Vapor-phase precursor seeding for diamond film deposition

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12534797-B2
Application number	US-202218062010-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 5, 2022
Priority date	Dec 5, 2021
Publication date	Jan 27, 2026
Grant date	Jan 27, 2026

Abstract

Methods of depositing an adamantane film are described, which may be used in the manufacture of integrated circuits. Methods include processing a substrate in which an adamantane seed layer is deposited on a substrate, converting to a diamond nuclei layer having an increased crystallinity relative to the adamantane seed layer and then grown into full nanocrystalline diamond film from the diamond nuclei layer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method of forming a nanocrystalline diamond film,
the method comprising:
forming an adamantane seed layer by exposing a substrate surface to adamantane vapor in a first plasma process chamber for a first time and generating a first plasma in the first plasma process chamber for a first plasma time;
converting the adamantane seed layer to a diamond nuclei layer having an increased crystallinity relative to the adamantane seed layer in a second plasma process chamber with a second plasma including a second plasma source; and
growing a full nanocrystalline diamond film from the diamond nuclei layer.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the adamantane seed layer comprises in the range of 1 to 1000 cycles of exposure to the adamantane vapor and the first plasma.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first plasma process chamber comprises a showerhead/electrode positioned at a first distance from the substrate surface, the first distance greater than 10 mm.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first plasma comprises of either conductively/inductively coupled plasma, microwave plasma, pulsed discharge plasma, hot filament or electron cyclotron resonance plasma.

5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the first plasma comprises one or more of argon, nitrogen, C x H y , carbon dioxide or molecular hydrogen gases.

6 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the first plasma has a power more than 50 watts.

7 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature between 20-600° C.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the second plasma process chamber comprises of either conductively/inductively coupled plasma, microwave plasma, pulsed discharge plasma, hot filament or electron cyclotron resonance plasma.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein second plasma comprises one or more of a power less than 10 kW.

10 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the substrate is positioned at a distance from the second plasma source less than 10 cm.

11 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature in the range of 50° C. to 600° C.

12 . A method of forming a nanocrystalline diamond film, the method comprising:
forming an adamantane seed layer by exposing a substrate surface to adamantane vapor in a first plasma process chamber for a first time and generating a first plasma in the first plasma process chamber for a first plasma time; converting the adamantane seed layer to a diamond nuclei layer having an increased crystallinity relative to the adamantane seed layer; and growing a full nanocrystalline diamond film from the diamond nuclei layer in a second plasma process chamber using a conductively/inductively coupled plasma, microwave plasma, pulsed discharge plasma, hot filament or electron cyclotron resonance plasma.

13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the second plasma comprises one or more of a power greater than 50 W with a duty cycle greater than 60%.

14 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature in the range of room temperature to 750° C.

15 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the substrate is positioned a distance from the second plasma source of less than 10 cm.

16 . A method of forming a nanocrystalline diamond film, the method comprising:
forming an adamantane seed layer by exposing a substrate surface to adamantane vapor in a first plasma process chamber for a first time and generating a first plasma in the first plasma process chamber for a first plasma time, the first plasma comprises one or more of argon, nitrogen, C x H y , carbon dioxide or molecular hydrogen gases, the substrate surface is positioned a first distance from a first plasma source in the first plasma chamber greater than or equal to 10 mm; converting the adamantane seed layer to a diamond nuclei layer having an increased crystallinity relative to the adamantane seed layer in a second plasma process chamber with a second plasma, a second plasma source generating the second plasma comprising one or more of a power less than 10 kW, the substrate surface positioned a distance of less than 10 cm from the second plasma source; and growing a full nanocrystalline diamond film from the diamond nuclei layer in the second plasma process chamber using a third plasma comprising one or more of a power greater than 50 W with a duty cycle greater than 60%.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein forming the adamantane seed layer comprises in the range of 1 to 1000 cycles of exposure to the adamantane vapor and the first plasma, the first plasma comprises either conductively/inductively coupled plasma, microwave plasma, pulsed discharge plasma, hot filament or electron cyclotron resonance plasma, has a power more than 50 watts, and the substrate is maintained at a temperature between 20-600° C.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the second plasma process chamber comprises either conductively/inductively coupled plasma, microwave plasma, pulsed discharge plasma, hot filament or electron cyclotron resonance plasma, the substrate is maintained at a temperature in the range of 50° C. to 600° C.

19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein growing the full nanocrystalline diamond film occurs with the substrate maintained at a temperature in the range of room temperature to 750° C. and the substrate is positioned a distance from the plasma source of less than 10 cm.

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc
• Nat Univ Singapore

Inventors

• Tan Sze Chieh
• Sahmuganathan Vicknesh
• Venkatasubramanian Eswaranand
• Mallick Abhijit Basu
• Sudijono John
• Gu Jiteng
• Loh Kian Ping

Classifications

• H01J2237/3321

  CVD [Chemical Vapor Deposition] · CPC title

• H01J37/32192 Primary

  Microwave generated discharge (H01J37/32357, H01J37/32366, H01J37/32394, H01J37/32403 take precedence) · CPC title

• C23C16/279 Primary

  control of diamond crystallography · CPC title

• C23C16/274 Primary

  using microwave discharges · CPC title

• C23C16/54

  Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating · CPC title