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US 12,685,061 B2Granted
Apparatus and method for removal of oxide and carbon from semiconductor films in a single processing chamber
AssigneeASM IP Holding B.V.
InventorsXing Lin, Peipei Gao, Fei Wang, John Tolle, Bubesh Babu Jotheeswaran, Vish Ramanathan, Eric Hill
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Abstract
A system and method for removing both carbon-based contaminants and oxygen-based contaminants from a semiconductor substrate within a single process chamber is disclosed. The invention may comprise utilization of remote plasma units and multiple gas sources to perform the process within the single process chamber.
Claims20
A method for processing a semiconductor substrate comprising:
- providing a reaction chamber and a susceptor configured to hold a substrate;
- providing the substrate, wherein the substrate comprises a first material comprising silicon, germanium, and oxygen;
- performing an oxide conversion step on the substrate, the oxide conversion step comprising:
- (1) flowing a first gas into a first remote plasma unit to form a first radical gas comprising fluorine radicals;
- and (2) flowing the first radical gas onto the substrate;
- performing an oxide sublimation step on the substrate, the oxide sublimation step comprising:
- (1) a first heating step comprising heating the substrate to a temperature greater than 100° C.;
- and (2) after the first heating step, a second heating step comprising heating the substrate to a temperature greater than 250° C.;
- and
- performing a carbon removal step on the substrate, wherein the carbon removal step comprises flowing a second gas comprising hydrogen into a second remote plasma unit to form a second radical gas comprising hydrogen radicals, and flowing the second radical gas onto the substrate;
- wherein a transport path connects the first remote plasma unit and the second remote plasma unit to the reaction chamber;
- wherein the first remote plasma unit is dedicated for generating fluorine radicals and the second remote plasma unit is dedicated for generating hydrogen radicals;
- wherein the oxide conversion step, the oxide sublimation step, and the carbon removal step are each performed in the reaction chamber;
- and
- wherein any of the oxide conversion step, the oxide sublimation step, and the carbon removal step are repeated as needed.
12 more elements
A method for processing a semiconductor substrate comprising:
- providing a reaction chamber and a susceptor configured to hold a substrate;
- providing the substrate, wherein the substrate comprises a first material comprising carbon;
- performing a carbon removal step on the substrate, wherein the carbon removal step comprises producing hydrogen radicals in a second remote plasma unit and reacting the hydrogen radicals with carbon in the first material comprising carbon to produce gaseous hydrocarbons;
- after performing the carbon removal step, performing an oxide conversion step on the substrate, the oxide conversion step comprising:
- (1) flowing a first gas into a first remote plasma unit to form a first radical gas;
- and (2) flowing the first radical gas onto the substrate;
- performing an oxide sublimation step on the substrate, the oxide sublimation step comprising:
- (1) a first heating step;
- and (2) a second heating step;
- and
- wherein the carbon removal step, the oxide conversion step, and the oxide sublimation step are each performed in the reaction chamber;
- wherein a transport path connects the first remote plasma unit and the second remote plasma unit to the reaction chamber;
- wherein the first remote plasma is dedicated for generating fluorine radicals and the second remote plasma is dedicated for generating hydrogen radicals;
- wherein the first gas comprises at least one of:
- COF2 and WF6, and
- wherein any of the carbon removal step, the oxide conversion step, and the oxide sublimation step are repeated as needed.
13 more elements
A method for processing a semiconductor substrate comprising:
- providing an apparatus for processing a semiconductor substrate, comprising:
- a reaction chamber;
- a susceptor configured to hold a substrate;
- a first gas source for providing a first gas;
- a second gas source for providing a second gas, wherein the second gas comprises one or more of H2, NH3, or H2O, and one or more of O2 and O3;
- a remote plasma unit configured to receive the first gas and produce a first radical gas;
- a gas distribution device configured to flow the first radical gas and the second gas onto the substrate;
- and
- a transport path connecting the remote plasma unit to the gas distribution device,
- wherein the first radical gas passes through the gas distribution device onto the substrate;
- wherein the gas distribution device, the reaction chamber, the transport path, and the susceptor are coated with at least one of:
- lanthanum zirconium oxide (LZO);
- yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG);
- yttrium oxyfluoride (YOF);
- or yttrium oxide stabilized zirconium oxide (YSZ) lanthanum zirconium oxide (LZO);
- yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG);
- yttrium oxyfluoride (YOF);
- or yttrium oxide stabilized zirconium oxide (YSZ);
- performing an oxide conversion step on the substrate, the oxide conversion step comprising:
- (1) flowing the first gas into the remote plasma unit to form the first radical gas;
- and (2) flowing the first radical gas onto the substrate;
- performing an oxide sublimation step on the substrate, the oxide sublimation step comprising:
- (1) a first heating step;
- and (2) a second heating step;
- and
- performing a carbon removal step on the substrate, wherein the carbon removal step comprises forming flowing the second gas into the remote plasma unit to form the second radical gas;
- wherein the oxide conversion step, the oxide sublimation step, and the carbon removal step are each performed in the reaction chamber;
- and
- wherein any of the oxide conversion step, the oxide sublimation step, and the carbon removal step are repeated as needed,
- wherein the first radical gas comprises F radicals, and
- wherein the second radical gas comprises H radicals.
28 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.