Ionized PVD with sequential deposition and etching

An ionized physical vapor deposition (IPVD) apparatus comprising:

• a vacuum chamber configured to perform an ionized physical vapor deposition on a substrate therein, over a pressure range of from approximately 1 mTorr to over 30 mTorr;
• a sputtering target in the chamber at one end of the chamber and having a target surface facing the chamber;
• a DC power source coupled to the target;
• a substrate support in the chamber spaced from the sputtering target and having a substrate support surface facing the sputtering target;
• a bias source connected to the substrate support and configured to impose a negative bias to a substrate on the support;
• a sputtering gas source and a vacuum pump coupled to the chamber to maintain sputtering gas in the chamber at a vacuum pressure level;
• an ICP source operable to inductively couple RF energy into the chamber between the target and the substrate support to form a high density plasma in the chamber to ionize sputtering gas to contribute to the sputtering of material from the target during deposition modes, to etch the substrate during etch modes, and to ionize sputtered material for deposit onto the substrate;
• a permanent magnet magnetron assembly located behind the sputtering target, the magnetron assembly having one or more parts thereof physically moveable relative to the sputtering target between a first position at which the magnetic field at the target surface has a strength of at least 30 Gauss and is effective to form the magnetic tunnel over the sputtering surface of the sputtering target that confines plasma at said sputtering surface, and a second position at which the magnetic field strength at the surface of a substrate on the substrate support is not more than approximately 10 Gauss;
• and
• a controller programmed to operate the apparatus sequentially, with a single substrate on the substrate support and without opening the chamber, in a plurality of cycles that each includes at least one deposition mode, followed by at least one etch mode, wherein:
• the DC power source energizes the target to provide sputtered material into the chamber during deposition modes,
• the bias source imposes a deposition mode bias to a substrate on the support during deposition modes and an etch mode bias to the substrate on the support during etch modes that is greater in magnitude than the deposition mode bias,
• the RF energy from the ICP source produces ions of sputtering gas to sputter material from the target during deposition modes and to etch the substrate during etch modes, and produces ions of sputtered material to deposit by IPVD onto the substrate during deposition modes, and
• the magnetron magnet assembly or one or more parts thereof is moved to the first position during deposition modes and to the second position during etch modes.

An ionized physical vapor deposition (IPVD) process method comprising:

• sealing a substrate on a substrate support within a vacuum chamber of a processing apparatus and performing an ionized physical vapor deposition process to deposit a layer of conductive material on surfaces of the substrate having high aspect ratio submicron features thereon by operating the apparatus, without opening the chamber, in a plurality of cycles that each includes a deposition mode followed by an etch mode;
• the deposition modes each including:
• positioning a permanent magnet magnetron assembly in a first position behind a sputtering target of coating material and forming therewith a magnetic tunnel over a sputtering surface of the target by a static magnetic field having a static magnetic field strength of more than 30 Gauss at the sputtering surface of the target and being of approximately 20 Gauss or more at the surface of the substrate on the substrate support, and
• sputtering material from the sputtering target enclosed in the magnetic tunnel, ionizing at least some of the sputtered material in a high density plasma energized in the chamber by RF energy from an RF source, and biasing the substrate to direct the ionized coating material onto the substrate to deposit the coating material on the substrate by IPVD;
• and
• the etch modes each including:
• physically moving the magnet assembly or one or more components thereof from said first position to a second position at which the static magnetic field strength produced by the magnet assembly is not more than approximately 10 Gauss at the surface of a substrate on the substrate support, and
• reducing the sputtering of material from the target and biasing the substrate to attract ions from the plasma onto the surface of the substrate to remove from the surface of the substrate during etch modes material that was deposited during deposition modes.