The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 19, 1995
Filed:
Feb. 11, 1993
Joseph F Salfelder, Campbell, CA (US);
Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, CA (US);
Abstract
Improved apparatus and a method for reducing polymerparticle contamination of semiconductor wafers being processed in a system for plasma-etching silicon dioxide. A quartz gas distribution plate contains a number of gas inlet holes having cross-sectional areas sufficiently small to prevent plasma from being present in the gas inlet holes to inhibit formation of polymer material and flaking of contamination particles therefrom. The gas inlet holes are formed on the surface of the quartz gas distribution plate directly over a wafer being processed. Alternatively, the gas inlet holes are formed in the quartz plate to radially extend to the peripheral edge of the quartz plate so that contamination particles, if any, fall outside the bounds of a wafer beneath the quartz plate. The method disclosed includes the step of feeding CHF.sub.3 gas through the gas inlet holes having cross-sectional areas sufficiently small to prevent formation of polymer within the holes and subsequent flaking and contamination of a wafer being processed.