Lam Research Corporation

Other

Yukinori Sakiyama

Edward J Augustyniak

Douglas L Keil

Adrien Lavoie

Ramesh Chandrasekharan

Ishtak Karim

Yaswanth Rangineni

Karl Frederick Leeser

Sunil Kapoor

Shankar Swaminathan

Frank Loren Pasquale

Chloe Baldasseroni

David Michael French

George Thomas

Chunhai Ji

Paul Konkola

Patrick G Breiling

Edmund Minshall

Andrew Duvall

Jeremy Tucker

Sung Je Kim

Noah Elliot Baker

Hu Kang

Seshasayee Varadarajan

Pramod Subramonium

Jennifer Leigh Petraglia

Saangrut Sangplung

Bin Luo

Ryan Blaquiere

Joseph Lindsey Womack

Liang Meng

Basha Sajjad

Niraj Rana

Chengzhu Qi

An apparatus to determine occurrence of an anomalous plasma event occurring at or near a process station of a multi-station integrated circuit fabrication chamber is disclosed. In particular embodiments, optical emissions generated responsive to the anomalous plasma event may be detected by at least one photosensor of a plurality of photosensors. A processor may cooperate with the plurality of photosensors to determine that the anomalous plasma event has occurred at or near by a particular process station of the multi-station integrated circuit fabrication chamber.

Detection and location of anomalous plasma events in fabrication chambers

In particular embodiments, anomalous plasma events, which may include formation of an electric arc in a semiconductor processing chamber, may be detected and mitigated. In certain embodiments, a method may include detecting an optical signal emitted by a plasma, converting the optical signal to a voltage signal, and forming an adjusted voltage signal. Responsive to determining that the changes associated with the adjusted voltage signal exceed a threshold, an output power of an RF signal coupled to the chamber may be adjusted. Such adjustment may mitigate formation of the anomalous plasma event occurring within the chamber.

Anomalous plasma event detection and mitigation in semiconductor processing

A system for controlling of wafer bow in plasma processing stations is described. The system includes a circuit that provides a low frequency RF signal and another circuit that provides a high frequency RF signal. The system includes an output circuit and the stations. The output circuit combines the low frequency RF signal and the high frequency RF signal to generate a plurality of combined RF signals for the stations. Amount of low frequency power delivered to one of the stations depends on wafer bow, such as non-flatness of a wafer. A bowed wafer decreases low frequency power delivered to the station in a multi-station chamber with a common RF source. A shunt inductor is coupled in parallel to each of the stations to increase an amount of current to the station with a bowed wafer. Hence, station power becomes less sensitive to wafer bow to minimize wafer bowing.

Control of wafer bow in multiple stations

A pedestal for a substrate processing system includes a pedestal body including a substrate-facing surface. An annular band is arranged on the substrate-facing surface that is configured to support a radially outer edge of the substrate. A cavity is defined in the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body and is located radially inside of the annular band. The cavity creates a volume between a bottom surface of the substrate and the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body. A plurality of vents pass though the pedestal body and are in fluid communication with the cavity to equalize pressure on opposing faces of the substrate during processing.

Planar substrate edge contact with open volume equalization pathways and side containment

An apparatus for supporting a wafer during a plasma processing operation includes a pedestal configured to have bottom surface and a top surface and a column configured to support the pedestal at a central region of the bottom surface of the pedestal. An electrical insulating layer is disposed over the top surface of the pedestal. An electrically conductive layer is disposed over the top surface of the electrical insulating layer. At least three electrically conductive support structures are distributed on the electrically conductive layer. The at least three support structures are configured to interface with a bottom surface of a wafer to physically support the wafer and electrically connect to the wafer. An electrical connection extends from the electrically conductive layer to connect with a positive terminal of a direct current power supply at a location outside of the pedestal.

Systems and methods for controlling plasma instability in semiconductor fabrication

A pedestal for a substrate processing system includes a pedestal body including a substrate-facing surface. An annular band is arranged on the substrate-facing surface that is configured to support a radially outer edge of the substrate. A cavity is defined in the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body and is located radially inside of the annular band. The cavity creates a volume between a bottom surface of the substrate and the substrate-facing surface of the pedestal body. A plurality of vents pass through the pedestal body and are in fluid communication with the cavity to equalize pressure on opposing faces of the substrate during processing.

Control of water bow in multiple stations

A carrier ring configured to support a substrate during transport to or from a pedestal of a process tool and surrounding the substrate during processing is defined by, an inner annular portion having a first thickness, the inner annular portion defined to be adjacent a substrate support region of the pedestal; a middle annular portion surrounding the inner annular portion, the middle annular portion having a second thickness greater than the first thickness, such that a transition from a top surface of the inner annular portion to a top surface of the middle annular portion defines a first step; an outer annular portion surrounding the middle annular portion, the outer annular portion having a third thickness greater than the second thickness, such that a transition from the top surface of the middle annular portion to a top surface of the outer annular portion defines a second step.

Carrier ring wall for reduction of back-diffusion of reactive species and suppression of local parasitic plasma ignition

A showerhead in a semiconductor processing apparatus can include faceplate through-holes configured to improve the flow uniformity during atomic layer deposition. The showerhead can include a faceplate having a plurality of through-holes for distributing gas onto a substrate, where the faceplate includes small diameter through-holes. For example, the diameter of each of the through-holes can be less than about 0.04 inches. In addition or in the alternative, the showerhead can include edge through-holes positioned circumferentially along a ring having a diameter greater than a diameter of the substrate being processed. The showerhead can be a low volume showerhead and can include a baffle proximate one or more gas inlets in communication with a plenum volume of the showerhead. The faceplate with small diameter through-holes and/or edge through-holes can improve overall film non-uniformity, improve azimuthal film non-uniformity at the edge of the substrate, and enable operation at higher RF powers.

Low volume showerhead with faceplate holes for improved flow uniformity

Pedestal assemblies and methods for using said pedestal assemblies, used in processing chambers implemented for processing substrates are disclosed. In one example, the pedestal assembly includes a center column coupled to a lower chamber body of a processing chamber. A pedestal body is coupled to the center column. The pedestal body includes a substrate support surface and an annular step formed around a circumference of the pedestal body and surrounding the substrate support surface. Further included is a first annular ring segment disposed within the annular step. The first annular ring is defined from a conductive material. A second annular ring segment is also disposed within the annular step. The second annular ring is defined from a dielectric material. The first annular ring and the second annular ring fill the annular step around the circumference of the pedestal body. The first and second annular rings provide a fill that surrounds the substrate support and acts to modify an impedance for improving azimuthal uniformity of films deposited over the substrate using the processing chamber.

Asymmetric pedestal/carrier ring arrangement for edge impedance modulation

A wafer is positioned on a wafer support apparatus beneath an electrode such that a plasma generation region exists between the wafer and the electrode. Radiofrequency power is supplied to the electrode to generate a plasma within the plasma generation region during multiple sequential plasma processing cycles of a plasma processing operation. At least one electrical sensor connected to the electrode measures a radiofrequency parameter on the electrode during each of the multiple sequential plasma processing cycles. A value of the radiofrequency parameter as measured on the electrode is determined for each of the multiple sequential plasma processing cycles. A determination is made as to whether or not any indicatory trend or change exists in the values of the radiofrequency parameter as measured on the electrode over the multiple sequential plasma processing cycles, where the indicatory trend or change indicates formation of a plasma instability during the plasma processing operation.

Systems and methods for detection of plasma instability by electrical measurement

A wafer is positioned on a wafer support apparatus beneath an electrode such that a plasma generation region exists between the wafer and the electrode. Radiofrequency power is supplied to the electrode to generate a plasma within the plasma generation region. Optical emissions are collected from the plasma using one or more optical emission collection devices, such as optical fibers, charge coupled device cameras, photodiodes, or the like. The collected optical emissions are analyzed to determine whether or not an optical signature of a plasma instability exists in the collected optical emissions. Upon determining that the optical signature of the plasma instability does exist in the collected optical emissions, at least one plasma generation parameter is adjusted to mitigate formation of the plasma instability.

Systems and methods for detection of plasma instability by optical diagnosis

A wafer is positioned on a wafer support apparatus beneath an electrode such that a plasma generation region exists between the wafer and the electrode. Radiofrequency signals of a first signal frequency are supplied to the plasma generation region to generate a plasma within the plasma generation region. Formation of a plasma instability is detected within the plasma based on supply of the radiofrequency signals of the first signal frequency. After detecting formation of the plasma instability, radiofrequency signals of a second signal frequency are supplied to the plasma generation region in lieu of the radiofrequency signals of the first signal frequency to generate the plasma. The second signal frequency is greater than the first signal frequency and is set to cause a reduction in ion energy within the plasma and a corresponding reduction in secondary electron emission from the wafer caused by ion interaction with the wafer.

Systems and methods for frequency modulation of radiofrequency power supply for controlling plasma instability

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West Linn, OR, United States of America

Yukinori Sakiyama