# US 10,246,775 B2 · Film forming apparatus, method of forming film, and storage medium

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- Number: US 10,246,775 B2
- Document ID: US10246775B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/661,476
- Filed: 2017-07-27
- Published: 2018-02-08
- Granted: 2019-04-02
- Earliest claimed: 2016-08-03
- Assignees: Tokyo Electron Limited
- Applicants: Tokyo Electron Limited
- Inventors: Hitoshi Kato
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10246775B2

## CPC

- C23C 16/45527: {characterized by the ALD cycle, e.g. different flows or temperatures during half-reactions, unusual pulsing sequence, use of precursor mixtures or auxiliary reactants or activations}
- C23C 16/345: {Silicon nitride}
- C23C 16/45542: {Plasma being used non-continuously during the ALD reactions}
- C23C 16/45544: {characterized by the apparatus}
- C23C 16/45551: {for relative movement of the substrate and the gas injectors or half-reaction reactor compartments}
- C23C 16/45578: {Elongated nozzles, tubes with holes}
- H10P 14/6339: {deposition by cyclic CVD, e.g. ALD, ALE or pulsed CVD}
- H10P 14/69433: {the material being a silicon nitride not containing oxygen, e.g. SixNy or SixByNz}
- H10P 72/7618: {characterised by a movable susceptor, stage or support, others than those only rotating on their own vertical axis, e.g. susceptors on a rotating carrousel}
- H10P 72/7621: {characterised by supporting two or more semiconductor substrates}
- C23C: COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL (making metal-coated products by extrusion B21C23/22; covering with metal by connecting pre-existing layers to articles, see the relevant places, e.g. B21D39/00, B23K; metallising of glass C03C; metallising mortars, concrete, artificial stone, ceramics or natural stone C04B41/00; enamelling of, or applying a vitreous layer to, metals C23D; treating metal surfaces or coating of metals by electrolysis or electrophoresis C25D; single-crystal film growth C30B; by metallising textiles D06M11/83; decorating textiles by locally metallising D06Q1/04)
- H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10

## Abstract

An apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate in a processing container under vacuum atmosphere by alternately supplying a first gas and a second gas, which are process gases, onto the substrate, including: n first processing regions spaced from each other along circumferential direction of the processing container and used to process the substrate by supplying the first gas; n second processing regions formed between the n first processing regions along the circumferential direction and used to process the substrate by supplying the second gas; an isolation part isolating the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions; mounting parts disposed to be revolved along the circumferential direction and used to mount substrates; and a control part intermittently revolving mounting parts so that the substrates are alternately located in the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions while a revolution is stopped.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate in a processing container under a vacuum atmosphere by performing a cycle a predetermined number of times, the cycle including alternately supplying a first gas and a second gas, which are process gases, onto the substrate, comprising:
n first processing regions (n being an integer of 2 or more) which are spaced from each other along a circumferential direction of the processing container, and are used to process the substrate by supplying the first gas;
n second processing regions which are formed between the n first processing regions along the circumferential direction, and are used to process the substrate by supplying the second gas;
an isolation part which isolates the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions from each other;
a plurality of mounting parts which are disposed to be revolved along the circumferential direction and are used to mount substrates, respectively; and
a control part configured to intermittently revolve the plurality of mounting parts so that the substrates are alternately located in the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions in a state where a revolution is stopped,
wherein the plurality of mounting parts are disposed so that a first number of substrates located in the n first processing regions is the same as a second number of substrates located in the n second processing regions in a state where the revolution of the plurality of mounting parts is stopped.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first gas is a precursor gas which is a thin film precursor to be adsorbed on the substrate, and the second gas is a reaction gas reacting with the precursor gas to generate a reaction product.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a first gas supply time for supplying the first gas required in the n first processing regions is different from a second gas supply time for supplying the second gas required in the n second processing regions, and a rotary table is stopped in accordance with a longer gas supply time of the first gas supply time and the second gas supply time.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the first gas supply time is set shorter than the second gas supply time when the time for which the required first gas is supplied is shorter than the time for which the required second gas is supplied, and the second gas supply time is set shorter than the first gas supply time when the time for which the required second gas is supplied is shorter than the time for which the required first gas is supplied.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a rotation mechanism configured to rotate each of the plurality of mounting parts with respect to a rotation axis of each of the plurality of mounting parts, wherein the substrates are mounted on the plurality of mounting parts, and each of the plurality of mounting parts is rotated with respect to the rotation axis of each of the plurality of mounting parts at least when the process gases is supplied onto the substrates.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a rotary table which is rotated on an axis of the rotary table in the circumferential direction of the processing container, wherein the plurality of mounting parts are disposed on an upper surface of the rotary table.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the substrates are alternately stopped in the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions in an intermittent rotation mode by intermittently revolving the plurality of mounting parts, and the substrates are successively passed through the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions in a continuous rotation mode by continuously revolving the plurality of mounting parts, and
wherein the control part is configured to select one of the intermittent rotation mode and the continuous rotation mode.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein, when the first number of substrates and the second number of substrates are the same, a number of the plurality of mounting parts is set so that the plurality of mounting parts of the substrates are located in the isolation part, and
wherein, when the continuous rotation mode is selected, the substrates are mounted on all of the plurality of mounting parts.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising lift pins delivering the substrates to and from an external substrate transfer mechanism, and being ascended/descended through a plurality of through holes formed in the plurality of mounting parts,
wherein, when the intermittent rotation mode is selected, the control part outputs a control signal to mount dummy substrates on the plurality of mounting parts located in the isolation part when the first number of substrates and the second number of substrates are the same, in order to block the through-holes of the plurality of mounting parts.

### Claim 10

A method of forming a thin film on a substrate in a processing container under a vacuum atmosphere by alternately supplying a first gas and a second gas, which are process gases, a predetermined number of times onto the substrate, the method comprising:
forming, in the processing container, n first processing regions (n being an integer of 2 or more) spaced from each other along the circumferential direction of the processing container and n second processing regions along the circumferential direction with an isolation part interposed between the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions;
installing 2n×m (m being an integer of 1 or more) mounting parts which are disposed to be revolved along a circumferential direction and are used to mount substrates, respectively; and
repeating a cycle a predetermined number of time, the cycle including:
(1) mounting the substrates on the mounting parts;
(2) supplying a first gas and a second gas, which are process gases, into the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions, respectively, in a state where a revolution of the mounting parts is stopped so that the substrates are located in each of the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions;
subsequently revolving the mounting parts to locate the substrates, which were located in each of the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions, in adjacent processing regions; and
thereafter supplying the first gas and the second gas into the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions, respectively, in a state where the revolution of the mounting parts is stopped.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the first gas is a precursor gas which is a thin film precursor to be adsorbed on the substrates, and the second gas is a reaction gas reacting with the precursor gas to generate a reaction product.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the substrates are mounted on the mounting parts, and each of the mounting parts is rotated with respect to a rotation axis of each of the mounting parts at least in a state where the process gases are supplied onto the substrates.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the substrates are alternately stopped in the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions in an intermittent rotation mode by intermittently revolving the plurality of mounting parts, and the substrates successively pass through the n first processing regions and the n second processing regions in a continuous rotation mode by continuously revolving the mounting parts, and
wherein one of the intermittent rotation mode and a continuous rotation mode is selected to perform a film forming process on a substrate, and then the other of the intermittent rotation mode and the continuous rotation mode is selected to perform a film forming process on the subsequent substrate.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program used for a film forming apparatus for forming a thin film on a substrate in a processing container forming a vacuum atmosphere by performing a cycle a predetermined number of times, the cycle including alternately supplying a first gas and a second gas, which are process gases, onto the substrate, the computer program comprising a group of steps so as to execute the film forming method of claim 10.