Dopant diffusion with short high temperature anneal pulses
AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.
InventorWolfgang R. Aderhold
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for diffusing a dopant within a semiconductor device is described. The method includes performing a dynamic surface anneal in which a substrate is placed inside of a process volume with a mixture of an inert gas and a small amount of oxygen gas. The surface of the substrate is then exposed to one or more rapid laser pulses. The rapid laser bursts diffuse dopant from a doped layer into the substrate. The doped layer is formed during a previous process operation. The temperature and number of laser pulses control the amount of diffusion of the dopant into the substrate. Other dynamic surface anneal operations may be optionally performed before or after the oxygenated dynamic surface anneal operation.
Claims18
A method of diffusing a dopant, suitable for use during semiconductor processing, comprising:
- flowing an inert gas into a process volume of a process chamber;
- flowing an oxygen containing gas into the process volume such that an oxygen partial pressure of the oxygen containing gas is about 0.1% to about 10% within the process volume;
- and
- exposing a portion of a substrate within the process volume to one or more laser pulses to heat the portion of the substrate to a temperature of greater than about 850° C. and diffuse the dopant into the substrate, wherein a layer with a dopant concentration of greater than about 1·1020 atoms/cm3 is on a top surface of the substrate during exposing of the portion of the substrate to the one or more laser pulses.
A method of diffusing a dopant, suitable for use during semiconductor processing, comprising:
- depositing a doped layer with a dopant, the doped layer having a dopant concentration of greater than about 1·1020 atoms/cm3 on a top surface of a substrate in a first process chamber;
- and
- performing an oxygenated dynamic surface anneal comprising:
- flowing an inert gas into a process volume of a second process chamber;
- flowing an oxygen gas into the process volume of the second process chamber such that an oxygen partial pressure of the oxygen gas is about 0.1% to about 10% within the process volume;
- and
- exposing a portion of a substrate within the process volume to a one or more laser pulses to heat the portion of the substrate to a temperature of greater than about 800° C.
A method of diffusing a dopant, suitable for use during semiconductor processing, comprising:
- selectively depositing a doped layer with a dopant on a top surface of a substrate within a first process chamber, the doped layer having a dopant concentration of greater than about 1·1021 atoms/cm3;
- and
- performing an oxygenated dynamic surface anneal to diffuse the dopant into the substrate comprising:
- flowing an inert gas into a process volume of a second process chamber;
- flowing an oxygen gas into the process volume of the second process chamber such that an oxygen partial pressure of the oxygen gas is about 0.1% to about 10% within the process volume;
- and
- exposing a portion of a substrate within the process volume to a plurality of laser pulses to heat the portion of the substrate to a temperature of greater than about 800° C. and diffuse the dopant into the substrate;
- and
- removing an oxide formed on the substrate after the diffusing the dopant.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.