Gas-phase chemical reactor and method of using same
AssigneeASM IP Holding B.V.
InventorAntti Juhani Niskanen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A gas-phase chemical reactor, a system including the reactor, and methods of using the reactor and system are disclosed. An exemplary reactor includes a reaction chamber and is configured to provide a precursor within the reaction chamber for a soak period—e.g., a period wherein a supply of the precursor to the reaction chamber is ceased and before purging of the reaction chamber begins. This allows relatively high residence times, relatively high partial pressures of the precursor(s) and/or a relatively high absolute pressure to be obtained within the reaction chamber during substrate processing.
Claims20
A gas-phase chemical reactor comprising:
- a reaction chamber for processing a substrate;
- a load/unload chamber comprising an opening to receive the substrate;
- a valve actuatable to seal the opening,
- a susceptor having a top surface to receive the substrate, wherein the susceptor is moveable within the load/unload chamber, and wherein a top surface of the susceptor defines at least a portion of a bottom section of the reaction chamber when the substrate is in a processing position;
- and,
- a vacuum source for evacuating the load/unload chamber;
- wherein the reactor comprises a controller for controlling a precursor delivery process and an evacuation process, the controller comprising a memory being programmed to enable the controller to execute the following steps:
- while the susceptor is in the processing position, providing a precursor to the reaction chamber and retaining the precursor within the reaction chamber for a soak period, while evacuating the load/unload chamber with the vacuum source, and
- evacuating the reaction chamber by moving the susceptor into the load/unload chamber.
A method comprising the steps of:
- moving a susceptor from a load/unload position to a processing position;
- while the susceptor is in the processing position,
- providing a precursor to a reaction chamber, while evacuating a load/unload chamber;
- and
- ceasing a flow of the precursor for a soak period;
- and
- after the soak period, moving the susceptor into the load/unload chamber to expose the substrate to a second pressure that is lower than the first pressure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.