System and method for thin film deposition

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9328417-B2
Application number	US-60931909-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 30, 2009
Priority date	Nov 1, 2008
Publication date	May 3, 2016
Grant date	May 3, 2016

Abstract

A reaction chamber assembly suitable for forming thin film deposition layers onto solid substrates includes a reaction chamber and an input plenum for receiving source material from gas source containers and delivering a flow of source material into the reaction chamber uniformly distributed across a substrate support width. An output plenum connected between the reaction chamber and a vacuum pump uniformly removes an outflow of material from the reaction chamber across the substrate support width. The input plenum is configured to expand a volume of the source material and deliver the source material to the substrate support area with uniform source material flow distribution across the substrate support width. The output plenum is configured to remove the outflow material across the entire substrate support width and to compress the volume of outflow material prior to the outflow material exiting the output plenum. The resulting source material flow over substrates supported in the substrate support area is uniformly distributed across the substrate support width and unidirectional with a uniform flow velocity. The configuration of the reaction chamber assembly reduces pump down times.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A reaction chamber assembly suitable for depositing one or more solid material layers on one or more substrates contained therein comprising:
a substantially gas tight reaction chamber having a floor space footprint;
a source for delivering a flow of source material into the reaction chamber;
a removable liner disposed within the reaction chamber and configured to be installed into and removed from the reaction chamber, the removable liner providing a substrate support area therein, the removable liner comprising a chamber aperture to provide access to the substrate support area through the chamber aperture, the substrate support area having an input side and an output side for supporting the one or more substrates in a flow of the source material flowing over the one or more substrates in a flow direction extending from the input side to the output side wherein the substrate support area has a support width and a support height that are both substantially orthogonal to the flow direction; and,
an input plenum including an input plenum conduit disposed below the substrate support area within the same floor space footprint as the reaction chamber, wherein the input plenum conduit is defined by the removable liner from an input plenum conduit first end for receiving the flow of source material from the source to an opposing input plenum conduit second end for delivering the flow material to the input side, wherein a width of the input plenum conduit increases from the input plenum conduit first end to the input plenum conduit second end.

2. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 1 wherein the input plenum conduit defines an input conduit flow direction extending from the input plenum conduit first end to the input plenum conduit second end, and is characterized by a first input plenum conduit cross section and a second input plenum conduit cross section, wherein the second input plenum cross section is orthogonal to the input conduit flow direction and the first input plenum cross section is orthogonal to the second input plenum cross section, and wherein an area of the first input plenum conduit cross section increases from the input plenum conduit first end to the input plenum conduit second end.

3. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 2 wherein the first input plenum conduit cross section is substantially triangular.

4. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 1 wherein the input plenum conduit second end forms an aperture having an aperture width that is substantially equal to or greater than the support width.

5. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 1 further comprising a vacuum source in fluidic communication with the reaction chamber for removing an outflow from the reaction chamber.

6. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 5 further comprising an output plenum including an output plenum conduit disposed below the substrate support area within the same floor space footprint as the reaction chamber, wherein the output plenum conduit is defined by the removable liner from an output plenum conduit first end in fluidic communication with the vacuum source and an opposing output plenum conduit second end for drawing the outflow from the output side, wherein a width of the output plenum conduit decreases from the output plenum conduit second end to the output plenum conduit first end.

7. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 6 wherein the output plenum conduit defines an output conduit flow direction extending from the output plenum conduit first end to the output plenum conduit second end, and is characterized by a first output plenum conduit cross section and a second output plenum conduit cross section, wherein the second output plenum cross section is orthogonal to the output conduit flow direction and the first output plenum cross section is orthogonal to the second output plenum cross section, and wherein an area of the first output plenum conduit cross section increases from the output plenum conduit second end to the output plenum conduit first end.

8. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 7 wherein the first output plenum conduit cross section is substantially triangular.

9. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 6 wherein the output plenum conduit second end forms an aperture having an aperture width that is substantially equal to or greater than the support width.

10. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 6 , wherein the flow direction within the reaction chamber is substantially opposite to the flow direction in each of the input and output plenum conduits.

11. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 1 further comprising:
an outer wall assembly for enclosing an outer volume comprising outer walls and an outer aperture passing through one of the outer walls to the outer volume;
wherein the removable liner comprises liner walls and a chamber aperture passing through a front wall of the liner walls to provide access to the substrate support area through the chamber aperture, wherein the removable liner is configured to be installed into and removed from the outer volume through the outer aperture; and,
an access door disposed on a front wall of the reaction chamber assembly and movable from an open position to expose the chamber aperture for loading and unloading substrates into the substrate support area through the front wall, to a closed position for substantially gas sealing the chamber aperture with a chamber aperture seal element attached to the access door.

12. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 11 wherein the outer aperture passes through a front wall of the outer wall assembly further comprising an outer aperture seal element attached to the access door for substantially gas sealing the outer aperture when the access door is in the closed position.

13. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 1 , wherein the input side of the substrate support area comprises a front vertical flow channel extending from the input plenum conduit second end to a top wall of the reaction chamber substantially across the support width.

14. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 13 , wherein the output side of the substrate support area comprises a back vertical flow channel extending from the output plenum second end to a top wall of the reaction chamber substantially across the support width.

15. The reaction chamber assembly of claim 14 wherein the substrate support area comprises a plurality of substrate support trays disposed substantially horizontally one above another between the front vertical flow channel and the back vertical flow channel.

16. A reaction chamber assembly suitable for depositing one or more solid material layers on one or more substrates contained therein comprising:
an outer wall assembly comprising outer walls for enclosing an outer volume, the outer wall assembly including an outer aperture passing through one of the outer walls to the outer volume;
a substantially unitary removable liner disposed inside the outer volume for enclosing a reaction chamber and a substrate support area wherein the substrate support area has a support width and wherein the removable liner is removable through the outer aperture without disassembly of the removable liner, the reaction chamber having a floor space footprint; and
a source for delivering a flow of source material into the reaction chamber through a bottom wall of the removable liner;
wherein the bottom wall of the removable liner is formed to include an input plenum including an input plenum conduit disposed within the same floor space footprint as the reaction chamber, wherein the input plenum conduit

Assignees

• Becker Jill S
• Coutu Roger R
• Monsma Douwe J
• Ultratech Inc

Inventors

• Becker Jill S
• Coutu Roger R
• Monsma Douwe J

Classifications

• C23C16/45546

  specially adapted for a substrate stack in the ALD reactor · CPC title

• C23C16/45582

  Expansion of gas before it reaches the substrate · CPC title

• C23C16/4401 Primary

  Means for minimising impurities, e.g. dust, moisture or residual gas, in the reaction chamber · CPC title

• C23C16/45504

  Laminar flow · CPC title