# US 2025/0167167 A1 · Die Stacking with Integrated Thermal Treatment

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- Number: US 2025/0167167 A1
- Document ID: US20250167167A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 18/408,820
- Filed: 2024-01-10
- Published: 2025-05-22
- Earliest claimed: 2023-11-17
- Assignees: Applied Materials, Inc.
- Applicants: Applied Materials, Inc.
- Inventors: Ying WANG; Ke ZHENG; Raymond HUNG; ChangBum YONG; Guan Huei SEE; Gaurav MEHTA
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20250167167A1

## CPC

- H10W 90/00: Package configurations
- H10W 72/0711: {Apparatus therefor}
- H10W 80/312: {characterised by the direct bonding of electrically conductive pads}
- H10W 80/327: {characterised by the direct bonding of insulating parts, e.g. of silicon oxide layers}
- H10W 80/331: {characterised by the application of energy for connecting}
- H10W: GENERIC PACKAGES, INTERCONNECTIONS, CONNECTORS OR OTHER CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10

## Abstract

Methods and apparatus for substrate processing are provided. In some embodiments, a substrate processing method includes: sequentially stacking a plurality of dies on a substrate into a stacked assembly; thermally treating the plurality of dies; and stacking at least one additional die atop the thermally treated plurality of dies.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A substrate processing method, comprising:
sequentially stacking a plurality of dies on a substrate into a stacked assembly;
thermally treating the plurality of dies; and
stacking at least one additional die atop the thermally treated plurality of dies.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising annealing the stacked assembly and the at least one additional die after stacking the at least one additional die, wherein thermally treating is performed at at least one of a lower temperature or a shorter duration than the annealing.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed after stacking a certain number of dies of the plurality of dies on the substrate.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, wherein the certain number is less than or equal to half of the plurality of dies.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating and stacking are performed in separate processing chambers of an integrated bonder system.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating includes contacting at least one of the plurality of dies using a thermally conductive structure.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating includes applying a pressure on at least one die of the plurality of dies.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The method of claim 7, wherein the pressure is about 10 to about 100 MPa.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising cleaning and activating a backside of each die.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein activating includes plasma treatment.

### Claim 11 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein activating includes wet chemistry activation.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed in a vacuum.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed at a pressure of 3 mTorr to 760 Torr.

### Claim 14 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed in an inert gas environment or a reducing environment.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed at a substrate temperature of 100° C. to 400° C.

### Claim 16 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating is performed for 0.5 minutes to 1 hour.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein thermally treating includes ramping temperature up to 100° C. per second.

### Claim 18

An integrated bonder system for processing a substrate, comprising:
a mainframe comprising a substrate handling system,
a thermal treatment chamber connected to the mainframe, the thermal treatment chamber configured to perform rapid thermal processing on a substrate and a plurality of dies sequentially stacked on the substrate;
a bonding chamber connected to the mainframe;
a plasma chamber connected to the mainframe;
a wet clean chamber connected to the mainframe; and
a UV chamber connected to the mainframe.

### Claim 19 (depends on 18)

The system of claim 18, further comprising a controller including a processor and a memory configured to:
control the bonding chamber to sequentially stack a plurality of dies on a substrate into a stacked assembly;
control the thermal treatment chamber to thermally treat the plurality of dies; and
control the bonding chamber to stack at least one additional die atop the thermally treated plurality of dies.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The system of claim 19, wherein the controller is configured to control the wet clean chamber to clean a backside of each die after stacking, and control the plasma chamber to activate a backside of each die after stacking.