Tokyo Electron Limited

International Business Machines Corporation

Tsukasa Matsuda

Hayashi Otsuki

Kyoko Ikeda

Yumiko Kawano

Tatsuo Hatano

Hideaki Yamasaki

Sandra Guy Malhotra

Fenton Read McFeely

Atsushi Gomi

Frank M Cerio, Jr

Gert J Leusink

Taro Ikeda

Tadahiro Ishizaka

Jacques Faguet

Mitsuhiro Tachibana

Yasushi Mizusawa

Masahito Sugiura

Kaoru Yamamoto

Kazuhito Nakamura

Koumei Matsuzawa

Andrew Herbert Simon

Masamichi Hara

John Jacob Yurkas

Takashi Sakuma

Osamu Yokoyama

Shigeru Mizuno

Hotaka Ishizuka

Adam Selsey

Koumei Matsuzava

A method for depositing a film on a substrate using a plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) process includes disposing the substrate in a process chamber configured to facilitate the PEALD process, introducing a first process material within the process chamber and introducing a second process material within the process chamber. Also included is coupling electromagnetic power to the process chamber during introduction of the second process material in order to generate a plasma that facilitates a reduction reaction between the first and second process materials at a surface of the substrate. A reactive gas is introduced within the process chamber, the reactive gas chemically reacting with contaminants in the process chamber to release the contaminants from at least one of a process chamber component or the substrate.

Plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition system and method

A plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) method and system, the system including a process chamber and a substrate holder provided within the processing chamber and configured to support a substrate on which a predetermined film will be formed. A first process material supply system is configured to supply a first process material to the process chamber, and a second process material supply system configured to supply a second process material to the process chamber in order to provide a reduction reaction with the first process material to form the predetermined film on the substrate. Also included is a power source configured to couple electromagnetic power to the process chamber to generate a plasma within the process chamber to facilitate the reduction reaction, and a chamber component exposed to the plasma and made from a film compatible material that is compatible with the predetermined film deposited on the substrate.

The present invention provides a particle measuring system which is provided in a processing systemwhich generates an atmosphere obtained by exhausting air or a gas in a processing chamberby a vacuum pumpand applies a process concerning semiconductor manufacture to a wafer W in the atmosphere, attached to an exhaust pipewhich connects an exhaust openingof the processing chamberwith the vacuum pump, and measures the number of the particles in the exhaust gas, and a measuring method thereof, the system and method providing a processing system and a cleaning method which terminate etching process by determining an end point based on the number of the particles in the exhaust gas and perform cleaning of unnecessary films.

Particle-measuring system and particle-measuring method

A technique for embedding metal in a microscopic recess provided in the surface of a process object, such as a semiconductor wafer, by plasma sputtering. A film forming step and a diffusion step are alternately performed a plurality of times. The film forming step deposits a small amount of metal film in the recess. The diffusion step moves the deposited metal film towards the bottom portion of the recess. In the film forming step, bias power to be applied to a stage for supporting the wafer is set to a value ensuring that, on the surface of the wafer, the rate of metal deposition due to the drawing-in of metal particles is substantially equal to the rate of the sputter etching by plasma. In the diffusion step, the wafer is maintained at a temperature which permits occurrence of surface diffusion of the metal film deposited in the recess.

Film forming method, plasma film forming apparatus and storage medium

A method for forming a modified TaC or TaCN film that may be utilized as a barrier film for Cu metallization. The method includes disposing a substrate in a process chamber of a plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) system configured to perform a PEALD process, depositing a TaC or TaCN film on the substrate using the PEALD process, and modifying the deposited TaC or TaCN film by exposing the deposited TaC or TaCN film to plasma excited hydrogen or atomic hydrogen or a combination thereof in order to remove carbon from at least the plasma exposed portion of the deposited TaCN film. The method further includes forming a metal film on the modified TaCN film, where the modified TaCN film provides stronger adhesion to the metal film than the deposited TaCN film. According to one embodiment, a TaCN film is deposited from alternating exposures of TAIMATA and plasma excited hydrogen.

Method of integrating PEALD Ta-containing films into Cu metallization

Film forming method

Film formation processing apparatus and method for determining an end-point of a cleaning process

The present invention provides a particle measuring system which is provided in a processing system that generates an atmosphere obtained by exhausting air or a gas in a processing chamber by a vacuum pump and applies a process concerning semiconductor manufacture to a wafer W in the atmosphere, attached to an exhaust pipe which connects an exhaust opening of the processing chamber with the vacuum pump, and measures the number of the particles in the exhaust gas, and a measuring method thereof, the system and method providing a processing system and a cleaning method which terminate etching process by determining an end point based on the number of the particles in the exhaust gas and perform cleaning of unnecessary films.

A plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) system includes a first chamber component coupled to a second chamber component to provide a processing chamber defining an isolated processing space within the processing chamber. A substrate holder is provided within the processing chamber and configured to support a substrate, a first process material supply system is configured to supply a first process material to the processing chamber and a second process material supply system is configured to supply a second process material to the processing chamber. A power source is configured to couple electromagnetic power to the processing chamber, and a sealing assembly interposed between the first and second chamber components. The sealing assembly includes a plurality of sealing members configured to reduce the amount of external contaminants permeating through an interface of the first and second components into the isolated processing space of the processing chamber, wherein the film is formed on the substrate by alternatingly introducing the first process material and the second process material.

Plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition system

An iPVD system is programmed to deposit uniform material, such as barrier material, into high aspect ratio nano-size features on semiconductor substrates using a multi-step process within a vacuum chamber which enhances the sidewall coverage compared to the field and bottom coverage(s) while minimizing or eliminating overhang.

Sequential tantalum-nitride deposition

The present invention provides a particle measuring system which is provided in a processing systemwhich generates an atmosphere obtained by exhausting air or a gas in a processing chamberby a vacuum pumpand applies a process concerning semiconductor manufacture to a wafer W in the atmosphere, attached to an exhaust pipewhich connects an exhaust openingof the processing chamberwith the vacuum pumpand measures the number of the particles in the exhaust gas, and a measuring method thereof, the system and method providing a processing system and a cleaning method which terminate etching process by determining an end point based on the number of the particles in the exhaust gas and perform cleaning of unnecessary films.

A cleaning method of a substrate processor that reduces damage to a member in a substrate processing container. The method of cleaning the substrate processing container of the substrate processor that processes a target substrate according to the present invention includes: introducing gas into a remote plasma generating unit of the substrate processor; exciting the gas by the remote plasma generating unit, and generating reactive species; and supplying the reactive species to the processing container from the remote plasma generating unit, and pressurizing the processing container at 1333 Pa or greater.

Method for cleaning substrate processing chamber

A method and system for forming a variable thickness seed layer on a substrate for a subsequent metal electrochemical plating process, where the seed layer thickness profile improves uniformity of the electroplated metal layer compared to when using a constant thickness seed layer. The method includes providing a substrate in a process chamber containing a showerhead, with the center of the substrate generally aligned with an inner gas delivery zone of the showerhead and the edge of the substrate generally aligned with an outer gas delivery zone of the showerhead. The method further includes depositing a seed layer on the substrate by exposing the substrate to a first gas containing a metal-containing precursor flowed through the inner gas delivery zone, and exposing the substrate to a second gas flowed through the outer gas delivery zone, whereby the seed layer is deposited with a thickness at the edge of the substrate that is less than the thickness at the center of the substrate.

Method and system for forming a variable thickness seed layer

A method for forming a ruthenium metal layer includes providing a patterned substrate in a process chamber of a deposition system, where the patterned substrate contains one or more vias or trenches, or combinations thereof, depositing a first ruthenium metal layer on the substrate in an atomic layer deposition process, and depositing a second ruthenium metal layer on the first ruthenium metal layer in a thermal chemical vapor deposition process. The deposited ruthenium metal layer can be used as a diffusion barrier layer, a seed layer for electroplating, or both.

Growing community of inventors

Nirasaki, Japan

Tsukasa Matsuda