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US 12,590,374 B2Granted
Selective thermal atomic layer etching
AssigneeVersum Materials US, LLC
InventorsRavindra Kanjolia, Jean-Sébastien Lehn, Martin E. McBriarty, Ronald Pearlstein, Jared Leith McWilliams, Nguyen Minh Vu
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Abstract
The disclosed and claimed subject matter relates to selective thermal atomic layer etching with a novel series of halogen-free organic acids cycled with an oxidant as a co-reactant to etch metals.
Claims31
A thermal atomic layer etching process performed in a reactor for selectively etching a metal substrate comprising the steps of:
- Step 1 comprising sequentially performing:
- Step 1A comprising exposing a metal surface to an oxidizing vapor comprising one or more of water vapor, oxygen, ozone, nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, hydrogen peroxide, oxygen plasma, and combinations thereof, and
- Step 1B comprising purging the oxidizing vapor with an inert gas;
- and
- Step 2 comprising sequentially performing:
- Step 2A comprising exposing the metal surface to one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer, and
- Step 2B comprising purging the one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer with an inert gas;
- wherein one cycle of the process is determined by the formula (Step 1)n+(Step 2)m, wherein n and m are each independently=1-20, and wherein the Step 2A one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer is heated to and held at from about 50° C. to about 100° C.
5 more elements
A thermal atomic layer etching process performed in a reactor for selectively etching a metal substrate comprising the steps of:
- Step 1 comprising sequentially performing:
- Step 1A comprising exposing a metal surface to an oxidizing vapor comprising one or more of water vapor, oxygen, ozone, nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, hydrogen peroxide, oxygen plasma, and combinations thereof, and
- Step 1B comprising purging the oxidizing vapor with an inert gas;
- and
- Step 2 comprising sequentially performing:
- Step 2A comprising exposing the metal surface to one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer, and
- Step 2B comprising purging the one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer with an inert gas;
- wherein one cycle of the process is determined by the formula (Step 1) n+ (Step 2) m, wherein n and m are each independently=1-20 and wherein the Step 2A one or more halogen-free organic acid volatizer comprises one or more of propionic acid, isobutyric acid, pivalic acid and combinations thereof.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.