High capacity etching apparatus and method
AssigneeBell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated
InventorDan Maydan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for high-throughput sputter etching or reactive sputter etching of wafers comprises a multi-faceted wafer holder centrally disposed within a cylindrical chamber. A source of r-f power is capacitively coupled to the holder and the cylindrical chamber is grounded. By establishing a suitable plasma within the chamber, simultaneous anisotropic etching of, for example, twenty-four 6-inch wafers can be achieved in an apparatus that is approximately the same size as a conventional parallel-plate reactor that has a capacity of only three 6-inch wafers.
Claims15
In combination in an etching apparatus,
- a conductive cylindrical chamber adapted to be connected to a point of reference potential,
- a single multi-faceted cathode wafer holder centrally positioned within said chamber,
- means for capacitively coupling said cathode wafer holder to a source of a-c power,
- and means for establishing a gaseous atmosphere within said chamber at a specified pressure so that in response to a-c excitation of said apparatus a dark space is formed in the immediate vicinity of said holder and a plasma is formed between said dark space and the inner wall of said chamber.
Apparatus for simultaneously etching multiple workpieces, comprising
- a cylindrical anode chamber,
- a single cathode means centrally positioned within said chamber for holding multiple workpieces,
- means for establishing a specified gaseous atmosphere within said chamber,
- means connected to said cathode means for capacitively coupling an a-c potential thereto,
- and means for connecting said anode chamber to a point of reference potential,
- whereby, in response to a-c excitation of said apparatus, a dark space envelops said cathode means and a plasma is established between said dark space and the inner wall of said chamber.
A dry etching process for delineating fine-line patterns in multiple workpieces simultaneously by sputter etching or reactive sputter etching in a conductive cylindrical anode chamber adapted to be connected to a point of reference potential, said process comprising the steps of
- mounting the workpieces on a single longitudinally extending cathode holder centrally positioned within said chamber,
- establishing a predetermined gaseous atmosphere at a specified pressure within said chamber in the space between the holder and the inner wall of said chamber,
- and capacitively coupling a-c power to said cathode holder to form a dark space in the immediate vicinity of said holder and to form a plasma between said dark space and the inner wall of said chamber to cause etching of said workpieces to occur.
In combination in a dry etching apparatus for delineating fine-line patterns in workpieces,
- a conductive cylindrical anode chamber,
- a single symmetrical multi-faceted conductive cathode member centrally positioned within said chamber for holding workpieces to be etched,
- means for establishing a predetermined gaseous atmosphere within said chamber,
- means including a nonconductive member for securing said workpieces in place on said conductive cathode member in electrical contact with said conductive member in a manner that exposes the workpiece surfaces to be etched to said gaseous atmosphere but that does not expose the surface of said conductive member thereto,
- and means for capacitively coupling a-c power to said conductive cathode member and for connecting said chamber to a point of reference potential to form a dark space in the immediate vicinity of the workpiece surfaces to be etched and to form a plasma between said dark space and the inner walls of said chamber to cause etching of said workpieces to occur.
Apparatus for simultaneously etching multiple workpieces, comprising
- a cylindrical anode chamber,
- a single multi-faceted cathode element centrally positioned within said chamber for holding multiple workpieces,
- means for establishing a specified gaseous atmosphere within said chamber,
- means connected to said cathode element for capacitively coupling an a-c potential thereto, means for connecting said anode chamber to a point of reference potential,
- and a grid element interposed between said cathode element and the inner wall of said anode chamber,
- whereby, in response to a-c excitation of said apparatus, a dark space envelops said cathode element and a plasma is established between said dark space and said grid element and between said grid element and the inner wall of said chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.