Sequential chemical vapor deposition
AssigneeASM International N.V.
InventorArthur Sherman
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Abstract
The present invention provides for sequential chemical vapor deposition by employing a reactor operated at low pressure, a pump to remove excess reactants, and a line to introduce gas into the reactor through a valve. A first reactant forms a monolayer on the part to be coated, while the second reactant passes through a radical generator which partially decomposes or activates the second reactant into a gaseous radical before it impinges on the monolayer. This second reactant does not necessarily form a monolayer but is available to react with the monolayer. A pump removes the excess second reactant and reaction products completing the process cycle. The process cycle can be repeated to grow the desired thickness of film.
Claims4
A process of growing a thin film of Al2O3 on a substrate having a surface in a reaction chamber by a sequential vapor deposition process comprising a plurality of cycles, each cycle comprising, in order:
- exposing the substrate in the reaction chamber to gaseous trimethyl aluminum (TMA), such that more than one monolayer of TMA forms on the substrate surface;
- stopping provision of the gaseous TMA;
- removing gaseous TMA from the reaction chamber;
- exposing the substrate in the reaction chamber to atomic oxygen;
- and
- removing atomic oxygen from the reaction chamber;
- wherein in each cycle more than one monolayer of Al2O3 is formed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.