Patent Application
20250051955
The present disclosure relates to a method of adjusting a plating module.
Cup-type electroplating apparatus has been known as one example of plating apparatus. In the cup-type electroplating apparatus, a substrate (for example, a semiconductor wafer) held by a substrate holder in such an arrangement that a surface to be plated of the substrate (plating surface) faces down is soaked in a plating solution, and a voltage is applied between the substrate and an anode, so that a conductive film (plating film) deposits on the surface of the substrate. In this plating apparatus, a plating module is assembled by aligning center axes and adjusting degrees of parallelism of a wafer and respective components (an anode and an electric-field control component) in a plating tank. Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2020-176303 (Patent Document 1) describes a method that places a jig provided with an optical sensor in a plating tank and performs positioning of respective components in the plating tank.
In some cases, however, the configuration of the plating tank is not suitable for positioning by using the jig provided with the optical sensor like the method described in Patent Document 1. Furthermore, in some cases, it is difficult to perfectly align the center axes and adjust the degrees of parallelism of the wafer and the respective components of the plating module with no errors. In such cases, axis misalignment and difference in degree of parallelism between the wafer and the respective components of the plating module and/or dimensional tolerances of the respective components are likely to affect a film thickness distribution in a wafer plane. This changes the film thickness mainly in an outer circumferential portion of the wafer and worsen the in-plane uniformity. There is accordingly a possibility that individual plating modules have different in-plane uniformities in the distribution of the plating film thickness, due to individual variability among the plating modules.
By taking into account the currently required uniformity in the distribution of the plating film thickness, the present processing accuracies of the respective components of the plating module have significant effects on the uniformity in the distribution of the plating film thickness. The prior art method of adjusting the plating module accordingly has difficulty in achieving a desired uniformity.
One object of the present invention is to provide a method of adjusting a plating module that suppresses or prevents reduction of uniformity in plating film thickness due to individual variability among plating modules.
According to one aspect, there is provided a method of adjusting a plating module, wherein the plating module comprises a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate, an anode placed to be opposed to the substrate holder, and a plate placed between the substrate holder and the anode to serve as an ionically resistive element. The method comprises: providing a plating module of initial setting, which is initially set in such a state that a porosity in an outer circumferential portion of the plate is adjusted to reduce a plating film thickness in an outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than a film thickness in another portion; and adjusting a distance between the substrate holder and the plate so as to flatten a distribution of plating film thickness of the entire substrate by adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate such as to increase a film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate according to a film thickness distribution of the substrate that is plated in the plating module.
The following describes embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to drawings. In the drawings described below, identical or equivalent components are expressed by identical reference signs, and duplicated description is omitted.
The load port 100 is a module for loading a substrate housed in a cassette, such as a FOUP, (not illustrated) to the plating apparatus 1000 and unloading the substrate from the plating apparatus 1000 to the cassette. While the four load ports 100 are arranged in the horizontal direction in this embodiment, the number of load ports 100 and arrangement of the load ports 100 are arbitrary. The transfer robot 110 is a robot for transferring the substrate that is configured to grip or release the substrate between the load port 100, the aligner 120, and the transfer device 700. The transfer robot 110 and the transfer device 700 can perform delivery and receipt of the substrate via a temporary placement table (not illustrated) to grip or release the substrate between the transfer robot 110 and the transfer device 700.
The aligner 120 is a module for adjusting a position of an orientation flat, a notch, and the like of the substrate in a predetermined direction. While the two aligners 120 are disposed to be arranged in the horizontal direction in this embodiment, the number of aligners 120 and arrangement of the aligners 120 are arbitrary. The pre-wet module 200 wets a surface to be plated of the substrate before a plating process with a process liquid, such as pure water or deaerated water, to replace air inside a pattern formed on the surface of the substrate with the process liquid. The pre-wet module 200 is configured to perform a pre-wet process to facilitate supplying the plating solution to the inside of the pattern by replacing the process liquid inside the pattern with a plating solution during plating. While the two pre-wet modules 200 are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in this embodiment, the number of pre-wet modules 200 and arrangement of the pre-wet modules 200 are arbitrary.
For example, the pre-soak module 300 is configured to remove an oxidized film having a large electrical resistance present on, a surface of a seed layer formed on the surface to be plated of the substrate before the plating process by etching with a process liquid, such as sulfuric acid and hydrochloric acid, and perform a pre-soak process that cleans or activates a surface of a plating base layer. While the two pre-soak modules 300 are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in this embodiment, the number of pre-soak modules 300 and arrangement of the pre-soak modules 300 are arbitrary. The plating module 400 performs the plating process on the substrate. There are two sets of the 12 plating modules 400 arranged by three in the vertical direction and by four in the horizontal direction, and the total 24 plating modules 400 are disposed in this embodiment, but the number of plating modules 400 and arrangement of the plating modules 400 are arbitrary.
The cleaning module 500 is configured to perform a cleaning process on the substrate to remove the plating solution or the like left on the substrate after the plating process. While the two cleaning modules 500 are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in this embodiment, the number of cleaning modules 500 and arrangement of the cleaning modules 500 are arbitrary. The spin rinse dryer 600 is a module for rotating the substrate after the cleaning process at high speed and drying the substrate. While the two spin rinse dryers are disposed to be arranged in the vertical direction in this embodiment, the number of spin rinse dryers and arrangement of the spin rinse dryers are arbitrary. The transfer device 700 is a device for transfer the substrate between the plurality of modules inside the plating apparatus 1000. The control module 800 is configured to control the plurality of modules in the plating apparatus 1000 and can be configured of, for example, a general computer including input/output interfaces with an operator or a dedicated computer. The control module 800 may be provided with a non-volatile storage medium to store therein programs, parameters and the like used for controlling the respective parts of the plating apparatus or may be configured to make communication with such a storage medium.
An example of a sequence of the plating processes by the plating apparatus 1000 will be described. First, the substrate housed in the cassette is loaded on the load port 100. Subsequently, the transfer robot 110 grips the substrate from the cassette at the load port 100 and transfers the substrate to the aligners 120. The aligner 120 adjusts the position of the orientation flat, the notch, or the like of the substrate in the predetermined direction. The transfer robot 110 grips or releases the substrate whose direction is adjusted with the aligners 120 to the transfer device 700.
The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate received from the transfer robot 110 to the pre-wet module 200. The pre-wet module 200 performs the pre-wet process on the substrate. The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate on which the pre-wet process has been performed to the pre-soak module 300. The pre-soak module 300 performs the pre-soak process on the substrate. The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate on which the pre-soak process has been performed to the plating module 400. The plating module 400 performs the plating process on the substrate.
The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate on which the plating process has been performed to the cleaning module 500. The cleaning module 500 performs the cleaning process on the substrate. The transfer device 700 transfers the substrate on which the cleaning process has been performed to the spin rinse dryer 600. The spin rinse dryer 600 performs the drying process on the substrate. The transfer device 700 grips or releases the substrate on which the drying process has been performed to the transfer robot 110. The transfer robot 110 transfers the substrate received from the transfer device 700 to the cassette at the load port 100. Finally, the cassette housing the substrate is unloaded from the load port 100.
The plating apparatus 1000 of this embodiment is further provided with a film thickness measurement device 900. The transfer robot 110 is configured to transfer the substrate on which the drying process has been performed, to the film thickness measurement device 900, before being transferred to the cassette at the load port 100, and the film thickness measurement device 900 is configured to measure the thickness of a plating film (distribution of the plating film thickness) on the substrate. According to a modification, a film thickness measurement device may be provided separately from and outside of the plating apparatus 1000, in place of the film thickness measurement device 900 provided in the plating apparatus. The substrate placed in the cassette may be transferred to the film thickness measurement device outside of the plating apparatus 1000 to be subjected to measurement of the distribution of the plating film thickness.
The plating module 400 includes a plating tank 401, a substrate holder (also called as a head) 403 serving as a substrate holding tool, and a plating solution storage tank 404. The head 403 is configured to hold a substrate 402, such as a wafer, in such a manner that a surface to be plated of the substrate 402 faces down. The plating module 400 is provided with a motor 411 configured to rotate the head 403 in a circumferential direction. The motor 411 receives supply of electric power from a non-illustrated power supply. The motor 411 is controlled by the control module 800 to control rotations of the head 403 and of the substrate 402 held by the head 403. In other words, the control module 800 controls the rotation of the motor 411 and thereby controls the number of rotations (also called as the rotational frequency or the rotation speed) per unit time of the substrate 402. Rotating the substrate 402 forms a solution current or flow of the plating solution in the vicinity of the surface of the substrate and uniformly supplies a sufficient amount of ion to the substrate. An anode 410 is placed in the plating tank 401 to be opposed to the substrate 402. The anode 410 may be provided with an anode mask 414 (shown in
The plating module 400 also includes a plating solution receiving tank 408. The plating solution in the plating solution storage tank 404 is supplied through a filter 406 and a plating solution supply pipe 407 via a bottom portion of the plating tank 401 into the plating tank 401 by means of a pump 405. The plating solution flowing over from the plating tank 401 is received in the plating solution receiving tank 408 and is returned to the plating solution storage tank 404.
The plating module 400 is also provided with a power supply 409 that is connected with the substrate 402 and the anode 410. When a predetermined voltage (a DC voltage or a pulse voltage) is applied from the power supply 409 to between the substrate 402 and the anode 410 with rotation of the head 403 by the motor 411, plating current flows between the anode 410 and the substrate 402 to form a plating film on the surface to be plated of the substrate 402.
Furthermore, a plate (ionically resistive element) 10 for adjustment of electric field where a plurality of apertures are provided is placed between the substrate 402 and the anode 410. The plate 10 is one example of the electric-field control component.
An opening area of the apertures 12 per unit area in the aperture forming area on the plate 10 is referred to as an aperture ratio or a porosity. The aperture ratio or the porosity is inversely proportional to a resistance value of the plate 10 (a resistance value relative to the flow of ions or relative to the plating current), and the local aperture ratio or the local porosity is inversely proportional to a local resistance value. The diameter or the shape of the apertures 12 in each divisional area may be changed to change a total aperture area in each divisional area and to adjust the local aperture ratio or the local porosity.
Referring back to
In the adjustment of decreasing the height of the head 403 from the standard height hs to make the head 403 closer to the plate 10 (adjustment in a direction of decreasing the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate 402), however, the head 403 is likely to collide with the paddle 412. The embodiment accordingly employs an adjustment method that sets in advance the film thickness of the outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be less than a desired film thickness by simulation or the like and that makes adjustment in a direction of increasing the head height (head-plate distance) h according to the degree of finishing variability of the plating module, so as to flatten the distribution of the plating film thickness from the center to the outer circumferential portion of the substrate 402.
The adjustment method subsequently sets, for example, the porosity (aperture ratio) in a divisional area on the outermost circumference of the plate 10 shown in
The adjustment method subsequently adjusts the head height (head-plate distance) h to flatten the film thickness distribution caused by the finishing variability among the respective modules (a variety of misalignment, difference and dimensional tolerances).
In this simulation, it was assumed that the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate (flow rate on the surface of the substrate) was not changed with a change in the head height h. As described later, according to the embodiment, the vertical position and/or the motion velocity of the paddle 412 is changed corresponding to a shift in the position of the head 403 from a reference position (h=hs), so as not to change the flow rate on the surface of the substrate.
A plating module actually manufactured and assembled is expected to be in a range from Case 1 to Case 2 of
A general method performs initial setting of a plating module to flatten the film thickness distribution. The method of this embodiment is, on the other hand, characterized by performing initial setting of a plating module in order to reduce the film thickness on the outermost circumference in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate and subsequently adjusting the head-plate distance according to the finishing of the plating module (assembled plating module) that is unknown in advance, so as to provide a flat film thickness distribution of the substrate.
At step S10, the adjustment method determines an optimum module configuration (including the materials, the shapes, the dimensions and the arrangement of the respective components) under the conditions of Standard Std. The conditions of Standard Std. are that the axis misalignment, the difference in the degree of parallelism and the dimensional tolerances are zero and that a plating module having ideal dimensions and ideal arrangement of the respective components is finished. The module configuration determined under the conditions of Standard Std. corresponds to the curve of Std. shown in
At step S20, the adjustment method determines the conditions (module configurations) of Case 1 having the maximum film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate as described above and of Case 2 having the minimum film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate as described above in the range of the dimensional tolerances of the respective components (the head, the plate and the anode). These conditions include the axis misalignment, the difference in degree of parallelism, and/or the dimensional errors of the respective components (the head, the plate and the anode). The module configuration of the Case 1 and the module configuration of Case 2 respectively correspond to the curve of Case 1 and the curve of Case 2 shown in
At step S30, the adjustment method changes the opening area of the divisional area on the outermost circumference of the plate in the module configuration under the conditions of Standard Std. determined at step S10. The changed opening area is to be such a value that reduces the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate even under the conditions of Case 1 and to be such a value that an amount of change in the head height required to flatten the film thickness distribution (S70 described later) is in a movable range of the head height even under the conditions of Case 2. Excessively reducing the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion in Case 1 (the module configuration that maximizes the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate) excessively reduces the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion in Case 2 (the module configuration that minimizes the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate) and is likely to fail in flattening the film thickness distribution by adjustment (adjustment of the head height h) in the movable range of the head. Accordingly, the adjustment method confirms whether the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate by the changed opening area of the plate is adjustable in the movable range of the head height. For example, the adjustment method may perform an experiment or a simulation to calculate in advance an amount of film thickness (maximum adjustment amount) in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate that is adjustable by the maximum movable amount of the head height, such that a required amount of adjustment in the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate in Case 2 is within the maximum adjustment amount.
The adjustment method first performs a simulation shown in
At step S40, the adjustment method manufactures and assembles a plating module having the module configuration of initial setting determined at step S30. At step S50, the adjustment method actually performs plating of a substrate in the assembled plating module. At step S60, the adjustment method measures the distribution of the plating film thickness of the plated substrate by using the film thickness measurement device 900 and determines whether the film thickness distribution is flat or not. For example, a procedure of this determination may calculate an in-plane uniformity from the film thickness distribution of the plated substrate and may confirm whether the in-plane uniformity is in a desired range. When the film thickness distribution is determined to be flat, the adjustment method terminates the adjustment of the plating module 400 (step S80). The measurement and the determination of the distribution of the plating film thickness may be performed by using the film thickness measurement device 900 of the plating apparatus 1000 or by using the film thickness measurement device 900 provided outside of the plating apparatus 1000.
When it is determined at step S60 that the film thickness distribution is not flat, on the other hand, the adjustment method proceeds to step S70. In this example, it is assumed that the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate is still smaller than the film thickness in the center portion of the substrate. At step S70, the adjustment method increases the head height (head-plate distance) h by a predetermined amount (for example, 0.1 mm) to increase the plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate. The adjustment of the head height (head-plate distance) h may be performed automatically by the control module 800 or may be performed manually. As described later, adjustment of the height and/or the motion velocity of the paddle 412 is also performed, not to change the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate (flow rate on the surface of the substrate) by stirring the plating solution with the paddle 412, accompanied with an increase in the head height h. The adjustment of the height and/or the motion velocity of the paddle 412 may be performed automatically by the control module 800 or may be performed manually (for example, by the user to change the motion velocity of the paddle 412 according to a recipe). The adjustment method performs plating of the substrate again in the plating module 400 with the increased head height h and measures the film thickness distribution of the plated substrate (step S50) and determines whether the film thickness distribution is flat or not (step S60). As described above, the processing of steps S70, S50 and S60 is repeated until it is determined at step S60 that the film thickness distribution of the substrate is flat. When it is determined at step S60 that the film thickness distribution of the substrate is flat, the adjustment method terminates the adjustment of the plating module (step S80).
The adjustment method of the plating module according to the embodiment performs initial setting of the plating module by adjusting the opening area of the divisional area on the outermost circumference of the plate 10, so as to reduce the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate. The adjustment method subsequently adjusts the plating module by adjusting the head height (head-plate distance) h according to the finishing of the assembled plating module (film thickness distribution of the plated substrate) that is unknown in advance, so as to provide a flat film thickness distribution. The adjustment method of the plating module according to the embodiment may be performed for adjustment of the plating module prior to full operation. Furthermore, even when the uniformity of the distribution of the plating film thickness is lowered after full operation, the adjustment method of the plating module according to the embodiment may be performed by adjusting the head height (head-plate distance) h.
In the first example, as shown in
In the second example, the paddle mechanism is integrated with the plating tank 401, and a lifting mechanism 451 of moving the head 403 in a vertical direction (shown by an arrow 461) and a lifting mechanism 452 of moving the paddle mechanism in a vertical direction (shown by an arrow 462) are provided as shown in
In the third example, the paddle mechanism is integrated with the plating tank 401, and control is performed to change the motion velocity of the paddle 412 shown by an arrow 463 with a lift-up or lift-down of the head 403 (shown by an arrow 461) and to keep the flow rate on the surface of the substrate constant, without a lifting mechanism provided to lift up and down the paddle mechanism, as shown in
The data showing the relationship between the flow rate on the surface and the substrate-paddle distance at the respective motion velocities of the paddle (
(1) The embodiment described above adjusts the opening area (porosity) of the divisional area on the outermost circumference of the plate 10. A modification may adjust the opening area (porosity) of one or multiple adjacent divisional areas including a divisional area on the outermost circumference.
(2) The embodiment described above adjusts one of the position and the motion velocity of the paddle 412 such as to keep constant the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle 412 before and after adjustment of the distance between the head 403 and the plate 410. A modification may combine adjustment of the position of the paddle 412 (shown in
(3) The configuration of the embodiment described above moves the head, while fixing the plate, to change the head-plate distance. A modification may move the plate, while fixing the head. Another modification may use lifting mechanisms provided respectively for the head and for the plate and move both the head and plate to adjust the head-plate distance. In the configuration of moving the plate with fixing the head, the head (substrate)-paddle distance is unchanged before and after the adjustment of the head-plate distance. Accordingly, the adjustment of making the flow rate on the surface constant described with reference to
(4) The above embodiment describes the cup-type plating module. The configuration of the embodiment is, however, also applicable to a dip-type plating module or any other plating module.
The description of the embodiments described above include at least aspects given below.
[1] According to one aspect, there is provided a method of adjusting a plating module, wherein the plating module comprises a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate, an anode placed to be opposed to the substrate holder, and a plate placed between the substrate holder and the anode to serve as an ionically resistive element. The method comprises: providing a plating module of initial setting, which is initially set in such a state that a porosity in an outer circumferential portion of the plate is adjusted to reduce a plating film thickness in an outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than a film thickness in the other or another portion; and adjusting a distance between the substrate holder and the plate so as to flatten a distribution of plating film thickness of the entire substrate by adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate such as to increase a film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate according to a film thickness distribution of the substrate that is plated in the plating module.
The configuration of this aspect provides the plating module of the initial setting in such a state as to reduce the distribution of the plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate, and performs adjustment of increasing the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate by adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate according to the film thickness distribution of the substrate that is actually plated in the plating module. This configuration accordingly adjusts the plating module such as to flatten the distribution of the plating film thickness of the entire substrate. This allows for adjustment of the plating module such as to flatten the distribution of the plating film thickness of the entire substrate, irrespective of individual variability among plating modules (axis misalignment and difference in degree of parallelism between respective components in a plating tank and dimensional tolerances of respective components).
Furthermore, the adjustment of increasing the film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate is adjustment in a direction of increasing the distance between the substrate holder and the plate. This suppresses or prevents the substrate holder from colliding with a paddle or the plate.
[2] According to one aspect, the method may further comprise performing simulation by taking into account misalignment of center axes of respective components, a difference in degree of parallelism and/or dimensional tolerances of respective components of the plating module to determine a module configuration of the plating module of the initial setting, wherein the respective components may include the substrate holder, the anode and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect provides the initial setting in such a state as to reduce the distribution in the plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than the film thickness distribution in the other or another portion, irrespective of the individual variability among the plating modules. This configuration flattens the distribution of the plating film thickness of the entire substrate by the adjustment in the direction of increasing the distance between the substrate holder and the plate, irrespective of the individual variability among the plating modules.
[3] According to one aspect, the simulation may comprise: determining a module configuration of a standard condition that provides zero or minimum misalignment of the center axes of the respective components, zero or minimum difference in degree of parallelism and/or zero or minimum dimensional tolerances of the respective components in the plating module and a module configuration of a first condition that provides a maximum plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate due to the misalignment of the center axes of the respective components, the difference in degree of parallelism and/or the dimensional tolerances of the respective components in the plating module; determining a porosity in the outer circumferential portion of the plate, such as to reduce the film thickness distribution in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than a film thickness distribution in the other or another portion with regard to the module configuration of the first condition; and applying the determined porosity to the module configuration of the standard condition, so as to determine the module configuration of the initial setting.
The configuration of this aspect uses the porosity determined with regard to the module configuration having errors (misalignment of the center axes, difference in the degree of parallelism and/or divisional tolerances) that maximize the plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate, for the initial setting. This configuration accordingly allows for the initial setting in such a state as to reduce the distribution of the plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate, irrespective of the individual variability among the assembled plating modules. Furthermore, manufacture and assembly of the plating module are performed with aiming to the standard condition that provides zero or minimum errors. Accordingly, the determined porosity is applied to the module configuration of the standard condition.
[4] According to one aspect, the plating module may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution. The method may further comprise adjusting a position of the paddle relative to the substrate holder and/or a motion velocity of the paddle, such as to keep constant a flow rate of the plating solution on a surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect enables the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate (the flow rate on the surface of the substrate) by stirring with the paddle to be kept constant, before and after adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate. This configuration accordingly reduces or eliminates the effect of a change in the flow rate on the surface of the substrate upon the plating quality, for example, in-plane uniformity of the distribution of the plating film thickness. Furthermore, this configuration eliminates the effect of the change in the flow rate on the surface of the substrate and enables desired adjustment of the distribution of the plating film thickness to be more readily performed by adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
[5] According to one aspect, the adjusting the distance between the substrate holder and the plate may comprise moving the substrate holder and the paddle by an identical distance, so as to keep a distance between the substrate holder and the paddle constant.
The configuration of this aspect enables the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate to be kept constant by the simple adjustment.
[6] According to one aspect, the distance between the substrate holder and the paddle may be kept constant by integrally moving the substrate holder and the paddle.
The configuration of this aspect integrally moves the substrate holder and the paddle, so as to more reliably keep the distance between the substrate holder and the paddle constant.
[7] According to one aspect, the distance between the substrate holder and the paddle may be kept constant by separately moving the substrate holder and the paddle by an identical distance.
The configuration of this aspect separately moves the substrate holder and the paddle. This more readily configures the mechanism of moving the substrate holder and the paddle respectively.
[8] According to one aspect, the motion velocity of the paddle may be adjusted to keep constant the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect allows for omission of the mechanism of adjusting the position of the paddle. This accordingly suppresses or prevents an increase in size of the module and/or an increase in cost of the module.
[9] According to one aspect, adjustment of the position of the paddle and adjustment of the motion velocity of the paddle may be combined, such as to keep constant the flow rate of the plating solution on the surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect combines the adjustment of the position of the paddle with the adjustment of the motion velocity of the paddle. This enables the substrate holder to be moved in a wide range, while limiting respective ranges of changes in the position and the motion velocity of the paddle.
[10] According to one aspect, the porosity in the outer circumferential portion of the plate may be adjusted by adjusting an opening area of apertures provided on an outermost circumference or provided on the outermost circumference and one or multiple adjacent circumferences adjacent to the outermost circumference, among apertures provided on a plurality of concentric circumferences on the plate.
The configuration of this aspect enables the local opening area to be adjusted by changing the diameter and/or the shape or the like of the apertures in the outer circumferential portion of the plate. This accordingly enables the porosity in the outer circumferential portion of the plate to be readily adjusted with high accuracy.
[11] According to one aspect, there is provided a non-volatile storage medium storing therein a program that causes a computer to perform a method of adjusting a plating module, wherein the plating module comprises a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate, an anode placed to be opposed to the substrate holder, and a plate placed between the substrate holder and the anode to serve as an ionically resistive element. The program causes the computer to adjust a distance between the substrate holder and the plate so as to flatten a distribution of plating film thickness of the entire substrate by adjustment of the distance between the substrate holder and the plate such as to increase a film thickness in an outer circumferential portion of the substrate according to a film thickness distribution of the substrate that is plated in the plating module of initial setting, which is initially set in such a state that a porosity in an outer circumferential portion of the plate is adjusted to reduce a plating film thickness in the outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than a film thickness in the other or another portion.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [1]. This configuration also enables the adjustment in an assembled plating module to be performed automatically.
[12] According to one aspect, the plating module may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution, and the program may cause the computer to adjust a position of the paddle relative to the substrate holder and/or a motion velocity of the paddle, such as to keep constant a flow rate of the plating solution on a surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of a distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [4]. This configuration also enables the adjustment in an assembled plating module to be performed automatically.
[13] According to one aspect, there is provided an apparatus for plating, comprising: a plating module comprising a substrate holder configured to hold a substrate, an anode placed to be opposed to the substrate holder, and a plate placed between the substrate holder and the anode to serve as an ionically resistive element and being set to reduce a plating film thickness in an outer circumferential portion of the substrate to be smaller than a film thickness in the other or another portion; and a first moving mechanism configured to move the substrate holder and/or the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [1].
[14] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution, wherein the first moving mechanism may be configured to move the substrate holder and the paddle integrally relative to the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [6].
[15] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution; and a second moving mechanism configured to move the paddle to be closer to and away from the substrate holder.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [7].
[16] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a control module, wherein the control module may control the first moving mechanism according to a film thickness distribution of the substrate that is plated in the plating module, so as to adjust the distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [1]. This configuration also enables evaluation of plating in an assembled plating module and adjustment of the plating module to be performed automatically.
[17] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a control module, wherein the control module may control the first moving mechanism to move the substrate holder and the paddle integrally, while keeping a distance between the substrate holder and the paddle constant.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [6]. This configuration also enables evaluation of plating in an assembled plating module and adjustment of the plating module to be performed automatically.
[18] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a control module, wherein the control module may control the first moving mechanism and the second moving mechanism to move the substrate holder and the paddle, such as to keep a distance between the substrate holder and the paddle constant.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [7]. This configuration also enables evaluation of plating in an assembled plating module and adjustment of the plating module to be performed automatically.
[19] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution; a driving mechanism configured to reciprocate the paddle parallel to the substrate; and a control module, wherein the control module may control the driving mechanism to adjust a moving velocity of the paddle, such as to keep constant a flow rate of the plating solution on a surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of a distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [8]. This configuration also enables the adjustment in an assembled plating module to be performed automatically.
[20] According to one aspect, the apparatus may further comprise a paddle placed between the substrate holder and the plate to stir a plating solution; a second moving mechanism configured to move the paddle to be closer to and away from the substrate holder; a driving mechanism configured to reciprocate the paddle parallel to the substrate; and a control module, wherein the control module may control the second moving mechanism and the driving mechanism to move the paddle and to adjust a motion velocity of the paddle, such as to keep constant a flow rate of the plating solution on a surface of the substrate by stirring with the paddle, before and after adjustment of a distance between the substrate holder and the plate.
The configuration of this aspect has similar functions and advantageous effects to those described above with regard to [9]. This configuration also enables the adjustment in an assembled plating module to be performed automatically.
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described based on some examples, the embodiments of the invention described above are presented to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention. The present invention can be altered and improved without departing from the subject matter of the present invention, and it is needless to say that the present invention includes equivalents thereof. In addition, it is possible to arbitrarily combine or omit respective constituent elements described in the claims and the specification in a range where at least a part of the above-mentioned problem can be solved or a range where at least a part of the effect is exhibited. The entire disclosure of Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2020-176303 (Patent Document 1) including the specification, claims, drawings and abstract is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/781,363 filed May 31, 2022, which is a U.S. National Phase Application of International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2021/008670 filed Mar. 5, 2021, which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties for any and all purposes.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 17781363 | May 2022 | US |
| Child | 18929090 | US |
