Process for patterning conductive line without after-corrosion
OwnerMasahiko Ohuchiinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An aluminum-copper alloy layer is patterned through a photo-lithography followed by a dry etching, and side walls of etching residue containing aluminum chloride, which is causative of after-corrosion in the aluminum-copper alloy line, is grown during the dry etching, wherein the side walls are exposed to gaseous mixture containing ionic water vapor so that hydrogen ion and/or the hydroxyl group reacts with the aluminum chloride, thereby converting the aluminum chloride to aluminum and/or aluminum hydroxide and hydrochloric acid vaporized into vacuum.
Claims15
A process for patterning a target layer, comprising the steps of:
- a) preparing a semiconductor structure having said target layer covered with an etching mask formed of photo-resist;
- b) exposing said semiconductor structure to an etchant containing halogen so as to form said target layer into a pattern partially covered with unintentional layers of etching residue containing pieces of said photo-resist and halide;
- c) exposing the resultant structure of said step b) to gaseous mixture containing ionic water vapor where at least one of H+ and OH− exists so that said halide reacts with said at least one of H+ and OH−;
- and
- d) ashing said photo-resist so as to remove said etching mask from the resultant structure of said step c).
An apparatus for patterning a target layer comprising:
- a partition wall defining a first chamber where a plasma generator, a wafer stage for mounting a semiconductor wafer and a temperature regulator for heating said semiconductor wafer on said wafer stage;
- a vacuum developer connected to said first chamber for creating vacuum in said first chamber;
- a vaporizer producing gaseous mixture containing ionic water vapor having at least one of H+ and OH− and supplying said gaseous mixture to said first chamber;
- and
- a gas supplying system for supplying gas containing oxidizing component to said first chamber for a plasma ashing.
The apparatus as set forth in claim 14, in which said partition wall further defines a second chamber for loading said semiconductor wafer from the outside, a third chamber for unloading said semiconductor wafer to said outside and a fourth chamber connectable to said first chamber, said second chamber and said third chamber and having a manipulator for conveying said semiconductor wafer therebetween, 16. The apparatus as set forth in claim 15, further comprising another gas supplying system for supplying an etching gas to said first chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.