Systems for and methods of laser-enhanced plasma processing of semiconductor materials
AssigneeUltratech, Inc.
InventorsAndrew M. Hawryluk, Arthur W. Zafiropoulo
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Abstract
Systems for and methods of laser-enhanced plasma processing of semiconductor materials are disclosed. The method includes supporting a semiconductor material in a processing chamber interior and subjecting the semiconductor material to a plasma process. The method also includes simultaneously heating the wafer surface with a laser beam through a window in the processing chamber to increase the reaction rate of the plasma process. Other methods include performing laser heating of the semiconductor material before or after the plasma process but while the semiconductor material resides in the same chamber interior.
Claims18
A method of performing enhanced plasma processing of a semiconductor material having a surface, comprising:
- containing the semiconductor material surface in an interior of a downstream plasma processing chamber that has an exterior and a window that separates the exterior and the interior, the interior being configured to support a plasma process;
- subjecting the semiconductor material surface to the plasma process having a reaction rate representative of an etch or deposition process;
- and
- simultaneously with the plasma process, irradiating the semiconductor material surface with a laser beam that passes from the chamber exterior to the chamber interior through the window, wherein the laser beam forms a line image that scans over and locally heats the semiconductor material surface to a select temperature that locally increases the reaction rate of the plasma process.
A method of performing enhanced plasma processing of a wafer made of a semiconductor material having a surface, comprising:
- containing the wafer in a downstream plasma processing chamber having an exterior, an interior and a window therebetween, with the interior configured to support a plasma process that has a reaction rate;
- subjecting the semiconductor material surface of the wafer to the plasma process;
- and
- simultaneous with the plasma process, irradiating the semiconductor material surface of the wafer with a laser beam from the chamber exterior to the chamber interior over an optical path that passes through the window, wherein the laser beam forms a line image that scans over and locally heats the semiconductor material surface to a select temperature that locally increases the reaction rate of the plasma process.
A method of performing enhanced plasma processing of a wafer made of a semiconductor material, comprising:
- supporting a semiconductor material in an interior of a processing chamber;
- subjecting the semiconductor material to a plasma process that has a low-temperature reaction rate RRL at a low temperature TL;
- and
- locally heating the semiconductor material during the plasma process to a high temperature TH by passing a laser beam from a chamber exterior to the chamber interior through a window in the processing chamber and scanning a line image formed by the laser beam over the semiconductor material, wherein the high temperature TH defines a high-temperature reaction rate RRH that is greater than the low-temperature reaction rate RRL.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.