Semiconductor manufacturing method and semiconductor manufacturing apparatus

• US 20010019900A1
• Filed: 02/27/2001
• Published: 09/06/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation (Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation (Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Hasegawa, Hiroyuki, Ishihara, Yoshio, Yamaoka, Tomonori, Masusaki, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 6,776,805 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 438/765
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4401 Means for minimising impurities, e.g. dust, moisture or residual gas, in the reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4408 by purging residual gases from the reaction chamber or gas lines
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/52 Controlling or regulating the coating process C23C16/45557, C23C16/279 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/54 Apparatus specially adapted for continuous coating
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/14 Feed and outlet means for the gases; Modifying the flow of the reactive gases
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/165 the flow of the reactive gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67242 Apparatus for monitoring, sorting or marking testing or measuring during manufacture H01L22/00, marks per se H01L23/544; testing individual semiconductor devices G01R31/26
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 438/906 Cleaning of wafer as interim step
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 438/908 Utilizing cluster apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed is a semiconductor manufacturing method whereby reactive gas processing such as selective epitaxial growth can be carried out with high precision by correctly adjusting conditions during processing. Further disclosed are the semiconductor manufacturing method and a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus which can restrict increases in the moisture content, prevent heavy metal pollution and the like, and investigate the correlation between moisture content in the process chamber and outside regions. The moisture content in a reaction chamber and in a gas discharge system of the reaction chamber are measured when a substrate is provided, and the conditions for reactive gas processing are adjusted based on the moisture content. Furthermore, the method comprises a substrate carrying step of measuring the moisture content in the airtight space by means of a first moisture measuring device which is connected to the airtight space, and thereafter, inserting and ejecting the substrate by means of the substrate carrying system, and a gas processing step of performing the reactive gas processing while measuring the moisture content in the reaction chamber by means of a second moisture measuring device, which is connected to the reaction chamber, after the substrate carrying step.

Claims

1. A semiconductor manufacturing method which performs reactive gas processing, the reactive gas being fed into a reaction chamber, into which a substrate is placed, and reacting with the substrate, the method comprising the steps of:

measuring the moisture content in said reaction chamber having said substrate provided therein, or in a gas discharge system of said reaction chamber; and

adjusting conditions for processing the reactive gas based on the moisture content.

2. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 1

, said conditions for processing the reactive gas comprising conditions for heating said substrate prior to feeding the reactive gas into said reaction chamber.

3. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 2

, said conditions for heating comprising at least one of the heating temperature of the substrate, the heating time of the substrate, and the amount of purge gas.

4. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 1

, said conditions for processing said reactive gas comprising at least one of the heating temperature of the substrate, the amount of said reactive gas, the mixture ratio of said reactive gas, and the pressure inside said reaction chamber.

5. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 1

, further comprising reactive gas processing of said substrate, which has silicon oxide provided on at least part of its top face.

6. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 5

,

said substrate comprising a silicon substrate;

and

said reactive gas processing comprising selectively growing a semiconductor layer in a region on the top face of said substrate where the silicon is exposed.

7. A semiconductor manufacturing method which performs reactive gas processing, wherein, when a substrate carrying system inserts a substrate from an airtight space in the substrate carrying system into a reaction chamber, and when said substrate is ejected from said reaction chamber to said airtight space, reactive gas is fed into said reaction chamber and reacts therein, the method comprising:

a substrate carrying step of measuring the moisture content in said airtight space by means of a first moisture measuring device which is connected to said airtight space, and thereafter, inserting and ejecting said substrate by means of said substrate carrying system; and

a gas processing step of performing said reactive gas processing while measuring the moisture content in said reaction chamber by means of a second moisture measuring device, which is connected to said reaction chamber, after said substrate carrying step.

8. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 7

, said substrate carrying step comprising inserting said substrate from said airtight space to said reaction chamber or ejecting said substrate from said reaction chamber to said airtight space, after it has been confirmed that the moisture content in said airtight space is lower than a first default value;

and

said gas processing step being a step in which said reactive gas processing is commenced after it has been confirmed that the moisture content in said reaction chamber is lower than a second default value.

9. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 8

, at least said second default value being lower than 1 ppm.

10. The semiconductor manufacturing method according to

claim 7

, at least one of said first moisture measuring device and said second moisture measuring device comprising a laser moisture measuring device which radiates laser light into a tubular cell main body, connected to said airtight space and said reaction chamber, and measures an absorption spectrum of transmitted laser light.

11. A semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for performing reactive gas processing when a substrate carrying system inserts a substrate from an airtight space in the substrate carrying system into a reaction chamber, and when said substrate is ejected from said reaction chamber to said airtight space, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus feeding reactive gas into said reaction chamber and reacting the reactive gas therein, said apparatus comprising:

a first moisture measuring device which measures the moisture content in said airtight space of said substrate carrying system; and

a second moisture measuring device which measures the moisture content in said reaction chamber.

12. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to

claim 11

, comprising a plurality of reaction chambers, said first moisture measuring device being capable of measuring the moisture content in each of said reaction chambers.

13. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to

claim 12

, further comprising a switching unit which can switch an object connected to said first moisture measuring device to any one of said reaction chambers.

14. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to

claim 11

, said first moisture measuring device and said second moisture measuring device comprising a single moisture measuring device;

the apparatus further comprising

a switching unit which can switch an object connected to said moisture measuring device to said airtight space and said reaction chamber.

15. The semiconductor manufacturing apparatus according to

claim 11

, at least one of said first moisture measuring device and said second moisture measuring device comprising a laser moisture measuring device which radiates laser light into a tubular cell main body, connected to said airtight space and said reaction chamber, and measures the absorption spectrum of transmitted laser light.