High-throughput dry etching of films containing silicon-oxygen components or silicon-nitrogen components by proton-mediated catalyst formation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11804380-B2
Application number	US-202117515133-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 29, 2021
Priority date	Nov 13, 2020
Publication date	Oct 31, 2023
Grant date	Oct 31, 2023

Abstract

A method of high-throughput dry etching of a film by proton-mediated catalyst formation. The method includes providing a substrate having a film thereon containing silicon-oxygen components, silicon-nitrogen components, or both, introducing an etching gas in the process chamber, plasma-exciting the etching gas, and exposing the film to the plasma-excited etching gas to etch the film. In one example, the etching gas contains at least three different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, and a nitrogen-containing gas, plasma-exciting the etching gas. In another example, the etching gas contains at least four different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, an oxygen-containing gas, and a silicon-containing gas.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A substrate etching method, comprising:
providing a substrate having a film thereon, the film having silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components, and wherein the film contains layers of the silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components in the same horizontal plane;
introducing an etching gas containing:
a) at least three different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, and a nitrogen-containing gas, or
b) at least four different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, an oxygen-containing gas, and a silicon-containing gas;
plasma-exciting the etching gas, wherein the plasma-exciting the etching gas includes generating a plasma in a processing region adjacent a surface of the film; and
exposing the substrate to the plasma-excited etching gas to non-selectively etch the silicon-oxygen components and the silicon-nitride components in the film.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature between about −30° C. and about 200° C.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nitrogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of NH 3 , N 2 H 4 , N 2 H 2 , N 2 , and combination thereof.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the film contains layers of the silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components that are not in the same horizontal plane.

5. A substrate etching method, comprising:
providing a substrate having a film thereon, the film having silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components, and wherein the film contains layers of the silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components in the same horizontal plane;
introducing an etching gas containing at least three different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, and a nitrogen-containing gas;
plasma-exciting the etching gas; and
exposing the substrate to the plasma-excited etching gas to non-selectively etch the silicon-oxygen components and the silicon-nitride components in the film.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature between about −30° C. and about 200° C.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the fluorine-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of NF 3 , XeF 2 , SF 6 , CF 4 , CH 3 F, CH 2 F 2 , CHF 3 , C 2 F 6 , C 4 F 8 , C 3 F 8 , C 4 F 6 , ClF 3 , F 2 , and combinations thereof.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein the hydrogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of H 2 , HF, HCl, HBr, HI, SiH 4 , CH 3 F, CH 2 F 2 , CHF 3 , CH 4 , CH 2 O, NH 3 , N 2 H 4 , N 2 H 2 , H 2 S, H 2 O, and combinations thereof.

9. The method of claim 5 , wherein the nitrogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of NH 3 , N 2 H 4 , N 2 H 2 , N 2 , and combination thereof.

10. The method of claim 5 , wherein the plasma-exciting the etching gas includes generating a plasma in a processing region adjacent a surface of the film.

11. A substrate etching method, comprising:
providing a substrate having a film thereon, the film having silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components, and wherein the film contains layers of the silicon-oxygen components and silicon-nitrogen components in the same horizontal plane;
introducing an etching gas containing at least four different gases that include a fluorine-containing gas, a hydrogen-containing gas, an oxygen-containing gas, and a silicon-containing gas;

plasma-exciting the etching gas; and
exposing the substrate to the plasma-excited etching gas to non-selectively etch the silicon-oxygen components and the silicon-nitride components in the film.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature between about −30° C. and about 200° C.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the fluorine-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of NF 3 , XeF 2 , SF 6 , CF 4 , CH 3 F, CH 2 F 2 , CHF 3 , C 2 F 6 , C 4 F 8 , C 3 F 8 , C 4 F 6 , ClF 3 , F 2 , and combinations thereof.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the hydrogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of H 2 , HF, HCl, HBr, HI, CH 4 , H 2 S, H 2 O, and combinations thereof.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the oxygen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of O 2 , CO 2 , CO, CH 2 O, H 2 O, and combinations thereof.

16. The method of claim 11 , wherein the silicon-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of SiH 2 Cl 2 , SiH 2 F 2 , SiF 2 Cl 2 , Si 2 H 6 , and combinations thereof.

17. The method of claim 11 , wherein the plasma-exciting the etching gas includes generating a plasma in a processing region adjacent a surface of the film.

Assignees

• Tokyo Electron Ltd

Inventors

• Zhang Du
• Tsai Yu-Hao
• Wang Mingmei

Classifications

• H10P50/283 Primary

  by chemical means · CPC title

• H01L21/31116 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic