Applied Materials, Inc.

Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc.

Rutger Meyer Timmerman Thijssen

Morgan Evans

Ludovic Godet

Joseph C Olson

Wayne McMillan

Tapashree Roy

Peter F Kurunczi

Robert Jan Visser

Chien-An Chen

Jinxin Fu

Jinrui Guo

Yongan Xu

Naamah Argaman

Kartik Ramaswamy

Yang Yang

Charles T Carlson

Visweswaren Sivaramakrishnan

Manivannan Thothadri

Michael Yu-tak Young

Ross Bandy

Robert Masci

Sage Toko Garrett Doshay

Maurice Emerson Peploski

John J Hautala

Joseph R Johnson

Ryan Magee

Pinkesh Rohit Shah

Thomas James Soldi

Steven Verhaverbeke

Joseph Yudovsky

Siddarth A Krishnan

Andre P Labonte

Daniel Distaso

Yifei Wang

Ryan C Boas

Ian Matthew McMackin

Jhenghan Yang

Jing Jiang

Megan Clark

Sage Doshay

Thomas Soldi

Wayne Mcmillan

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to processing an optical workpiece containing grating structures on a substrate by deposition processes, such as atomic layer deposition (ALD). In one or more embodiments, a method for processing an optical workpiece includes positioning a substrate containing a first layer within a processing chamber, where the first layer contains grating structures separated by trenches formed in the first layer, and each of the grating structures has an initial critical dimension, and depositing a second layer on at least the sidewalls of the grating structures by ALD to produce corrected grating structures separated by the trenches, where each of the corrected grating structures has a corrected critical dimension greater than the initial critical dimension.

Atomic layer deposition on optical structures

An optical device and a method of forming an optical device having multi-depth optical device structures with a refractive index greater than or equal to 2.0 are provided. The optical devices and method include forming first matrix stack structures and second matrix stack structures. Adjacent first matrix stack structures form first vias having a first depth and adjacent second matrix stack structures form second vias having a second depth. The first depth of the first vias being different than the second depth of the second vias provides from the formation of submicron, multi-depth optical device structures when the vias are backfilled with a device material.

Method for forming multi-depth optical devices

Methods of producing grating materials with variable height are provided. In one example, a method may include providing a grating material atop a substrate, and positioning a shadow mask between the grating material and an ion source, wherein the shadow mask is separated from the grating material by a distance. The method may further include etching the grating material using an ion beam passing through a set of openings of the shadow mask, wherein a first depth of a first portion of the grating material is different than a second depth of a second portion of the grating material.

Shadow mask apparatus and methods for variable etch depths

Embodiments of metasurfaces having nanostructures with desired geometric profiles and configurations are provided in the present disclosure. In one embodiment, a metasurface includes a nanostructure formed on a substrate, wherein the nanostructure is cuboidal or cylindrical in shape. In another embodiment, a metasurface includes a plurality of nanostructures on a substrate, wherein each of the nanostructures has a gap greater than 35 nm spaced apart from each other. In yet another embodiment, a metasurface includes a plurality of nanostructures on a substrate, wherein the nanostructures are fabricated from at least one of TiO, silicon nitride, or amorphous silicon, or GaN or aluminum zinc oxide or any material with refractive index greater than 1.8, and absorption coefficient smaller than 0.001, the substrate is transparent with absorption coefficient smaller than 0.001.

Nanostructures for optical devices

An apparatus with a grating structure and a method for forming the same are disclosed. The grating structure includes forming a recess in a grating layer. A plurality of channels is formed in the grating layer to define slanted grating structures therein. The recess and the slanted grating structures are formed using a selective etch process.

Variable height slanted grating method

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to optical device fabrication. In particular, embodiments described herein relate to a method of forming a plurality of optical devices. In one embodiment, a method includes dicing a plurality of optical device lenses from a substrate, disposing the plurality of optical device lenses on a carrier, and performing at least one process on the plurality of optical device lenses to form a plurality of optical devices, each optical device having a plurality of optical device structures.

Fabrication of optical devices utilizing dicing to maximize chamber space

Embodiments described herein relate to methods and apparatus for forming gratings having a plurality of fins with different slant angles on a substrate and forming fins with different slant angles on successive substrates using angled etch systems and/or an optical device. The methods include positioning portions of substrates retained on a platen in a path of an ion beam. The substrates have a grating material disposed thereon. The ion beam is configured to contact the grating material at an ion beam angle ϑ relative to a surface normal of the substrates and form gratings in the grating material.

Modulation of rolling k vectors of angled gratings

A method for forming a device structure is disclosed. The method of forming a device structure includes forming a variable-depth structure in a device material layer using a laser ablation. A plurality of device structures is formed in the variable-depth structure to define slanted device structures therein. The variable-depth structure and the slanted device structures are formed using an etch process.

Forming variable depth structures with laser ablation

Methods of forming optical devices using nanoimprint lithography and etch processes are provided. In one embodiment, a method is provided that includes depositing a first resist layer on a substrate, the substrate having a hardmask disposed thereon, imprinting a first resist portion of the first resist layer with a first single-height stamp, etching the first resist portion of the first resist layer, etching a first hardmask portion of the hardmask corresponding to the first resist portion of the first resist layer, removing the first resist layer and depositing a second resist layer, imprinting a second resist portion of the second resist layer with a second single-height stamp, etching the second resist portion of the second resist layer, and etching a second hardmask portion of the hardmask corresponding to the second resist portion of the second resist layer.

Nanoimprint and etch fabrication of optical devices

Embodiments described herein relate to methods for fabricating optical devices. The methods described herein enable the fabrication of one or more optical devices on a substrate with apertures surrounding each of the optical devices having a plurality of structures. One embodiment of the methods described herein includes disposing an aperture material layer on a surface of a substrate, disposing a structure material layer over the apertures and the surface of the substrate, disposing a hardmask over the apertures and the structure material layer, disposing a patterned photoresist over the hardmask, the patterned photoresist defining exposed hardmask portions, removing the exposed hardmask portions to expose structure portions of the structure material layer, and removing the structure portions to form a plurality of structures between the apertures over regions of the surface of the substrate.

Apertures for flat optical devices

A method of forming patterned features on a substrate is provided. The method includes positioning a plurality of masks arranged in a mask layout over a substrate. The substrate is positioned in a first plane and the plurality of masks are positioned in a second plane, the plurality of masks in the mask layout have edges that each extend parallel to the first plane and parallel or perpendicular to an alignment feature on the substrate, the substrate includes a plurality of areas configured to be patterned by energy directed through the masks arranged in the mask layout. The method further includes directing energy towards the plurality of areas through the plurality of masks arranged in the mask layout over the substrate to form a plurality of patterned features in each of the plurality of areas.

Mask orientation

Embodiments described herein provide for methods of forming angled optical device structures. The methods described herein utilize etching a mandrel material with an etch chemistry that is selective to the hardmask, i.e., the mandrel material is etched at a higher rate than the hardmask. Therefore, mandrel trenches are formed in the mandrel material. Device material of the angled optical device structures to be formed is deposited on the plurality of angled mandrels. An angled etch process is performed on portions of the device material such that the angled optical device structures are formed.

Self-aligned formation of angled optical device structures

A method is provided. The method includes exposing a first material disposed across a first plane on a first substrate to an ion beam to form a first plurality of structures in the first material, the ion beam directed at the first material at an ion beam angle ϑ relative to a surface normal of the first substrate. The first substrate is positioned at a first rotation angle ϕbetween the ion beam and a first vector of the first plurality of structures, the first material is exposed to the ion beam incrementally along a first direction, and exposure of the first material to the ion beam is varied along the first direction to generate a depth variation between the first plurality of structures in the first direction.

Etch improvement

Aspects of the disclosure relate to apparatus for the fabrication of waveguides. In one example, an angled ion source is utilized to project ions toward a substrate to form a waveguide which includes angled gratings. In another example, an angled electron beam source is utilized to project electrons toward a substrate to form a waveguide which includes angled gratings. Further aspects of the disclosure provide for methods of forming angled gratings on waveguides utilizing an angled ion beam source and an angled electron beam source.

Ion beam source for optical device fabrication using a segmented ion source having one or more angled surfaces

Embodiments of the present application generally relate to methods for forming a plurality of gratings. The methods generally include depositing a material over one or more protected regions of a waveguide combiner disposed on a substrate, the material having a thickness inhibiting removal of a grating material disposed on the waveguide combiner when an ion beam is directed toward the substrate, and directing the ion beam toward the substrate. The methods disclosed herein allow for formation of a plurality of gratings in one or more unprotected regions, while no gratings are formed in the protected regions.

Growing community of inventors

Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Rutger Meyer Timmerman Thijssen