High metal ionization sputter gun

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9175382-B2
Application number	US-201113281316-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 25, 2011
Priority date	Oct 25, 2011
Publication date	Nov 3, 2015
Grant date	Nov 3, 2015

Abstract

In one aspect of the invention, a process chamber is provided. The chamber includes a plurality of sputter guns with a target affixed to one end of each of the sputter guns. Each of the plurality of sputter guns is coupled to a first power source. The first power source is operable to provide a pulsed power supply to each of the plurality of sputter guns. The pulsed power supply has a duty cycle that is less than 30%. A substrate support disposed at a distance from the plurality of sputter guns is included. The substrate support is coupled to a second power source. The second power source is operable to bias a substrate disposed on the substrate support, wherein the duty cycle of the second power source is synchronized with a duty cycle of the first power source. A method of performing a deposition process is also included.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method to deposit a material, comprising:
applying pulsing power to a sputter gun comprising a target, wherein the pulsing power is alternated between a first low power state and a first high power state according to a first duty cycle;
applying RF power to a substrate support positioned below the sputter gun, wherein the RF power is alternated between a second low power state and a second high power state according to a second duty cycle;
synchronizing the first duty cycle with the second duty cycle such that the pulsing power repeatedly increases from the first low power state to the first high power state at the same time the RF power increases from the second low power state to the second high power state and the pulsing power repeatedly decreases from the first high power state to the first low power state at the same time the RF power decreases from the second high power state to the second low power state, wherein the first duty cycle and the second duty cycle are each less than 30% such that an average power delivered to the sputter gun is less than about 1 kilowatt; and
depositing a layer above a substrate disposed on the substrate support with material ejected from the target of the sputter gun.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first high power state is greater than about 5 kilowatts.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
focusing an ion flux toward a center region defined below a surface of sputter gun.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the sputter gun comprises a magnetron, wherein the magnetron comprises a first set of magnets and a second set of magnets, wherein each magnet of the first set of magnets and each magnet of the second set of magnets comprises a first pole and a second pole, each magnet of the first set of magnets is arranged such that the first pole and the second pole thereof are aligned in a direction that is perpendicular to a surface of the substrate, and each magnet of the second set of magnets is arranged such that the first pole and the second pole thereof are aligned in a direction that is parallel to the surface of the substrate.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein a magnet unbalance ratio for the magnetron is at least two.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein each magnet of the first set of magnets is positioned between and adjacent to two magnets of the second set of magnets.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pulsing power applied to one of the sputter guns originates from a direct current (DC) source of power.

8. A method for processing a substrate, comprising:
applying pulsed power from a first power source to a sputter gun comprising a target, wherein the pulsed power is alternated between a first low power state and a first high power state according to a first duty cycle wherein the first duty cycle is less than or equal to 30%;
applying RF power from a second power source to a substrate support operable to support the substrate and positioned below the sputter gun, wherein the RF power is alternated between a second low power state and a second high power state according to a second duty cycle;
synchronizing the first duty cycle with the second duty cycle such that the pulsed power repeatedly increases from the first low power state to the first high power state at the same time the RF power increases from the second low power state to the second high power state and the pulsing power repeatedly decreases from the first high power state to the first low power state at the same time the RF power decreases from the second high power state to the second low power state; and
depositing a layer onto a substrate disposed on the substrate support with material ejected from a target of the sputter gun.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the pulsed power is DC power pulsed at frequencies of between about 0.1 Hz and about 500 Hz.

10. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
applying a magnetic field through a magnet located around an external surface of a chamber in which the processing occurs.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the sputter gun comprises a magnetron, wherein the magnetron comprises a first set of magnets and a second set of magnets, wherein each magnet of the first set of magnets and each magnet of the second set of magnets comprises a first pole and a second pole, each magnet of the first set of magnets is arranged such that the first pole and the second pole thereof are aligned in a direction that is perpendicular to a surface of the substrate, and each magnet of the second set of magnets is arranged such that the first pole and the second pole thereof are aligned in a direction that is parallel to the surface of the substrate.

12. The method of claim 8 ,
wherein each magnet of the first set of magnets is positioned between and adjacent to two magnets of the second set of magnets.

Assignees

• Yang hong sheng
• Chiang Tony P
• Child Kent Riley
• Lang Chi-I
• Shao Shouqian
• Intermolecular Inc

Inventors

• Yang hong sheng
• Chiang Tony P
• Child Kent Riley
• Lang Chi-I
• Shao Shouqian

Classifications

• H01J37/3402

  using supplementary magnetic fields · CPC title

• C23C14/352

  using more than one target (C23C14/56 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01J37/3458

  Electromagnets in particular for cathodic sputtering apparatus (electromagnets in general H01F7/06) · CPC title

• C23C14/3485

  using pulsed power to the target · CPC title

• C23C14/345 Primary

  using substrate bias · CPC title