Apparatus and method for growth of a thin film
AssigneeASM America, Inc.
InventorIvo Raaijmakers
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Abstract
An improved apparatus and method for substrate layer deposition in which substrate layers are grown by carrier gas delivery of sequential pulses of reactants to the substrate surface. At least one of the reactants comprises excited species, e.g., radicals. In a specific embodiment, the apparatus of this invention provides sequential repeated pulses of reactants in a flow of carrier gas for reaction at a substrate surface. The reactant pulses are delivered with sufficient intervening delay times to minimize undesirable reaction between reactants in adjacent pulses in the gas phase or undesired uncontrolled reactions on the substrate surface.
Claims30
A method for depositing a layer on a substrate comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a reaction chamber for receiving said substrate;
- (b) evacuating said reaction chamber through a vacuum pump;
- (c) providing a continuous flow of carrier gas to said reaction chamber;
- (d) providing alternating and sequential concentration pulses of at least two reactants to the carrier gas flow, at least one of the reactants containing excited species.
A method for depositing a layer on a substrate comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a reaction chamber for receiving said substrate;
- (b) evacuating said reaction chamber through a vacuum pump;
- (c) providing a continuous flow of carrier gas to said reaction chamber to establish a gas flow parallel to said substrate surface while said reaction chamber is evacuated;
- (d) supplying alternating and sequential concentration pulses of at least two reactants to the carrier gas flow, at least one of the reactants containing excited species;
- (e) maintaining the pressure of said reaction chamber during the supply of the alternating and sequential pulses at a level between 1 and 20 torr.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.