Chemical control features in wafer process equipment

• US 10,354,843 B2
• Filed: 04/28/2017
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Liang, Qiwei, Chen, Xinglong, Chuc, Kien, Lubomirsky, Dmitry, Park, Soonam, Yang, Jang-Gyoo, Venkataraman, Shankar, Tran, Toan, Hinckley, Kimberly, Garg, Saurabh
• Primary Examiner(s): Zervigon, Rudy
• Application Number:
  US15/581,357
• Publication Number:
  US 20170236691A1
• Time in Patent Office: 809 Days
• Field of Search: 118715, 15634533, 15634534
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/005 Nozzles or other outlets specially adapted for discharging one or more gases
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 1/18 Roses; Shower heads with means for adding soap or the like E03C1/046; jet regulators E03C1/08
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/452 by activating reactive gas streams before their introduction into the reaction chamber, e.g. by ionisation or addition of reactive species
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/455 characterised by the method used for introducing gases into reaction chamber or for modifying gas flows in reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45561 Gas plumbing upstream of the reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45565 Shower nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45574 Nozzles for more than one gas
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45582 Expansion of gas before it reaches the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/50 using electric discharges generation and control of plasma in discharge tubes for surface treatment H01J37/32, H01J37/34
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 2237/002 Cooling arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32009 Arrangements for generation of plasma specially adapted for examination or treatment of objects, e.g. plasma sources plasma generation in general H05H1/24
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32357 Generation remote from the workpiece, e.g. down-stream
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/3244 Gas supply means
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32449 Gas control, e.g. control of the gas flow
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32568 Relative arrangement or disposition of electrodes; moving means
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67069 for drying etching

Abstract

Gas distribution assemblies are described including an annular body, an upper plate, and a lower plate. The upper plate may define a first plurality of apertures, and the lower plate may define a second and third plurality of apertures. The upper and lower plates may be coupled with one another and the annular body such that the first and second apertures produce channels through the gas distribution assemblies, and a volume is defined between the upper and lower plates.

Claims

1. A substrate processing chamber comprising:

a faceplate;

a showerhead comprising;

an annular body comprising;

an inner annular wall located at an inner diameter, an outer annular wall located at an outer diameter, an upper surface, and a lower surface;

a first fluid channel defined in the upper surface that is located in the annular body radially inward of an upper recess; and

an upper plate coupled with the annular body at the upper recess and covering the first fluid channel, wherein the upper plate defines a plurality of first apertures, wherein a remote plasma region is at least partially defined between the faceplate and the showerhead.

2. The substrate processing chamber of claim 1, further comprising a lower plates are bonded with the lower plate.

3. The substrate processing chamber of claim 1, further comprising a second fluid channel defined in the upper surface that is located in the annular body radially outward of the first fluid channel, wherein a plurality of ports are defined in a portion of the annular body defining an outer wall of the first fluid channel and an inner wall of the second fluid channel.

4. The substrate processing chamber of claim 3, wherein the second fluid channel is located radially outward of the upper recess such that the second fluid channel is not covered by the upper plate.

5. The substrate processing chamber of claim 4, wherein a second upper recess is defined by the annular body proximate a top of the second fluid channel in both the inner wall and an outer wall.

6. The substrate processing chamber of claim 5, further comprising an annular member positioned within the second upper recess so as to cover the second fluid channel.

7. The substrate processing chamber of claim 3, wherein the upper recess defines a ledge that intersects the outer wall of the first fluid channel.

8. The substrate processing chamber of claim 3, further comprising a pair of isolation channels wherein one of the pair of isolation channels is defined in the upper surface of the annular body, and the other of the pair of isolation channels is defined in the lower surface of the annular body, and wherein the pair of isolation channels are vertically aligned with one another.

9. The substrate processing chamber of claim 3, wherein the second fluid channel is located radially inward of the upper recess such that the second fluid channel is covered by the upper plate.

10. The substrate processing chamber of claim 9, wherein a portion of the upper plate extends into the second channel below a bottom of the upper recess.

11. The substrate processing chamber of claim 10, wherein the plurality of ports are angled upward from the second fluid channel to the first fluid channel such that the ports are fluidly accessible below the portion of the upper plate extending into the second channel.

12. The substrate processing chamber of claim 9, further comprising an isolation channel defined in the lower surface of the annular body.

13. The substrate processing chamber of claim 1, further comprising an annular temperature channel defined in the annular body and configured to receive a cooling fluid operable to maintain a temperature of the annular body.

14. The substrate processing chamber of claim 1, further comprising an annular temperature channel defined in the annular body and configured to receive a heating element disposed within the channel and operable to maintain a temperature of the annular body.

15. A semiconductor processing system comprising:

a remote plasma unit; and

a processing chamber, fluidly coupled with the remote plasma unit, the processing chamber comprising;

a faceplate;

a substrate support;

a showerhead comprising;

an annular body comprising;

an inner annular wall located at an inner diameter, an outer annular wall located at an outer diameter, an upper surface, and a lower surface;

an upper recess formed in the upper surface;

a lower recess formed in the lower surface;

a first fluid channel defined in the lower surface that is located in the annular body radially inward of the lower recess;

an upper plate coupled with the annular body at the upper recess, wherein the upper plate defines a plurality of first apertures; and

a lower plate coupled with the annular body at the lower recess, and covering the first fluid channel, the lower plate comprising;

a plurality of second apertures defined therein, wherein the second apertures align with the first apertures defined in the upper plate;

a plurality of third apertures defined therein and located between the second apertures;

wherein the upper plate and the lower plate are coupled with one another such that the first and second apertures are aligned to form a channel through the upper and lower plates

a first plasma region defined between the faceplate and the showerhead; and

a second plasma region defined between the showerhead and the substrate support.

16. The semiconductor processing system of claim 15, further comprising a second fluid channel defined in the lower surface that is located in the annular body radially outward of the first fluid channel, wherein a plurality of ports are defined in a portion of the annular body defining an outer wall of the first fluid channel and an inner wall of the second fluid channel, wherein the plurality of ports are configured to fluidly couple the second fluid channel with the first fluid channel.

17. The semiconductor processing system of claim 16, wherein the second fluid channel is located radially inward of the lower recess such that the second fluid channel is covered by the lower plate, and wherein a portion of the lower plate extends into the second channel above a top of the lower recess.

18. The semiconductor processing system of claim 17, wherein the plurality of ports are angled downward from the second fluid channel to the first fluid channel such that the ports are fluidly accessible above the portion of the lower plate extending into the second channel.

19. The semiconductor processing system of claim 15, wherein the first apertures comprise a conical shape of decreasing diameter as the first apertures extend through the upper plate, and wherein the second and third apertures comprise a conical shape of increasing diameter as the second and third apertures extend through the lower plate.

20. The semiconductor processing system of claim 15, wherein each of the second and third apertures comprise at least three sections of different shape or diameter.