Tokyo Electron Limited

Iwatani Corporation

Yukimasa Saito

Hiroyuki Yamamoto

Kazuya Dobashi

Kazuhide Hasebe

Takehiko Orii

Takanori Saito

Kenichi Yamaga

Hitoshi Murata

Shuji Moriya

Tomohisa Shimazu

Kyoko Ikeda

Kunihiko Koike

Koichi Izumi

Toshiyuki Makiya

Hisaei Osanai

Takehiko Senoo

Yu Yoshino

Tsuyoshi Takizawa

Tadashi Shojo

Toshiki Hinata

Keita Kanehira

There is provided a gas cluster processing device for performing a predetermined process on a workpiece by irradiating the workpiece with a gas cluster, including: a processing container in which the workpiece is disposed; a gas supply part configured to supply a gas for generating the gas cluster; a flow rate controller configured to control a flow rate of the gas supplied from the gas supply part; a cluster nozzle configured to receive the gas for generating the gas cluster at a predetermined supply pressure, spray the gas into the processing container maintained in a vacuum state, and convert the gas into the gas cluster through an adiabatic expansion; and a pressure control part provided in a pipe between the flow rate controller and the cluster nozzle and including a back pressure controller configured to control a supply pressure of the gas for generating the gas cluster.

Gas cluster processing device and gas cluster processing method

A substrate cleaning apparatus that cleans a processing target substrate by blasting the gas clusters to the processing target substrate. The apparatus includes: a chamber configured to accommodate the processing target substrate; a rotary stage configured to rotatably support the processing target substrate in the chamber; an blasting unit configured to blast the gas clusters to the processing target substrate supported by the rotary stage; a driving unit configured to scan a gas cluster-blasted position on the processing target substrate; an exhaust port configured to evacuate the chamber; and a control mechanism configured to control a scattering direction of particles by controlling a rotation direction of the processing target substrate by the rotary stage and a scanning direction of the gas cluster-blasted position, thereby suppressing re-adhesion of the particles to the processing target substrate.

Substrate cleaning apparatus

According to the present invention, a substrate processing apparatus has a chamber (), a stage () for holding a substrate (W) to be processed in the chamber (), and a nozzle part () from which a gas cluster is blasted onto the substrate (W) to be processed, and has a function for processing the substrate (W) to be processed by the gas cluster. Cleaning of the inside of the chamber () is performed by: placing a prescribed reflecting member (dW,) in the chamber (), blasting a gas cluster (C) onto the reflecting member (dW,), and applying the gas-cluster flow reflected by the reflecting member (dW,) onto a wall section of the chamber () to remove particles (P) adhered to the wall section of the chamber ().

Method for cleaning chamber of substrate processing apparatus

The present invention is a thermal processing unit including: a heating-furnace body whose upper end has an opening; a heating unit provided on an inside wall of the heating-furnace body; a reaction container consisting of a single tube contained in the heating-furnace body; a gas-discharging-pipe connecting portion formed at an upper portion of the reaction container; and a first temperature controlling unit provided around the gas-discharging-pipe connecting portion.

Thermal processing unit

Thermal treatment apparatus

Exhaust pressure in an exhaust systemthat evacuates a processing furnaceis determined as absolute pressure by using a differential manometerwhich measures the exhaust pressure as differential pressure, and a barometer, which measures atmospheric pressure as absolute pressure. An opening of a pressure regulating valveis adjusted based on the absolute exhaust pressure thus determined so that pressure in the processing furnaceis regulated.

Heat treatment apparatus

A film-forming unit of the invention includes: a processing furnace, gas-supplying means that supplies a process gas into the processing furnace, heating means that heats an inside of the processing furnace to a predetermined process-temperature, and a normal-pressure gas-discharging system for discharging gas from the processing furnace at a predetermined discharging-pressure that is near to an atmospheric pressure. A valve is provided in the normal-pressure gas-discharging system, the valve being adjustably caused to open and close, a pressure of the gas through the valve being also adjustable. A pressure sensor detects a discharging-pressure in the normal-pressure gas-discharging system. A controller controls the valve based on the pressure detected by the pressure sensor. According to the feature, a stable control can be achieved without necessity of introducing atmospheric air or introducing any inert gas. In addition, a structure of the gas-discharging system is simplified, and reduction of costs for the whole unit is achieved.

Heat treatment device

A semiconductor water is contained in a reaction tube, and the reaction tube is exhausted through an exhaust pipe while supplying ammonia and dichlorosilane into the reaction tube. A silicon nitride film is deposited on an object to be heat-treated by a reaction of ammonia and dichlorosilane. Subsequently, TEOS is supplied into the reaction tube, while the reaction tube is exhausted through the exhaust pipe. A silicon oxide film is deposited on the object by resolving the TEOS. A semiconductor wafer an which a laminated layer of the silicon nitride film and the silicon oxide film is formed is unloaded from the reaction tube. Then, reactive products attached into the exhaust pipe and the reaction tube are removed, by conducting fluoride hydrogen thereinto, thereby cleaning the pipers The top end of the exhaust pipe is split into two vents, either one of which is used for discharging exhaust gas for forming films and the other one of which is used for discharging HF gas for cleaning the pipes.

Heat treatment apparatus and cleaning method of the same

A thermal processing unit of the invention includes a processing container that can contain an object to be processed therein, the processing container having a lower end provided with an opening. The opening is opened and closed by a lid. A flange is provided at a peripheral portion of the opening, and a gas-supplying unit is provided at the flange for supplying a gas into the processing container. A heating mechanism can heat the object to be processed contained in the processing container.

Thermal processor with gas supply

A semiconductor wafer is contained in a reaction tube, and the reaction tube is exhausted through an exhaust pipe while supplying ammonia and dichlorosilane into the reaction tube. A silicon nitride film is deposited on an object to be heat-treated by a reaction of ammonia and dichlorosilane. Subsequently, TEOS is supplied into the reaction tube, while the reaction tube is exhausted through the exhaust pipe. A silicon oxide film is deposited on the object by resolving the TEOS. A semiconductor wafer on which a laminated layer of the silicon nitride film and the silicon oxide film is formed is unloaded from the reaction tube. Then, reactive products attached into the exhaust pipe and the reaction tube are removed, by conducting fluoride hydrogen thereinto, thereby cleaning the pipes. The top end of the exhaust pipe is split into two vents, either one of which is used for discharging exhaust gas for forming films and the other one of which is used for discharging HF gas for cleaning the pipes.

In a method wherein semiconductor wafers are accommodated within a treatment furnace that has been heated beforehand to a predetermined temperature, the temperature within the treatment furnace is increased to a predetermined treatment temperature, and the semiconductor wafers are subjected to an oxidation treatment, the temperature-increasing step is performed under a reduced pressure. This makes it possible to suppress the formation of natural oxide films during the temperature-increasing step, and thus makes it possible to form an extremely thin film of a superior quality on the semiconductor wafer.

Oxidation treatment method and apparatus

A silicon nitride (Si.sub.3 N.sub.4) film and a silicon oxide (SiO.sub.2) film, for example, are successively formed on the surface of semiconductor wafers by the same thermal processing system 3, to form a multilayer insulating structure. A disk trap 5, a valve MV and a water cooled trap 6 are provided in this order in an exhaust gas passage 41 extending from a thermal processing unit 3. A heater 44 is provided to heat the section of the passage 41 upstream of the water-cooled trap 6 as well as the valve MV. Another heater 51 is provided to heat the disk trap 5. A film of Si.sub.3 N.sub.4 is formed on the wafer surface by heating the section of the passage upstream of the water-cooled trap and by heating the disk trap and the valve while cooling the water-cooled trap, to thereby trap a by-product of NH.sub.4 Cl. A film of SiO.sub.2 is then formed on the film of Si.sub.3 O.sub.4 by heating the section of the exhaust passage upstream of the disk trap 5 to trap a by-product of C.sub.x H.sub.y in the disk trap. The valve is closed when processed wafers are transferred out of the thermal processing unit, to prevent reverse flow of a by-product of NH.sub.4 Cl into the thermal processing unit through the water-cooled trap 6.

Growing community of inventors

Minato-ku, Japan

Yukimasa Saito