Hydrogen reduction of silicon nitride passivation layer by formation and treatment of passivation sub-layers

Abstract

A method for developing a passivation film on a substrate with less than 10 atomic % of hydrogen includes providing the substrate within a processing station of a substrate processing system. A resultant passivation film is formed with less than 10 atomic % of hydrogen on the substrate by performing the following steps of depositing a passivation film sub-layer on the substrate, where the passivation film sub-layer lays on a semiconductor device layer or directly on a previously deposited passivation film sub-layer, and after depositing the passivation film sub-layer, performing a post plasma treatment to the passivation film sub-layer with at least one of nitrogen and argon to reduce hydrogen content within the passivation film sub-layer.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.