Lam Research Corporation

Yuhou Wang

Maolin Long

Alex Paterson

Ricky Marsh

Ying Wu

Alexander Miller Paterson

Michael John Martin

Arthur H Sato

Jon McChesney

A matchless plasma source is described. The matchless plasma source includes a controller that is coupled to a direct current (DC) voltage source of an agile DC rail to control a shape of an amplified square waveform that is generated at an output of a half-bridge transistor circuit. The matchless plasma source further includes the half-bridge transistor circuit used to generate the amplified square waveform to power an electrode, such as an antenna, of a plasma chamber. The matchless plasma source also includes a reactive circuit between the half-bridge transistor circuit and the electrode. The reactive circuit has a high-quality factor to negate a reactance of the electrode. There is no radio frequency (RF) match and an RF cable that couples the matchless plasma source to the electrode.

Matchless plasma source for semiconductor wafer fabrication

A system and method for generating a radio frequency (RF) waveform are described. The method includes defining a train of on-off pulses separated by an off state having no on-off pulses. The method further includes applying a multi-level pulse waveform that adjusts a magnitude of each of the on-off pulses to generate an RF waveform. The method includes sending the RF waveform to an electrode.

RF pulsing within pulsing for semiconductor RF plasma processing

Systems and methods are provided for positioning a wafer in relation to a datum structure. In one example, a system comprises a camera arrangement including at least two cameras, each of the at least two cameras including a field of view when positioned in the camera arrangement, each field of view including a peripheral edge of the wafer and a peripheral edge of the datum structure. A processor receives positional data from each of the at least two cameras and determines, in relation to each field of view, a gap size between the respective peripheral edges of the wafer and the datum location included in the respective field of view. A controller adjusts a position of the wafer relative to the datum structure based on the determined respective gap sizes.

Substrate location detection and adjustment

A direct drive system for providing RF power to a component of a substrate processing system includes a direct drive circuit including a switch and configured to supply RF power to the component. A switch protection module is configured to monitor a load current and a load voltage in a processing chamber, calculate load resistance based on the load current and the load voltage, compare the load resistance to a first predetermined load resistance, and adjust at least one of an RF power limit and an RF current limit of the direct drive circuit based on the comparison.

Protection system for switches in direct drive circuits of substrate processing systems

A direct drive system for providing RF power to a substrate processing system includes a direct drive enclosure including a first direct drive circuit located in the direct drive enclosure and operating at a first frequency and a first connector connected to the first direct drive circuit. A junction box is arranged adjacent to the direct drive enclosure and includes a first capacitive circuit connected to the first direct drive circuit; a second connector located on one side of the junction box, connected to one terminal of the first capacitive circuit and mating with the first connector of the direct drive enclosure; third and fourth connectors connected to another terminal of the first capacitive circuit; and a coil enclosure arranged adjacent to the junction box and including first and second coils and fifth and sixth connectors mating with the third and fourth connectors of the junction box.

Dual-frequency, direct-drive inductively coupled plasma source

A drive circuit for providing RF power to a component of a substrate processing system includes a plasma source operating at a first frequency. A load includes the component of the substrate processing system. An impedance network connects the plasma source to the load. A current sensor senses current at an output of the plasma source. A voltage sensor senses voltage at the output of the plasma source. A controller includes a tuned frequency calculator configured to calculate a tuned frequency for the plasma source based on the voltage, the current, and a configuration of the impedance network and to adjust the first frequency based on the tuned frequency.

Direct frequency tuning for matchless plasma source in substrate processing systems

Frequency tuning for a matchless plasma source is described. To perform the frequency tuning, current is measured at an output of an amplification circuit of the matchless plasma source after a change in a frequency of operation of the matchless plasma source. Upon determining that the current has increased with the change in the frequency of operation, the frequency of operation is further changed until the current has decreased. When the current has decreased, the changed frequency of operation is further modified to be an operational frequency. When the matchless plasma source operates at the operational frequency, the current at the output of the amplification circuit is maximized.

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Fremont, CA, United States of America

Yuhou Wang