Processing systems and methods for halide scavenging

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9704723-B2
Application number	US-201514936448-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 9, 2015
Priority date	Mar 15, 2013
Publication date	Jul 11, 2017
Grant date	Jul 11, 2017

Abstract

Systems, chambers, and processes are provided for controlling process defects caused by moisture contamination. The systems may provide configurations for chambers to perform multiple operations in a vacuum or controlled environment. The chambers may include configurations to provide additional processing capabilities in combination chamber designs. The methods may provide for the limiting, prevention, and correction of aging defects that may be caused as a result of etching processes performed by system tools.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of removing contaminants from a processed substrate having exposed silicon and silicon oxide surfaces, the method comprising:
etching the substrate in an etching process, wherein the etching process is selective to silicon over silicon oxide, wherein the etching process produces radical species, and wherein residual species from the radical species are incorporated within the silicon oxide layer during the etching and remain in the silicon oxide layer subsequent the etching process; and
treating the substrate to remove at least a portion of the residual species from the silicon oxide layer wherein treating the substrate comprises:
delivering ammonia to a remote plasma region to produce plasma effluents;
contacting the silicon oxide region with the plasma effluents, wherein the plasma effluents are configured to interact with the residual species from the radical species, and wherein the plasma effluents are further configured to withdraw the residual species from the radical species from the silicon oxide layer.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the etching process comprises exposing the substrate to a fluorine-containing precursor and an oxygen-containing precursor, wherein the fluorine-containing precursor has been flowed through a plasma to produce at least a portion of the radical species, which comprise radical fluorine species.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the etching process does not etch or substantially does not etch the silicon oxide layer.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the radical fluorine species are incorporated with the silicon oxide layer in a profile such that the extent of incorporation diminishes at increasing depths of the silicon oxide film.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the treatment is performed at a temperature between about 0° C. and about 800° C.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the treatment is performed at a pressure between about 1 mTorr and about 700 Torr.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein treating the substrate comprises reducing the amount of residual species in the silicon oxide layer to below or about 20%.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein treating the substrate comprises reducing the amount of residual species in the silicon oxide layer to below or about 10%.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein treating the substrate comprises reducing the amount of residual species in the silicon oxide layer to below or about 5%.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising transferring the substrate to a treatment chamber for the treatment process.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the substrate is maintained under vacuum during the transfer to the treatment chamber.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising transferring the substrate to a passivation chamber for a passivation process.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the substrate is maintained under vacuum during the transfer to the passivation chamber.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the passivation comprises heating the substrate to a temperature greater than or about 150° C. for a period of time greater than or about two minutes.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote plasma region is an RPS unit coupled with a process chamber in which the method is performed.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote plasma region is a region of a chamber physically isolated from a substrate processing region in which the method is performed.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method of claim 1 does not etch or remove the silicon oxide layer.

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc

Inventors

• Wang Anchuan
• Chen Xinglong
• Li Zihui
• Hamana Hiroshi
• Chen Zhijun
• Hsu Ching-Mei
• Huang Jiayin
• Ingle Nitin K
• Lubomirsky Dmitry
• Venkataraman Shankar
• Thakur Randhir

Classifications

• H10P70/20

  Cleaning during device manufacture · CPC title

• H10P50/268

  of silicon-containing layers · CPC title

• H10P50/73

  using masks for insulating materials · CPC title

• H10P95/00

  Generic processes or apparatus for manufacture or treatments not covered by the other groups of this subclass · CPC title

• H10P72/3302

  Mechanical parts of transfer devices · CPC title