Electroplating cell and tool
AssigneeEnpirion, Inc.
InventorsTrifon M. Liakopoulos, Robert W. Filas, Amrit Panda
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electroplating cell employable with an electroplating tool and method of operating the same. In one embodiment, the electroplating cell includes a cover configured to substantially seal the electroplating cell to an outside atmosphere during an electroplating process, and a porous tube couplable to an inert gas source configured to bubble an inert gas through an electrolyte containable therein. The electroplating cell also includes an anode, encased in an envelope of a semipermeable membrane, formed with an alloy of electroplating material, and a magnet configured to orient an axis of magnetization of the electroplating material for application to a wafer couplable thereto during an electroplating process.
Claims20
An electroplating cell, comprising:
- a cover configured to substantially seal said electroplating cell with an electrolyte containable therein to an outside atmosphere during an electroplating process;
- a porous tube couplable to an inert gas source configured to bubble an inert gas through said electrolyte containable therein;
- an anode, encased in an envelope of a semipermeable membrane, formed with an alloy of electroplating material, said electrolyte being configured to enter said semipermeable membrane via a tube through a wall of said semipermeable membrane and coupled to a microporous filter;
- a rotating magnet within said electroplating cell and configured to orient an axis of magnetization of said electroplating material for application to a wafer mounted thereon during said electroplating process;
- a pH-sensing electrode configured to cooperate with a metering pump control assembly, coupled to an acid/base source, to maintain a particular pH level of said electrolyte containable in said electroplating cell;
- and
- a partition configured to control a height of said electrolyte containable therein.
An electroplating tool, comprising:
- a reservoir, including:
- a cover configured to substantially seal said reservoir with an electrolyte containable therein to an outside atmosphere during an electroplating process, and
- a porous tube couplable to an inert gas source configured to bubble an inert gas through said electrolyte containable therein;
- an electroplating cell, coupled to said reservoir, including:
- another cover configured to substantially seal said electroplating cell with said electrolyte containable therein to said outside atmosphere during said electroplating process, another porous tube couplable to said inert gas source configured to bubble said inert gas through said electrolyte containable therein,
- an anode, encased in an envelope of a semipermeable membrane, formed with an alloy of electroplating material, said electrolyte being configured to enter said semipermeable membrane via a tube through a wall of said semipermeable membrane and coupled to a microporous filter,
- a rotating magnet within said electroplating cell and configured to orient an axis of magnetization of said electroplating material for application to a wafer mounted thereon during said electroplating process, and
- a partition configured to control a height of said electrolyte containable therein;
- and a pH-sensing electrode configured to cooperate with a metering pump control assembly, coupled to an acid/base source, to maintain a particular pH level of said electrolyte containable in said electroplating cell.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.