Microwave plasma processing apparatus, microwave processing method and microwave feeding apparatus

• US 20040026039A1
• Filed: 06/11/2003
• Published: 02/12/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Naohisa Goto, Tadahiro Ohmi, Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Naohisa Goto, Tadahiro Ohmi, Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Ohmi, Tadahiro, Goto, Tetsuya, Hirayama, Masaki, Goto, Naohisa
• Granted Patent: US 7,325,511 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 156/345.41
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32192 Microwave generated discharge H01J37/32357, H01J37/32366, H01J37/32394, H01J37/32403 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32229 Waveguides

Abstract

A microwave plasma processing apparatus includes a processing vessel, a microwave generator, a waveguide guiding a microwave formed by the microwave generator, and a microwave emitting member emitting the microwave with wavelength compression by a retardation plate, wherein the waveguide has a single microwave output opening in a location corresponding to a central par of the microwave emitting member.

Claims

1. A microwave plasma processing apparatus for applying plasma processing to a substrate, characterized by:

a processing vessel accommodating therein a stage for supporting said substrate;

a microwave generator;

a waveguide connected to said microwave generator, said waveguide guiding a microwave generated by said microwave generator; and

a microwave emitting member emitting said microwave into a space in said processing vessel after wavelength compression by a retardation plate,

said waveguide has a single microwave outlet opening in a location corresponding to a center of said microwave emitting member.

2. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said waveguide is a rectangular waveguide having a rectangular cross section.

3. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that said rectangular waveguide has a cross section such that a longer edge of said cross section has a length of ½

a wavelength of said microwave in said rectangular waveguide.

4. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that said microwave outlet opening of said rectangular waveguide is provided on a surface corresponding to a longer edge in a cross section of said rectangular waveguide.

5. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said waveguide extends in plural directions about said microwave outlet opening.

6. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that said waveguides have a straight shape are arranged symmetrically about said microwave outlet opening.

7. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized further by another waveguide provided between said waveguide and said microwave emitting member with an axial direction perpendicular to an axial direction of said waveguide connected to said microwave generator,

said microwave is supplied from said waveguide connected to said microwave generator to said another waveguide via said microwave outlet opening, said microwave being introduced into said microwave emitting member via another single microwave outlet opening provided on a bottom part of said another waveguide.

8. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that said another waveguide is a circular waveguide having a circular cross section.

9. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that said circular waveguide has a length equal to n/2 times (n being an integer) a wavelength of said microwave in said waveguide connected to said microwave generator, said circular waveguide forming a cylindrical cavity resonator.

10. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said microwave emitting member includes said retardation plate.

11. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said microwave emitting member includes a number of slots penetrating therethrough in a thickness direction.

12. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 11, characterized in that said slots of said microwave emitting member are arranged in a spiral form or multiple circumferential form.

13. A microwave plasma processing apparatus as claimed in claim 12, characterized in that said slots of said microwave emitting member form slot pairs each formed of two slots'"'"' arranged to in a T-shaped form.

14. A plasma processing method for applying plasma processing on a substrate, characterized by the steps of:

placing a substrate on a stage in a processing vessel;

generating a microwave by a microwave generator;

guiding said microwave generated by said microwave generator by a waveguide connected to said microwave generator;

outputting said microwave supplied from said waveguide connected to said microwave generator, via a single microwave outlet opening;

emitting said microwave outputted from said waveguide connected to said microwave generator into a space in said processing vessel by a microwave emitting member; and

applying a plasma processing on said substrate by forming plasma by said emitted microwave.

15. A microwave plasma processing method as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that said waveguide connected to said microwave generator extends in plural directions about said microwave outlet opening, and wherein said microwave is guided to said microwave outlet opening from said plural directions with an identical phase.

16. A microwave plasma processing method as claimed in claim 15, characterized in that said waveguide connected to said microwave generator has a straight shape, and wherein said waveguide connected to said microwave generator supplies said microwave to said microwave outlet opening from both sides of said microwave outlet opening with an identical same phase.

17. A microwave plasma processing method as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that another waveguide is provided between said waveguide connected to said microwave generator and said microwave emitting member with an axial direction perpendicular to an axial direction of said waveguide connected to said microwave generator,

wherein said microwave is supplied from said waveguide connected to said microwave generator to said another waveguide via said microwave outlet opening, said microwave being introduced into said microwave emitting member via another single microwave outlet opening provided on a bottom part of said another waveguide.

18. A microwave plasma processing method as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that said another waveguide is used for a cavity resonator, and wherein entirety of said microwave supplied from said microwave outlet opening of said waveguide connected to said microwave generator is introduced into said microwave emitting member from said another microwave outlet opening.

19. A microwave feeding apparatus for feeding a microwave into a processing chamber, characterized by:

a waveguide connected to a microwave generator, said waveguide guiding a microwave generated by said microwave generator, said waveguide having a microwave outlet opening for outputting said microwave; and

a microwave emitting member causing to propagate said microwave supplied at a central part thereof in a direction perpendicular to a direction in which said microwave is supplied, said microwave emitting member further introducing said microwave into said processing chamber via a plurality of slots.

20. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein said waveguide connected to said microwave generator is a rectangular waveguide having a rectangular cross section.

21. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 20, wherein said rectangular waveguide has a cross section such that a longer edge of said cross section has a length of ½

of a wavelength of said microwave in said rectangular waveguide.

22. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 20, characterized in that said microwave outlet opening of said rectangular waveguide is provided on a surface that forms a longer edge in a cross section of said rectangular waveguide.

23. The microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 19, characterized in that said waveguide connected to said microwave generator extends in plural directions about said microwave outlet opening.

24. The microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 23, characterized in that said waveguide connected to said microwave generator has a straight shape and extends symmetrically with respect to said microwave outlet opening.

25. The microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 19, characterized in that another waveguide is provided between said waveguide connected to said microwave generator and said microwave emitting member with an axial direction perpendicular to an axial direction of said waveguide connected to said microwave generator,

wherein said microwave is supplied from said waveguide connected to said microwave generator to said another waveguide via said microwave outlet opening, said microwave being introduced into said microwave emitting member via another single microwave outlet opening provided on a bottom part of said another waveguide.

26. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 25, characterized in that said another waveguide is a circular waveguide having a circular cross section.

27. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 26, characterized in that said circular waveguide has a length equal to n/2 times (n being an integer) a wavelength of said microwave in said waveguide connected to said microwave generator, said circular waveguide forming a cylindrical cavity resonator.

28. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 19, characterized in that said microwave emitting member includes said retardation plate.

29. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 19, characterized in that said microwave emitting member includes a number of slots penetrating therethrough in a thickness direction.

30. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 29, characterized in that said slots of said microwave emitting member are arranged in a spiral form or multiple circumferential form.

31. A microwave feeding apparatus as claimed in claim 29, characterized in that said slots of said microwave emitting member form slot pairs each formed of two slots arranged to in a T-shaped form.