Method and apparatus for backside polymer reduction in dry-etch process
AssigneeTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
InventorsHuang-Ming Chen, Chun-Li Chou, Chao-Cheng Chen, Hun-Jan Tao
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for preventing the formation of contaminating polymeric films on the backsides of semiconductor substrates includes providing an oxygen-impregnated focus ring and/or an oxygen-impregnated chuck that releases oxygen during etching operations. The method further provides delivering oxygen gas to the substrate by mixing oxygen in the cooling gas mixture, maintaining the focus ring at a temperature no greater than the substrate temperature during etching and cleaning the substrate using a two step plasma cleaning sequence that includes suspending the substrate above the chuck.
Claims11
A plasma etching apparatus comprising a chuck adapted to retain a substrate thereover and hardware that is formed of a material that includes oxygen impregnated therein such that said oxygen is released when an etching operation is carried out, wherein said hardware comprises a focus ring maintained at a temperature less than a temperature of said substrate while an etching operation is carried out upon said substrate, and only a single portion of said focus ring extending inwardly past a peripheral edge of said chuck, said single portion extending substantially continuously directly underneath a peripheral portion of said chuck that extends directly underneath a peripheral portion of said substrate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.