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US 5,833,820 AGranted
Electroplating apparatus
AssigneeAdvanced Micro Devices, Inc.
InventorValery Dubin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Gas shielding is employed to prevent metal plating on contacts during electroplating to reduce particulate contamination and increase thickness uniformity. In another embodiment, gas shielding is employed to prevent deposition on the backside and edges of a semiconductor wafer during plating.
Claims15
An apparatus for electroplating a metal film on a substrate comprising a backside, a front side, and a seed layer deposited on the front side, which apparatus comprises:
- a process chamber for accommodating the substrate on which the metal film is to be electroplated;
- a plurality of conductive contact fingers, each having a first end for electrical contact with the seed layer on the substrate;
- a shell comprising an inner wall surrounding each contact finger, which shell has a first end at about the first end of the contact finger extending along a portion of the contact finger, thereby forming a space between the contact finger and the surrounding inner wall of the shell;
- a source of gas;
- and
- a supply line connected to the source of gas for supplying gas into the space between the contact finger and the surrounding inner wall of the shell.
3 more elements
An apparatus for plating a metal on a front side of a substrate comprising a backside and edges, which apparatus comprises:
- a tank adapted to hold a plating solution;
- a housing having a base wall and a circumferential sidewall extending from the base wall;
- at least one circumferentially disposed finger for retaining the substrate within the housing, such that the backside of the substrate is spaced apart from the base wall and the edges of the substrate are spaced apart from the extending circumferential sidewall by a surrounding space;
- and
- a gas inlet through the base wall of the housing for flowing gas into the space surrounding the substrate.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.