Patent Application
20250122622
Embodiments of the disclosure are directed to showerheads for semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers. In particular, embodiments of the disclosure are directed to showerhead designs for the plasma-enhanced deposition of molybdenum films.
Reliably producing submicron and smaller features is one of the key requirements of very large scale integration (VLSI) and ultra large scale integration (ULSI) of semiconductor devices. However, with the continued miniaturization of circuit technology, the dimensions of the size and pitch of circuit features, such as interconnects, have placed additional demands on processing capabilities. The various semiconductor components (e.g., interconnects, vias, capacitors, transistors) require precise placement of high aspect ratio features. Reliable formation of these components is critical to further increases in device and density.
Additionally, the electronic device industry and the semiconductor industry continue to strive for larger production yields while increasing the uniformity of layers deposited on substrates having increasingly larger surface areas. These same factors in combination with new materials also provide higher integration of circuits per unit area on the substrate.
As the dimensions of devices continue to shrink, so does the gap/space between the devices, increasing the difficulty to physically isolate the devices from one another. Filling in the high aspect ratio trenches/spaces/gaps between devices which are often irregularly shaped with high-quality dielectric materials is becoming an increasing challenge to implementation with existing methods including gap fill, hardmasks and spacer applications.
Molybdenum and molybdenum based films have attractive material and conductive properties. These films have been proposed and tested for applications from front end to back end parts of semiconductor and microelectronic devices. The Plasma-Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition (PEALD) of molybdenum requires high uniformity, medium to high temperature for seamless uniform gapfill with adequate throughput. These requirements can be difficult to achieve with existing processing chamber hardware and showerhead designs.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved showerheads and processing chambers for plasma-enhanced deposition of films.
One or more embodiments of the disclosure are directed to showerhead assemblies for semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers. The showerhead assemblies comprise a backing plate, a heater and a faceplate. The backing plate has a front surface and a back surface defining a thickness of the backing plate. An inlet opening is in a center of the backing plate extending through the thickness thereof. The backing plate has an outer portion and an inner portion, the front surface of the inner portion having a concave shape. The heater is embedded within the thickness of the backing plate. The heater has a circular shape with a radius measured from a center axis of the backing plate. The heater has a radius greater than a radius of the inner portion of the backing plate so that the heater is within the outer portion of the backing plate. The faceplate has a front surface and a back surface defining a thickness of the faceplate. The faceplate has an inner portion and an outer portion. A plurality of apertures extend through the thickness of the faceplate in the inner portion. A plurality of angled openings extend through the thickness of the outer portion of the faceplate. The plurality of angled openings have a front surface opening centered at a radius from a center axis of the faceplate greater than a back surface opening centered radius.
Additional embodiments of the disclosure are directed to semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers comprising a showerhead assembly as described herein. An inlet flange is connected to the back surface of the backing plate. The inlet flange has an inner channel aligned with the opening in the center of the backing plate. The inner channel has an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion has a larger inner diameter than an inner diameter of the lower portion. The processing chambers comprise a chamber sidewall and chamber bottom. The showerhead assembly is positioned to that the bottom surface of the pumping ring is in contact with a top surface of the chamber sidewall, forming an interior of the processing chamber. A substrate support is within the interior of the processing chamber. The substrate support has a support surface configured to support a wafer during processing. The support surface is spaced form the front surface of the faceplate to form a process gap.
Further embodiments of the disclosure are directed to showerhead assemblies for semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers. The showerhead assemblies comprise a backing plate, a faceplate and a pumping ring. The backing plate has a heater embedded within a thickness thereof. An inlet opening in a center of the backing plate extends through the thickness thereof. An inner portion of a front surface of the backing plate has a concave shape. The heater has a radius greater than a radius of the inner portion of the front surface. The faceplate has a plurality of apertures extending through a thickness of the faceplate at an inner portion of the faceplate. A plurality of angled openings extend through the thickness of the faceplate at an outer portion of the faceplate. The pumping ring is connected to the backing plate with a plurality of fasteners that extend through the faceplate.
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.
Before describing several exemplary embodiments of the disclosure, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not limited to the details of construction or process steps set forth in the following description. The disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways.
As used in this specification and the appended claims, the term “substrate” refers to a surface, or portion of a surface, upon which a process acts. It will also be understood by those skilled in the art that reference to a substrate can also refer to only a portion of the substrate, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Additionally, reference to depositing on a substrate can mean both a bare substrate and a substrate with one or more films or features deposited or formed thereon.
A “substrate” as used herein, refers to any substrate or material surface formed on a substrate upon which film processing is performed during a fabrication process. For example, a substrate surface on which processing can be performed include materials such as silicon, silicon oxide, strained silicon, silicon on insulator (SOI), carbon doped silicon oxides, amorphous silicon, doped silicon, germanium, gallium arsenide, glass, sapphire, and any other materials such as metals, metal nitrides, metal alloys, and other conductive materials, depending on the application. Substrates include, without limitation, semiconductor wafers. Substrates may be exposed to a pretreatment process to polish, etch, reduce, oxidize, hydroxylate, anneal, UV cure, e-beam cure and/or bake the substrate surface. In addition to film processing directly on the surface of the substrate itself, in the present disclosure, any of the film processing steps disclosed may also be performed on an underlayer formed on the substrate as disclosed in more detail below, and the term “substrate surface” is intended to include such underlayer as the context indicates. Thus, for example, where a film/layer or partial film/layer has been deposited onto a substrate surface, the exposed surface of the newly deposited film/layer becomes the substrate surface.
“Atomic layer deposition” or “cyclical deposition” as used herein refers to a process comprising the sequential exposure of two or more reactive compounds to deposit a layer of material on a substrate surface. “Atomic layer deposition” or “cyclical deposition” as used herein refers to a process comprising the sequential exposure of two or more reactive compounds to deposit a layer of material on a substrate surface. The substrate, or portion of the substrate, is exposed separately to the two or more reactive compounds which are introduced into a reaction zone of a processing chamber. In a time-domain ALD process, exposure to each reactive compound is separated by a time delay to allow each compound to adhere and/or react on the substrate surface and then be purged from the processing chamber. These reactive compounds are said to be exposed to the substrate sequentially. In a spatial ALD process, different portions of the substrate surface, or material on the substrate surface, are exposed simultaneously to the two or more reactive compounds so that any given point on the substrate is substantially not exposed to more than one reactive compound simultaneously. As used in this specification and the appended claims, the term “substantially” used in this respect means, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, that there is the possibility that a small portion of the substrate may be exposed to multiple reactive gases simultaneously due to diffusion, and that the simultaneous exposure is unintended.
In one aspect of a time-domain ALD process, a first reactive gas (i.e., a first precursor or compound A) is pulsed into the reaction zone followed by a first time delay. Next, a second precursor or compound B is pulsed into the reaction zone followed by a second delay. During each time delay, a purge gas, such as argon, is introduced into the processing chamber to purge the reaction zone or otherwise remove any residual reactive compound or reaction by-products from the reaction zone. Alternatively, the purge gas may flow continuously throughout the deposition process so that only the purge gas flows during the time delay between pulses of reactive compounds. The reactive compounds are alternatively pulsed until a desired film or film thickness is formed on the substrate surface. In either scenario, the ALD process of pulsing compound A, purge gas, compound B and purge gas is a cycle. A cycle can start with either compound A or compound B and continue the respective order of the cycle until achieving a film with the predetermined thickness.
In an embodiment of a spatial ALD process, a first reactive gas and second reactive gas (e.g., nitrogen gas) are delivered simultaneously to the reaction zone but are separated by an inert gas curtain and/or a vacuum curtain. The substrate is moved relative to the gas delivery apparatus so that any given point on the substrate is exposed to the first reactive gas and the second reactive gas. The gas curtain can be any suitable gas separation arrangement known to the skilled artisan. For example, in some embodiments of a spatial ALD process chamber, a gas curtain is formed by a combination of purge gas ports and vacuum ports to maintain separation between the reactive gases to prevent gas-phase reactions. In some embodiments of a spatial ALD process chamber, separate process stations are configured to form a mini-process environment within each station.
As used in this specification and the appended claims, the terms “reactive compound”, “reactive gas”, “reactive species”, “precursor”, “process gas” and the like are used interchangeably to mean a substance with a species capable of reacting with the substrate surface or material on the substrate surface in a surface reaction (e.g., chemisorption, oxidation, reduction, cycloaddition). The substrate, or portion of the substrate, is exposed sequentially to the two or more reactive compounds which are introduced into a reaction zone of a processing chamber.
Embodiments of the disclosure provide process chambers and showerheads for process chambers that enable the plasma-enhanced gapfill of molybdenum using existing station architecture with minimal design changes and decreased costs.
Some embodiments of the showerhead design enable new precursor delivery for conductively coupled plasma (CCP) molybdenum process. Improvements over existing designs include, but are not limited to, the incorporation of non-symmetric showerhead contacts, thinner gas box design and simplified embedded tubular heater for thermal uniformity and design simplification/cost reduction. As used herein, the terms “gas box” and “backing plate” are used interchangeably, as will be understood by the skilled artisan. A coated gas box plenum (also referred to as a showerhead plenum or showerhead assembly plenum) is used for chemical compatibility and elimination of the upper lid of the chamber for cost reduction.
Embodiments of the disclosure include an embedded tubular heater versus the previous machined component which holds a tubular heater with graphite sheet for contact. Some embodiments incorporate a thinner gas box (backing plate) by eliminating the need for cooling channels. Some embodiments adjust gas flow through the length of the gas manifold.
Some embodiments include a non-symmetrical minimum contact between the pumping ring and the showerhead faceplate to create a separation from the chamber body, which acts as a heat sink.
Some embodiments include a coated gas box plenum and/or coated faceplate for chemistry compatibility. Some embodiments provide increased emissivity to aid in the heating of the gas box and/or faceplate. In some embodiments, the gas box plenum has a coating with an emissivity in the range of 0.8-0.9.
Some embodiments provide for chlorine compatibility and moisture permeation improvements. Some embodiments eliminate the need for isolation valves for each station of a multi-station processing chamber through continuous inert gas purge to prevent back streaming from the remote plasma source (RPS).
In an exemplary four station chamber, edge temperature uniformity is lower than the center due to conductive heat transfer from the showerhead to the chamber through the pumping liner. To mitigate thermal non-uniformity, minimum contact is applied on the pumping liner to minimize conductive heat transfer from the showerhead to the pumping liner. The minimum contact of some embodiments means that the contact area at the edge has a gap greater than 0.1 mm, 0.15 mm, 0.2 mm, 0.25 mm or 0.3 mm.
In some embodiments, the process chamber has the heating coil location moved to the gas box (backing plate). The faceplate edge temperature and wafer edge temperature is usually lower than the center due to heat loss at the edge. For example, heat loss occurs due to the contact with the chamber wall which acts as a heat sink. To mitigate thermal non-uniformity, in some embodiments, the coil heater is applied at the gas box (backing plate) with a radius of about 150 mm.
With reference to
The semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers 100 comprises a chamber body 101 with a sidewall 102 and bottom wall 103. The chamber body 101, in conjunction with the showerhead assembly 110 encloses an interior 105 of the semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers 100. The sidewall 102 and bottom wall 103 can be integrally formed or separate component connected together by any suitable connection or fastener known to the skilled artisan. During processing, the interior 105 of the semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers 100 is typically maintained at a controlled pressure (usually a low pressure environment) using one or more gas inlet (not shown) and one or more exhaust (not shown). The skilled artisan will be familiar with the general construction of a chamber body 101 and the use of gas inlets and exhaust systems.
The backing plate 120 has an inner portion 124 and an outer portion 125. The backing plate 120 contacts the faceplate 130 at the outer portion outer portion 125. The front surface 121 of the backing plate 120 at the inner portion 124 has a concave shape. The concave shape of some embodiments has a linear slope from the inlet opening 123 to the outer peripheral edge 126 of the inner portion 124, as illustrated in the Figures. In some embodiments, the concave shape is curved from the inlet opening 123 to the outer peripheral edge 126 of the inner portion 124.
The backing plate 120 has an inlet opening 123 in a center thereof. The inlet opening 123 extends through the thickness of the backing plate 120 from the back surface 122 to the front surface 121. The central axis 127 of the backing plate 120 is defined as the center of the inlet opening 123. The outer peripheral edge 126 of the inner portion 124 of the front surface 121 of some embodiments is concentric with the inlet opening 123. While the backing plate 120 of some embodiments has an oblong or non-symmetrical shape, the central axis 127 remains at the center of the inlet opening 123 even if that is not the center of mass of the backing plate 120.
The thickness TBP of the backing plate 120 is measured at the outer peripheral edge of the backing plate 120. Stated differently, the thickness TBP of the backing plate 120 is measured at the outer portion 125 of the front surface 121 of the backing plate 120 relative to the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120. In some embodiments, the thickness TBP of the backing plate 120 is in the range of 0.5 inch to 1.5 inch, or about 1 inch.
A heater 150 is embedded within a thickness TBP of the backing plate 120. The heater 150 of some embodiments is positioned within a recess 152 formed in the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120. The recess 152 of some embodiments has a depth DR, measured from the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120 that is at least the thickness of the heater 150. In some embodiments, the depth DR of the recess 152 is in the range of 20% to 80%, or 30% to 70%, or 50% to 60% of the thickness TBP of the backing plate 120.
The heater 150 can be any suitable heating mechanism known to the skilled artisan. In some embodiments, the heater 150 comprises a resistive heating element. As used herein, the term “heater” is used interchangeably with “heating element”, “heater element” or “heating coil” and refers to the generally ring-shaped material that generates heat upon application of sufficient power from a power source 156 through any suitable electrical connection line 158.
The radius rH of the heater 150 is measured from the central axis 127 of the backing plate 120 to the center of the width WH of the heating element, as shown in
In some embodiments, heater 150 has a radius rH greater than a radius n of the inner portion 124 of the front surface 121 of the backing plate 120. In some embodiments, the heater 150 has a radius rH greater than a radius n of the inner portion 125 of the front surface 121 of the backing plate 120 so that the heater 150 is within the outer portion 125 of the backing plate 120. Stated differently, in some embodiments, the heater 150 has a radius r greater than the radius n of the inner portion 125 of the front surface front surface 121 of the backing plate 120 plus half the width WH of the heater 150.
To mitigate thermal non-uniformity, in some embodiments, the coil heater is applied at the gas box with a radius of about 150 mm. In some embodiments, the heater 150 has a radius rH of about 150 mm so that the center of the heater 150 is positioned over the edge of a 300 mm wafer positioned on a substrate support within the processing chamber. In some embodiments, the heater 150 has a radius rH greater than or equal to 150 mm, 155 mm, 160 mm, 165 mm, 170 mm, 175 mm, 180 mm, 185 mm, 190 mm, 195 mm, 200 mm, 202.5 mm, 205 mm, 207.5 mm, 210 mm, 212.5 mm, 215 mm or 220 mm. Stated differently, in some embodiments, the heater 150 has a centerline diameter greater than or equal to 380 mm, 390 mm, 395 mm, 400 mm, 405 mm, 410 mm, 415 mm, 420 mm, 425 mm, 430 mm, 435 mm or 440 mm. The heater 150 of some embodiments has a radius rH less than 250 mm, 240 mm or 230 mm. In some embodiments, the radius rH is in the range of 150 mm to 250 mm, or in the range of 160 mm to 240 mm, or in the range of 175 mm to 235 mm.
In some embodiments, as shown in the Figures, the heater 150 is positioned in a heater recess 152 formed in the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120, and the heater 150 is covered in the heater recess 152 by a heater cover plate 154. The heater cover plate 154 of some embodiments has a thickness TCP in the range of 1 mm to 10 mm, or in the range of 2 mm to 5 mm, or about 3 mm. The heater cover plate 154 of some embodiments is friction fit into the recess 152. In some embodiments, the heater cover plate 154 is permanently affixed to the recess 152 (e.g., welded, fastened). In some embodiments, the heater element is located at a diameter in the range of 400 mm to 440 mm, centered around the opening 123.
Including the heater 150 in the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120 allows for reduced thickness of the backing plate 120. Typically, additional lid components are included with the processing chamber so that cooling channels are embedded within the backing plate 120. By moving the heater 150 to be embedded in the backing plate 120 at the outer portion, the cooling channels can be omitted, reducing the overall thickness of the backing plate 120 and eliminating the need for the additional lid components.
The faceplate 130 has an inner portion 133 and an outer portion 134. The inner portion 133 of the faceplate 130 aligns with the inner portion 124 of the backing plate 120 and the outer portion 134 of the faceplate 130 aligns with the outer portion 125 of the backing plate 120. The inner portion 133 of the faceplate 130 comprises a plurality of apertures 135 extending through the thickness TF of the faceplate 130.
The plurality of angled openings 137 are angled inwardly from the front surface 131 to the back surface 132 of the faceplate 130. Stated differently, the plurality of angled openings 137 have a front surface opening 137f centered at a radius rOF from a center axis 136 of the faceplate 130 that is larger than a back surface opening 137b centered at a radius ROB from the center axis 136. The center axis 136 of the faceplate 130 is coaxial with the central axis 127 of the backing plate 120. In some embodiments, the diameter of the backing plate is in the range of 300 mm to 320 mm, or about 310 mm.
In some embodiments, the plurality of angled openings 137 have an angle relative to the front surface 131 of the faceplate 130 in the range of 75° to 15°, or in the range of 60° to 30°, or in the range of 50° to 40°.
Referring to
When the front surface 121 of the outer portion 125 of the backing plate 120 is in contact with the outer portion 134 of the back surface 132 of the faceplate 130, a gas box plenum 129 is formed in the space between the front surface 121 of the inner portion 124 of the backing plate 120 and the inner portion 133 of the back surface 132 of the faceplate 130.
In some embodiments, the gas box plenum 129 has a coating to improve chemical compatibility. In some embodiments, the coating covers the entire front surface 121 of the backing plate 120 and the entire back surface 132 of the faceplate 130, including in the inlet opening 123 of the backing plate 120 and the plurality of apertures 135 of the faceplate 130. In some embodiments, the coating is only on the portions of the backing plate 120 and faceplate 130 that will come into contact with the process gases.
In some embodiments, one or more of the backing plate 120 or faceplate 130 comprises a material with increased emissivity, aiding in the heating of the backing plate 120 or faceplate 130. In some embodiments, one or more of the backing plate 120 or faceplate 130 have a coating that increases the emissivity. In some embodiments, the emissivity of the coated gas box plenum 129 is increased, aiding the heating of the gas box (backing plate 120) and/or faceplate 130.
Some embodiments provide for chlorine compatibility and moisture permeation improvements. Without being bound by any particular theory of operation, it is believed that the dual seal and differential pumping of the volume between O-rings increases the chloring compatibility and moisture permeation of the system.
Some embodiments of the showerhead assembly 110 further comprise a pumping ring 140. Referring to
In some embodiments, the pumping ring 140 is connected to the backing plate 120 with a plurality of fasteners 139 that extend through the faceplate 130, as shown in
In some embodiments, the pumping ring 140 has a recess 143 in the front surface 141 to form a pumping volume when the front surface 141 of the pumping ring 140 is adjacent another surface. For example, as shown in
At least one aperture 146 extends between the recess 143 in the front surface 141 of the pumping ring 140 and the back surface 142 of the pumping ring 140. The at least one aperture 146 has a radius equal to a radius of the front surface opening 137f of the angled openings 137 in the faceplate 130.
It has been surprisingly found that locating the heating coil (heater 150) at the edge of the inner portion 124 of the backing plate 120 reduces the faceplate 130 temperature non-uniformity by at least 25%, 30%, 35%, 36% or 40%. In some embodiments, the minimum contact design between the pumping liner 140 and the faceplate 130 reduces the showerhead temperature non-uniformity by at least 10%, 15%, 18%, 20% or 25%. In a conventional processing chamber, with normal contact area between the showerhead and the pumping ring, the temperature non-uniformity on the faceplate, measured center to edge, is greater than 5.5° C. or 6° C. In some embodiments, the temperature non-uniformity on the faceplate 130 is less than or equal to 5° C., 4° C., 3.5° C., 3.25° C., 3° C., 2.5° C. or 2.3° C. when the faceplate 130 is set at 150° C.
In some embodiments, the pumping ring 140 has a non-symmetrical shape. For example, as shown in the Figures, one side or portion of the pumping ring 140 extends further from the central axis 147 of the pumping ring 140. As shown in
The cutouts in the front surface 141 of the pumping ring 140 allow for minimum contact with the sidewall 102 of the chamber body 101 which acts as a heat sink during processing. The inventors have surprisingly found that the non-symmetrical minimum contact between the pumping ring 140 and the heat sink creates sufficient separation to the faceplate 130 to reduce the temperature non-uniformity of the faceplate 130 during processing. The sidewall 102 of the chamber body may include a choke plate 116. The choke plate 116 of some embodiments is a separate component that fits within the chamber body and is at least partially supported by or in contact with the sidewall 102 of the chamber body 101. In some embodiments, the minimum contact described herein is maintained between the pumping ring 140 and the choke plate 116 in addition to between the pumping ring 140 and the faceplate 130.
During use, the backing plate 120, faceplate 130 and pumping ring 140, in addition to other components, may be separated by one or more O-rings to help maintain a fluid-tight seal for the processing chamber.
In some embodiments, the showerhead assembly 110 includes an inner backing plate O-ring 160 between the backing plate 120 and the faceplate 130. The inner backing plate O-ring 160 has a radius r160 greater than or equal to a radius of the inner portion n of the front surface 121 of the backing plate 120.
In some embodiments, the showerhead assembly 110 includes an outer backing plate O-ring 161 between the backing plate 120 and the faceplate 130. The outer backing plate O-ring 161 has a radius r161 greater than the radius r160 of the inner backing plate O-ring 160. The radius r160 of the inner backing plate O-ring 160 is smaller than radius rOB of the back surface opening 137b of the angled openings 137 in the faceplate 130. The radius r161 of the outer backing plate O-ring 161 is greater than the radius rOB of the back surface opening 137b of the angled openings 137 in the faceplate 130.
Some embodiments of the showerhead assembly 110 include an inner pumping ring O-ring 162 and/or an outer pumping ring O-ring 163. The inner pumping ring O-ring 162 has a radius r162 smaller than radius rOF of the front surface openings 137f of the angled openings 137 in the faceplate 130. In some embodiments, the outer pumping ring O-ring 163 has a radius r163 greater than the radius rOF of the front surface openings 137f of the angled openings 137 in the faceplate 130.
Referring again to
A substrate support 170 is located within the interior 105 of the semiconductor manufacturing processing chamber 100. The substrate support 170 of some embodiments comprises a support body 171 positioned on a support shaft 172. The support body 171 has a support surface 173 configured to support a semiconductor wafer 108 for processing. The support shaft 172 of some embodiments is configured to move the support body 171 closer to/further from the faceplate 130 and/or around a rotational axis of the support shaft 172. During processing, the support surface 173 is spaced from the front surface 131 of the faceplate 130 to form a process gap 168.
In some embodiments, the support body 171 includes a thermal element 174 configured to heat the semiconductor wafer 108 on the support surface 173. The thermal element 174 can be any suitable heating mechanism known to the skilled artisan. For example, in some embodiments, the thermal element 174 comprises a resistive heating element that is connected to a power supply (not shown) configured to apply power to the thermal element 174 to heat the support body 171. In some embodiments, the support body 171 includes an electrostatic chuck (ESC) (not shown). The skilled artisan will be familiar with the construction of the ESC and the manner in which the ESC is powered and employed.
In some embodiments, the semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers 100 further comprises an inlet flange 180 connected to the back surface 122 of the backing plate 120. The inlet flange 180 has an inner channel 181 aligned with the opening 123 in the center of the backing plate 120. The inner channel 181 of some embodiments has an upper portion 181a and a lower portion 181b. The upper portion 181a has a larger inner diameter than an inner diameter of the lower portion 181b.
In some embodiments, the showerhead assembly 110 is positioned to that the bottom surface 141 of the pumping ring 140 is in contact with a top surface 104 of the chamber sidewall 102, forming an interior 105 of the processing chamber 100. In some embodiments, the top surface 104 of the chamber sidewall 102 has a choke plate 116 positioned thereon with the pumping ring 140 in contact with the choke plate 116. In some embodiments, the heater 150 within the backing plate 120 is positioned so that the heater 150 is located over the top surface 104 of the sidewall 102. The skilled artisan will recognize that the pumping ring 140 can be in contact with the top surface 104 of the chamber sidewall 102 through the choke plate 116, or the pumping ring 140 can be in direct contact with the top surface 104 of the chamber sidewall 102. As used in this manner, “direct contact” means that the stated parts touch without an intervening component. In some embodiments, the pumping ring 140 is in direct contact with the choke plate 116 and the choke plate 116 is in direct contact with the top surface 104 of the chamber sidewall 102.
Some embodiments of the semiconductor manufacturing processing chamber 100 further comprise a remote plasma source (RPS) 185 connected to the inlet flange 180. In use, a plasma generated in the remote plasma source 185 flows through the inlet flange 180 into the gas box plenum 129. In some embodiments, an inert gas purge line (not shown) is connected to the inner channel 181 of the inlet flange 180 to provide a continuous inert gas purge to prevent back streaming of gases to the remote plasma source 185. In some embodiments, the inert gas purge line is connected to the lower portion 181b of the inner channel 181 within 50 mm of the upper portion 181a of the inner channel 181. In some embodiments, inclusion of the inert gas purge eliminates the need for an isolation valve through continuous inert gas purge.
In some embodiments, as shown in
In the semiconductor manufacturing processing chambers 100 of some embodiments, the front surface 141 of the pumping ring 140 has minimal contact with the chamber sidewall 102 to minimize heat transfer between the faceplate 130 and the chamber sidewall 102.
In some embodiments, the minimum contact is formed between the pumping ring liner 117 and the pumping ring 140 and between the pumping ring liner 117 and the choke plate 116.
In some embodiments, as shown in
There can be any suitable number of standoffs 192 depending on, for example, the size of the choke plate 116, and the material of construction. In the illustrated embodiments, there are six standoffs 192 on each of the top surface 116a and bottom surface 116b of the choke plate 116. In some embodiments, there are three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12 or more standoffs independently on the top surface 116a and the bottom surface 116b of the choke plate 116. The size of the standoffs 192 can be configured to maintain minimum contact between the adjacent components.
In some embodiments, the minimum contact is formed between the top surface of the choke plate 116 and the bottom surface of the pumping liner cover 117. In some embodiments, the minimum contact is formed between the bottom surface of the choke plate 116 and the top surface of the chamber wall 102. In some embodiments, the minimum contact is formed between the choke plate 116 and both the chamber wall 102 and the pumping liner cover 117 and/or pumping liner 140.
In an exemplary four station chamber, edge temperature uniformity is lower than the center due to conductive heat transfer from the showerhead to the chamber through the pumping liner. To mitigate thermal non-uniformity, minimum contact is applied on the pumping liner to minimize conductive heat transfer from the showerhead to the pumping liner. The minimum contact of some embodiments means that the contact area at the edge has a gap greater than 0.1 mm, 0.15 mm, 0.2 mm, 0.25 mm or 0.3 mm.
Some embodiments of the disclosure are directed to multi-station processing chambers. For example, as shown in
Embodiments of the disclosure provide process chambers and showerheads for process chambers that enable the plasma-enhanced gapfill of molybdenum using existing station architecture with minimal design changes and decreased costs. Embodiments of the disclosure improve the gapfill process by decreasing the size of the process gap, leading to faster cycle times, improved thermal uniformity and better plasma stability.
Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “certain embodiments,” “one or more embodiments” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure. Thus, the appearances of the phrases such as “in one or more embodiments,” “in certain embodiments,” “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment of the disclosure. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
Although the disclosure herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that the embodiments described are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the method and apparatus of the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure can include modifications and variations that are within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
