High voltage, low pressure plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition
AssigneeLotus Applied Technology, LLC
InventorEric R. Dickey
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Abstract
Atomic layer deposition (ALD) methods and barrier films are disclosed. A method of performing ALD includes placing a substrate proximal an electrode coupled to a power supply, exposing the substrate to an oxygen-containing gas or a nitrogen-containing gas at or below 0.8 Torr, and applying, with the power supply, a voltage to the electrode of at least 700 Volts to induce a plasma state in the oxygen-containing gas or the nitrogen-containing gas proximal the substrate. High quality barrier films can be made with the methods.
Claims20
A method of performing atomic layer deposition, the method comprising:
- placing a substrate proximal an electrode coupled to a power supply;
- exposing the substrate to a process gas comprising an oxygen-containing gas, a nitrogen-containing gas, or mixtures thereof, at a pressure at or below 0.8 Torr;
- and
- applying, with the power supply, a voltage to the at least one electrode of at least 700 Volts to induce a plasma state in the process gas proximal the substrate.
repeating the exposing steps to grow a metal oxide film, metal nitride film, or combinations thereof, on the substrate.
A method of modulating stress in a thin film, the method comprising:
- providing a plasma-enabled atomic layer deposition (ALD) reactor with a DC power supply;
- placing a substrate proximal an electrode coupled to the DC power supply of the ALD reactor;
- exposing the substrate to a process gas comprising an oxygen-containing gas, a nitrogen-containing gas, or mixture thereof at a first pressure at or below 0.8 Torr and applying, with the DC power supply, a first voltage to the electrode of at least 700 Volts to induce a plasma state in the process gas proximal the substrate;
- subsequently exposing the substrate to a gaseous metal precursor and forming a metal oxide, metal nitride, or combinations thereof on the substrate;
- repeating the exposing acts to grow a metal oxide film, metal nitride film, or combinations thereof, on the substrate to form a first film having a first type of stress;
- modulating the first pressure to a second pressure at or below 0.8 Torr and modulating the first voltage to a second voltage of at least 700 Volts, wherein the first voltage and the second voltage are applied at the same power over time or the same average power over time;
- exposing the substrate to the process gas at the second pressure and applying, with the DC power supply, the second voltage to the electrode to induce a plasma state in the process gas proximal the substrate;
- subsequently exposing the substrate to a gaseous metal precursor and forming a metal oxide, metal nitride, or combinations thereof on the substrate;
- and
- repeating the exposing acts to grow a metal oxide film, metal nitride film, or combinations thereof, on the substrate to form a second film having a second type of stress, wherein a final film comprising the first film and the second film has a different amount, type, or both of stress from the first film.
A barrier formed on a substrate, the barrier comprising a thin film formed from alternating exposure of the substrate to a gaseous metal-containing precursor and a low-pressure, high-voltage oxygen or nitrogen plasma, the thin film having a high density and low stress, wherein the low-pressure, high-voltage oxygen or nitrogen plasma has a pressure of 0.1 to 0.8 Torr and the voltage is 700 Volts to 1500 Volts, wherein the thin film has either a tensile stress less than 200 MPa or a compressive stress less than −200 MPa, and wherein the thin film has a theoretical density of greater than 90%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.