to the plurality of electrodes.

Apparatus and method for controlling ion beam properties using energy filter

Apparatus for controlling heat flow within a silicon melt

An apparatus for forming a crystalline sheet. The apparatus may include a crystallizer comprising a first gas channel and a second gas channel, wherein the first gas channel and second gas channel extend through the crystallizer to a lower surface of the crystallizer between an upstream edge and a downstream edge. The first gas channel may be disposed closer to the downstream edge than the second gas channel. A first gas source may be coupled to the first gas channel, where the first gas source comprises helium or hydrogen, and a second gas source may be coupled to the second gas channel, where the second gas source does not contain hydrogen or helium.

Apparatus and method for crystalline sheet growth

An apparatus may include a crucible configured to contain the melt, the melt having an exposed surface separated from a floor of the crucible by a first distance, a housing comprising a material that is non-contaminating to the melt, the housing comprising a plurality of sidewalls and a top that are configured to contact the melt, and a plurality of heating elements isolated from the melt and disposed along a transverse direction perpendicular to a pulling direction of the crystalline sheet, the plurality of heating elements being individually powered, wherein the plurality of heating elements are disposed at a second set of distances from the exposed surface of the melt that are less than the first distance, and wherein the plurality of heating elements are configured to vary a heat flux profile along the transverse direction when power is supplied individually to the plurality of heating elements.

Apparatus and method for controlling thickness of a crystalline sheet grown on a melt

A crystallizer for growing a crystalline sheet from a melt may include a cold block having a cold block surface that faces an exposed surface of the melt, the cold block configured to generate a cold block temperature at the cold block surface that is lower than a melt temperature of the melt at the exposed surface. The system may also include a nozzle disposed within the cold block and configured to deliver a gas jet to the exposed surface, wherein the gas jet and the cold block are interoperative to generate a process zone that removes heat from the exposed surface at a first heat removal rate that is greater than a second heat removal rate from the exposed surface in outer regions outside of the process zone.

System and method for crystalline sheet growth using a cold block and gas jet

Methods for processing of a workpiece are disclosed. A fluid that contains a desired dopant is prepared. The workpiece is immersed in this fluid, such that the dopant is able to contact all surfaces of the workpiece. The fluid is then evacuated, leaving behind the dopant on the workpiece. The dopant is then subjected to a thermal treatment to drive the dopant into the surfaces of the workpiece. In certain embodiments, a selective doping process may be performed by applying a mask to certain surfaces prior to immersing the workpiece in the fluid. In certain embodiments, the fluid may be in a super-critical state to maximize the contact between the dopant and the workpiece.

Liquid immersion doping

In one embodiment, a sheet production apparatus comprises a vessel configured to hold a melt of a material. A cooling plate is disposed proximate the melt and is configured to form a sheet of the material on the melt. A first gas jet is configured to direct a gas toward an edge of the vessel. A sheet of a material is translated horizontally on a surface of the melt and the sheet is removed from the melt. The first gas jet may be directed at the meniscus and may stabilize this meniscus or increase local pressure within the meniscus.

Sheet production apparatus for removing a crystalline sheet from the surface of a melt using gas jets located above and below the crystalline sheet

An apparatus for processing a melt may include a crucible configured to contain the melt, where the melt has an exposed surface that is separated from a floor of the crucible by a first distance. The apparatus may further include a submerged heater comprising a heating element and a shell disposed between the heating element and the melt, wherein the heating element does not contact the melt. The heating element may be disposed at a second distance with respect to the exposed surface of the melt that is less than the first distance.

Apparatus for processing a melt

An apparatus to monitor thickness of a crystalline sheet grown from a melt. The apparatus may include a process chamber configured to house the melt and crystalline sheet; an x-ray source disposed on a first side of the crystalline sheet and configured to deliver a first beam of x-rays that penetrate the crystalline sheet from a first surface to a second surface opposite the first surface, at a first angle of incidence with respect to the first surface; and an x-ray detector disposed on the first side of the crystalline sheet and configured to intercept a second beam of x-rays that are generated by reflection of the first beam of x-rays from the crystalline sheet at an angle of reflection with respect to the first surface, wherein a sum of the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection satisfies the equation &#x3bb;=2d sin &#x3b8;.

Apparatus and method for monitoring and controlling thickness of a crystalline layer

An apparatus to purify a melt is disclosed. A first portion of a melt in a chamber is frozen in a first direction. A fraction of the first portion is melted in the first direction. A second portion of the melt remains frozen. The melt flows from the chamber and the second portion is removed from the chamber. The freezing concentrates solutes in the melt and second portion. The second portion may be a slug with a high solute concentration. This system may be incorporated into a sheet forming apparatus with other components such as, for example, pumps, filters, or particle traps.

Melt purification and delivery system

The embodiments herein relate to a sheet production apparatus. A vessel is configured to hold a melt of a material and a cooling plate is disposed proximate the melt. This cooling plate configured to form a sheet of the material on the melt. A pump is used. In one instance, this pump includes a gas source and a conduit in fluid communication with the gas source. In another instance, this pump injects a gas into a melt. The gas can raise the melt or provide momentum to the melt.

Gas-lift pumps for flowing and purifying molten silicon

Growing community of inventors

Essex, MA, United States of America

Peter Lawrence Kellerman