Method of densifying films in semiconductor device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9786496-B2
Application number	US-201514929007-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 30, 2015
Priority date	Aug 17, 2015
Publication date	Oct 10, 2017
Grant date	Oct 10, 2017

Abstract

Methods of densifying films, cross-linking films, and controlling the stress of films are provided herein. Methods include forming a removable film on a substrate comprising a material to be densified, and annealing the substrate to transfer stress from the removable film to the material and thereby densify the material. Some methods involve depositing a tensile capping layer on the material to be densified on a substrate and annealing the substrate at a temperature greater than about 450° C. Some methods include clamping the substrate including the material to be densified to a shaped pedestal using an electrostatic chuck to apply compressive stress to the material to be densified.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of densifying material in a recessed feature on a semiconductor substrate, the method comprising:
receiving the semiconductor substrate comprising the recessed feature and a seam, the recessed feature filled with the material to be densified;
forming a removable film over the material to be densified in the recessed feature on the substrate, the substrate having a diameter selected from the group consisting of 200 mm, 300 mm, and 450 mm; and
annealing the substrate to transfer stress from the removable film to the material and densify the material,
wherein the removable film is selected from the group consisting of metal-containing nitrides, metal-containing oxides, silicon-containing nitrides, and silicon-containing carbides, and
wherein annealing the substrate comprises crosslinking the seam in the recessed feature.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the removable film is tensile.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein annealing the substrate induces tensile stress in the removable film.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the annealing the substrate comprises heating the substrate at a temperature greater than at least about 450° C.

5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the tensile stress of the removable film is at least about 1 GPa.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the material to be densified is an oxide.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising after annealing the substrate, treating the substrate with ultraviolet radiation or plasma.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the material to be densified is a nitride or carbide.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the removable film is deposited to a thickness of at least about 1000 Å.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising removing the removable film.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the removable film is compressive.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein annealing the substrate induces compressive stress in the removable film.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the removable film is deposited on the substrate housed in a furnace.

14. The method of claim 11 , further comprising forming a removable tensile film over the material to be densified prior to annealing the substrate.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein annealing the substrate causes the semiconductor substrate and the removable film to be bowed.

16. A method of densifying material in a recessed feature on a semiconductor substrate, the method comprising:
receiving the semiconductor substrate comprising the recessed feature and a seam, the recessed feature filled with the material to be densified;
forming a removable compressive film on the backside of the semiconductor substrate, the semiconductor substrate having a diameter selected from the group consisting of 200 mm, 300 mm, and 450 mm; and
annealing the substrate to transfer stress from the removable compressive film to the material and densify the material,
wherein annealing the substrate comprises crosslinking a seam in the feature.

Assignees

• Lam Res Corp

Inventors

• Van Schravendijk Bart
• Tang Wei

Classifications

• H10P95/90

  Thermal treatments, e.g. annealing or sintering · CPC title

• H10P95/00

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

• H10P14/69433

  the material being a silicon nitride not containing oxygen, e.g. SixNy or SixByNz · CPC title

• H10P14/6538

  by exposure to UV light · CPC title

• H10P14/6532

  by exposure to a plasma · CPC title