System and method of removing chamber residues from a plasma processing system in a dry cleaning process

• US 20050224458A1
• Filed: 03/31/2004
• Published: 10/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Gaudet, Marcel, Soave, Robert J., Mosden, Aelan
• Granted Patent: US 7,959,970 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 216/67
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 7/0035 by radiant energy, e.g. UV, laser, light beam or the like
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4405 Cleaning of reactor or parts inside the reactor by using reactive gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 2237/022 Avoiding or removing foreign or contaminating particles, debris or deposits on sample or tube
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32082 Radio frequency generated discharge H01J37/32357, H01J37/32366, H01J37/32394 and H01J37/32403 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32862 In situ cleaning of vessels and/or internal parts

Abstract

A system and method is provided for removing chamber residues from a plasma processing system in a dry cleaning process. The dry cleaning process includes introducing a process gas including a gas containing carbon and oxygen in a process chamber of the plasma processing system, generating a plasma from the process gas, exposing the chamber residue to the plasma in a dry cleaning process to form a volatile reaction product, and exhausting the reaction product from the process chamber. The plasma processing system may be monitored to determine status of the processing system, and based upon the status from the monitoring, the method includes either continuing the exposing and monitoring, or stopping the dry cleaning process. The dry cleaning process can be a waferless dry cleaning (WDC) process, or a substrate may present on the substrate holder in the process chamber during the dry cleaning process.

Claims

1. A method of removing a chamber residue from a plasma processing system, comprising:

introducing a process gas including a gas containing carbon and oxygen into a process chamber of the plasma processing system;

generating a plasma from the process gas;

exposing the chamber residue to the plasma in a dry cleaning process to form a volatile reaction product; and

exhausting the reaction product from the process chamber.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the exposing comprises a waferless dry cleaning process.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the exposing further comprises providing a substrate on a substrate holder in the process chamber.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising performing at least one manufacturing process in the process chamber before repeating the introducing, generating, exposing, and exhausting.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing a process gas comprises introducing at least one of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, an alcohol, an aldehyde, or a ketone.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing a process gas comprises introducing at least one of H₂, NH₃, H₂O, or N₂.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing a process gas comprises introducing an inert gas containing at least one of Ar, He, or Xe.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing comprises flowing the process gas at a gas flow rate between about 100 sccm and about 5,000 sccm.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing comprises flowing the gas containing carbon and oxygen at a gas flow rate between about 100 sccm and about 2,000 sccm.

10. The method according to claim 5, wherein the introducing comprises flowing the at least one of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, an alcohol, an aldehyde, or a ketone at a gas flow rate between about 100 sccm and about 2,000 sccm.

11. The method according to claim 6, wherein the introducing comprises flowing the at least one of H₂, NH₃, H₂O, or N₂ at a gas flow rate between about 20 sccm and about 1000 sccm.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein the introducing comprises flowing the inert gas at a gas flow rate less than about 2,000 sccm.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing further comprises maintaining a pressure between about 10 mTorr and about 5 Torr in the process chamber.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein the introducing further comprises maintaining a pressure between about 20 mTorr and about 1 Torr in the process chamber.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plasma processing system comprises upper and lower electrodes, and wherein the generating comprises applying RF frequency between about 1 MHz and about 100 MHz and RF power between about 100 W and about 4,000 W to the electrodes.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the RF frequency applied to the upper electrode is between about 40 MHz and about 80 MHz and the RF power applied to the upper electrode is between about 600 W and about 900 W, and wherein the RF frequency applied to the lower electrode is between about 1 MHZ and about 3 MHz and the RF power applied to the lower electrode is between about 100 W and about 400 W.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the exposing is carried out for a time period between about 2 seconds and about 240 seconds.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein the exposing is carried out for a time period between about 15 seconds and about 40 seconds.

19. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

monitoring a signal from the plasma processing system, the signal being indicative of the progress of the dry cleaning method; and

based upon the signal, performing one of the following;

(a) continue performing the dry cleaning process and continue monitoring, or

(b) stopping the cleaning process.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the monitoring further comprises determining if an intensity level of the signal has reached a threshold value.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein performing (b) occurs after determining that the threshold value has been reached.

22. The method according to claim 19, wherein the monitoring comprises using an optical monitoring system to detect light emission from the process chamber.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the monitoring comprises monitoring emitted that light originates from at least one of carbon monoxide, fluorine, or silicon tetrafluoride.

24. The method according to claim 19, wherein the monitoring comprises using a mass sensor to detect a mass signal of a gas in the process chamber.

25. The method according to claim 19, wherein the monitoring comprises using a particle monitoring system to detect particle levels in the process chamber.

26. The method according to claim 19, wherein the monitoring comprises using a process parameter including at least one of RF generator peak-to-peak voltage or capacitor position in an impedance match network to detect a plasma condition in the process chamber.

27. A system for removing a chamber residue from a plasma processing system, comprising:

a gas introduction system configured to introduce a process gas including a gas containing carbon and oxygen into a process chamber of the plasma processing system;

a plasma generating system configured to generate a plasma from the process gas such that the chamber residue is exposed to the plasma in a dry cleaning process to form a volatile reaction product; and

a exhaustion system configured to exhaust the reaction product from the process chamber.

28. A system for removing a chamber residue from a plasma processing system, comprising:

means for introducing a process gas including a gas containing carbon and oxygen into a process chamber of the plasma processing system;

means for generating a plasma from the process gas such that the chamber residue is exposed to the plasma in a dry cleaning process to form a volatile reaction product; and

means for exhausting the reaction product from the process chamber.