1. Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to semiconductor processing equipment. More particularly, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a plasma source, an abatement system, and vacuum processing system for abating compounds produced in semiconductor processes.
2. Description of the Related Art
The process gases used by semiconductor processing facilities include many compounds which must be abated or treated before disposal, due to regulatory requirements and environmental and safety concerns. Typically, a remote plasma source may be coupled to a processing chamber to abate the compounds coming out of the processing chamber. Halogen-containing plasma and gases are frequently used in etch or cleaning processes, and components of the processing chamber and the remote plasma source are susceptible to erosion from the halogen-containing plasma and gases. The erosion reduces the usable life of the processing chamber components and the remote plasma source, and, additionally, introduces undesirable defects and contamination into the processing environment.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is an improved plasma source, and abatement system for abating compounds produced in semiconductor processes.
Embodiments disclosed herein include a plasma source, an abatement system and a vacuum processing system for abating compounds produced in semiconductor processes. In one embodiment, a plasma source is disclosed. The plasma source includes a first plate having an outer edge and an inner edge, a second plate parallel to the first plate, where the second plate has an outer edge and an inner edge, an outer wall disposed between the outer edges of the first and second plates, an electrode disposed between the inner edges of the first and second plates, a first plurality of magnets disposed on the first plate and a second plurality of magnets disposed on the second plate.
In another embodiment, an abatement system is disclosed. The abatement system includes a plasma source that includes a body having a first end and a second end, and the first end is configured to couple to a foreline and the second end is configured to couple to a conduit. The plasma source further includes an electrode disposed in the body, a first plurality of magnets disposed on a first plate of the body, and a second plurality of magnets disposed on a second plate of the body.
In another embodiment, a vacuum processing system is disclosed. The vacuum processing system includes a vacuum processing chamber, and a plasma source that includes a first plate having an outer edge and an inner edge, a second plate parallel to the first plate, where the second plate has an outer edge and an inner edge, an outer wall disposed between the outer edges of the first and second plates, an electrode disposed between the inner edges of the first and second plates, a first plurality of magnets disposed on the first plate and a second plurality of magnets disposed on the second plate.
So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the disclosure, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments.
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation.
The vacuum processing chamber 190 has a chamber exhaust port 191 coupled to the plasma source 100 of the abatement system 193 via a foreline 192. An exhaust of the plasma source 100 is coupled by an exhaust conduit 194 to pumps and facility exhaust, schematically indicated by a single reference numeral 196 in
The plasma source 100 is utilized to perform an abatement process on gases and/or other materials exiting the vacuum processing chamber 190 so that such gases and/or other materials may be converted into a more environmentally and/or process equipment friendly composition. Details of the plasma source 100 are further described below.
In some embodiment, an abating reagent source 114 is couple to the foreline 192 and/or the plasma source 100. The abating reagent source 114 provides an abatement reagent into the plasma source 100 which may be energized to react with or otherwise assist converting the materials to be exiting the vacuum processing chamber 190 into a more environmentally and/or process equipment friendly composition. Optionally, a purge gas source 115 may be coupled to the plasma source 100 for reducing deposition on components inside the plasma source 100.
An exhaust cooling apparatus 117 may be coupled between the plasma source 100 and the exhaust conduit 194 for reducing the temperature of the exhaust coming out of the plasma source 100. In one example, the exhaust cooling apparatus 117 is a part of the abatement system 193.
Optionally, a pressure regulating module 182 may be coupled to at least one of the plasma source 100 or exhaust conduit 194. The pressure regulating module 182 injects a pressure regulating gas, such as Ar, N, or other suitable gas which allows the pressure within the plasma source 100 to be better controlled, and thereby provide more efficient abatement performance. In one example, the pressure regulating module 182 is a part of the abatement system 193.
The plasma source 100 may include a body 102 having a first end 104 and a second end 106. The first end 104 may be parallel to the second end 106. The first end 104 may have an opening 120 configured to couple to the foreline 192 with or without a flange and the second end 106 may have an opening 122 configured to coupled to the exhaust cooling apparatus 117 with or without a flange. Flanges are shown and described further below with reference to
A gas mixture 110, such as the by-products in the effluent exiting the vacuum processing chamber 190 or in the example where the plasma source 100 is a remote plasma source, as precursor and/or carrier gases for generating a remote plasma, may enter the plasma source 100 through the opening 120 at the first end 104. The gas mixture 110 may be dissociated by a plasma formed in the plasma region 124 and treated by abating agents, and exiting as a less hazardous material through the opening 122 at the second end 106. The gas mixture 110 may split into two streams 110A and 110B by the opening 108 and then combine to stream 110C when exiting the body 102, indicated by path “A” shown in
The abating agent may include, for example, CH4, H2O, H2, NF3, SF6, F2, HCl, HF, Cl2, HBr, H2, H2O, O2, N2, O3, CO, CO2, NH3, N2O, CH4, and combinations thereof. The abating agent may also include a combination of CHxFy and O2 and/or H2O, and a combination of CFx and O2 and/or H2O. Different abating agent may be used for effluent having different compositions.
In order to keep the inner wall 206 cool during operation, a cooling jacket 220 may be coupled to the inner wall 206. The inner wall 206 may have a first surface 242 facing the outer wall 204 and a second surface 244 opposite the first surface. In one embodiment, both surfaces 242, 244 are linear and the cooling jacket 220 is coupled to the second surface 244. In one embodiment, the first surface 242 is curved and the second surface 244 is linear, as shown in
A first metal shield 250 may be disposed inside the plasma region 124 adjacent to the first plate 203, a second metal shield 252 may be disposed inside the plasma region 124 adjacent to the second plate 205, and a third metal shield 259 may be disposed in the plasma region adjacent to the outer wall 204. Shields 250, 252, 259 may be removable, replaceable and/or reusable since materials may be deposited thereon. The first metal shield 250 and the second metal shield 252 may have similar configuration. In one embodiment, both the first metal shield 250 and the second metal shield 252 have an annular shape. The first metal shield 250 and the second metal shield 252 each includes a stack of metal plates 254a-254e that are mutually isolated from one another. One or more gaps 272 (shown in
In one embodiment, the distance “D1” between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254a is smaller than the distance “D2” between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254b, which is smaller than the distance “D3” between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254c, which is smaller than the distance “D4” between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254d, which is smaller than the distance “D5” between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254e. In other words, the distance between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258 is related to the location of the plate, i.e., the further the plate is disposed from the plasma region 124, the greater distance between the inner edge 256 and the outer edge 258. In this configuration, the electrical voltage between the inner wall 206 and the outer wall 204 is divided by six, since there are six gaps: between the inner wall 206 and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254a, between the outer edge 258 of the plate 254a and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254b, between the outer edge 258 of the plate 254b and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254c, between the outer edge 258 of the plate 254c and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254d, between the outer edge 258 of the plate 254d and the outer edge 258 of the plate 254e, and between the outer edge 258 of the plate 254e and the outer wall 204. Each gap has a small electric potential so the electric field across the gap is small, such the area cannot light up and take the applied power, thus forcing the power to go into the plasma region 124, creating a plasma in the plasma region 124. Without the shields 250, 252 as described above, there could be a localized plasma discharge between the first end 216 of the inner wall 206 and the first end 212 of the outer wall 204 and between the second end 218 of the inner wall 206 and the second end 214 of the outer wall 204, and the plasma region 124 may not be filled with plasma.
The spaces between the metal plates 254a-254e may be dark spaces, which may be bridged with materials deposited on the plates, causing the plates to be shorted out to each other. To prevent this from happening, in one embodiment, each metal plate 254a-254e includes a step 262 so the outer edge 258 of each metal plate 254a-254e is further away from the adjacent plate. The step 262 causes the outer edge 258 to be non-linear with the inner edge 256. Each step 262 shields the dark space 264 formed between adjacent metal plates, so no material may be deposited in the dark space 264.
The outer wall 204, the inner wall 206, and the shields 250, 252, 259 may be all made of metal since metal is resistant to most chemistries used in the semiconductor processes. The type of metal used may be depending on the chemistry used in the vacuum processing chamber upstream of the plasma source 100. In one embodiment, a chlorine based chemistry is used and the metal may be stainless steel, such as 316 stainless steel. The insulating rings 230, 232 in chlorine based chemistry may be made of quartz. In another embodiment, a fluorine based chemistry is used and the metal may be aluminum and the insulating rings 230, 232 may be made of alumina. The inner wall 206 may be made of anodized aluminum or spray coated aluminum.
In one example, the plasma source includes a cylindrical electrode having a first end and a second end, an outer cylindrical wall surrounding the cylindrical electrode, and the outer cylindrical wall has a first end and a second end. The plasma source further includes a first annular plate having an inner edge and an outer edge, and the inner edge is in proximity to the first end of the cylindrical electrode and the outer edge is adjacent to the first end of the outer cylindrical wall. The plasma source further includes a second annular plate having an inner edge and an outer edge, and the inner edge is in proximity to the second end of the cylindrical electrode and the outer edge is adjacent to the second end of the outer cylindrical wall. A plasma region is defined by the cylindrical electrode, the outer cylindrical wall, the first annular plate and the second annular plate. The plasma source further includes a first plurality of magnets disposed on the first annular plate and a second plurality of magnets disposed on the second annular plate.
In another example, the plasma source includes a first annular plate having an outer edge and an inner edge, a second annular plate parallel to the first annular plate, where the second annular plate has an outer edge and an inner edge, and wherein the first annular plate has a surface facing the second annular plate and the second annular plate has a surface facing the first annular plate. The plasma source further includes an outer cylindrical wall disposed between the outer edges of the first and second annular plates, an cylindrical electrode disposed between the inner edges of the first and second annular plates, a first shield disposed adjacent to the surface of the first annular plate, and a second shield disposed adjacent to the surface of the second annular plate.
While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.
This application is a continuation application of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/498,920, filed on Sep. 26, 2014, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 62/050,555, filed Sep. 15, 2014, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/498,920 is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/199,974, filed Mar. 06, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,230,780, issued on Jan. 5, 2016. All of said applications are incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62050555 | Sep 2014 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14498920 | Sep 2014 | US |
Child | 14995187 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14199974 | Mar 2014 | US |
Child | 14498920 | US |