Chamber dry cleaning

• US 20070128876A1
• Filed: 12/02/2005
• Published: 06/07/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Fukiage, Noriaki
• Granted Patent: US 7,862,683 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 438/710
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4405 Cleaning of reactor or parts inside the reactor by using reactive gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32357 Generation remote from the workpiece, e.g. down-stream
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/3244 Gas supply means

Abstract

An apparatus and method for improving the chamber dry cleaning of a PECVD system. The apparatus includes an annular gas ring with multiple outlets for introducing a cleaning gas into the process chamber, and the method includes using the gas ring to introduce a cleaning species from a remote plasma source into the processing chamber.

Claims

1. A method for performing a process chamber cleaning, the method comprising:

providing a remote plasma species to the process chamber, wherein the remote plasma species is created using a remote plasma source coupled to the process chamber;

introducing the remote plasma species into the processing chamber from annular ring around the process chamber;

the annular ring comprising multiple outlets to flow remote plasma species towards processing space; and

cleaning the process chamber using the remote plasma species.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the process chamber includes a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process chamber.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the process chamber includes a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process chamber.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising creating the remote plasma species using a fluorine-containing gas.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the fluorine-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

6. The method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the fluorine-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising creating the remote plasma species using a chlorine-containing gas.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the chlorine-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

11. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the chlorine-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon, or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising creating the remote plasma species using an oxygen-containing gas.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the oxygen-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

16. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the oxygen-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

18. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

19. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning includes applying a RF signal to an upper electrode in the process chamber, wherein the RF signal is in a frequency range from approximately 0.1 MHz. to approximately 200 MHz, and the power ranges from approximately 0.1 watts to approximately 5000 watts.

20. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning includes applying a RF signal to an upper electrode in the process chamber, wherein the RF signal is in a frequency range from approximately 0.1 MHz. to approximately 200 MHz, and the RF signal power is less than approximately 10 watt/cm².

21. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising additionally cleaning the process chamber using an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source, a transformer-coupled plasma (TCP) source, a microwave powered plasma source, an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma source, a Helicon wave plasma source, or a surface wave plasma source, or a combination of two or more thereof.

22. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning occurs at a chamber pressure in a range from approximately 0.1 mTorr to approximately 100 Torr.

23. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning is performed using a gap between a showerhead assembly and a substrate holder in the process chamber, wherein the gap ranges from approximately 1 mm to approximately 200 mm.

24. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning in the process chamber occurs in a time varying from approximately 2 seconds to approximately 1800 seconds.

25. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cleaning includes providing a process gas during the cleaning from a showerhead assembly coupled to the process chamber.

26. The method as claimed in claim 25, wherein the process gas provided by the showerhead comprises a fluorine-containing gas, chlorine-containing gas, oxygen containing-gas, argon, helium, neon, xenon or nitrogen, or any combination of two or more thereof.

27. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the remote plasma source operates in a power range from approximately 1 W to approximately 3000 W.

28. A substrate processing chamber comprising:

a chamber wall defining a substrate processing space;

an annular ring disposed around the processing chamber, the annular ring having multiple outlets into the processing space;

a remote plasma source, coupled to the annular ring, for generating chamber cleaning species, the chamber cleaning species being introduced from the remote plasma source into the processing space to clean components of the processing chamber.

29. A substrate processing chamber of claim 28, wherein the annular ring is coupled to the chamber wall.

30. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the processing chamber includes a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process chamber.

31. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the processing chamber includes a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process chamber.

32. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the processing chamber comprises a substrate holder disposed therein which holds a substrate.

33. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the remote plasma source generates the chamber cleaning species using a fluorine-containing gas.

34. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 33, wherein the fluorine-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

35. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 33, wherein the fluorine-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

36. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 35, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

37. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 35, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

38. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the remote plasma source generates the chamber cleaning species using a chlorine-containing gas during.

39. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 38, wherein the chlorine-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

40. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 39, wherein the chlorine-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

41. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 40, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

42. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 40, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon, or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

43. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the remote plasma source generates the chamber cleaning species using an oxygen-containing gas.

44. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 43, wherein the oxygen-containing gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 5000 sccm.

45. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 43, wherein the oxygen-containing gas also includes an inert gas.

46. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 45, wherein the inert gas flows at a rate ranging from approximately 0 sccm to approximately 10000 sccm.

47. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 45, wherein the inert gas comprises Ar, He, Neon, Xenon or N₂, or a combination of two or more thereof.

48. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising an upper electrode in the processing chamber and an RF signal source coupled to the upper electrode, wherein the RF signal is in a frequency range from approximately 0.1 MHz. to approximately 200 MHz, and the power ranges from approximately 0.1 watts to approximately 5000 watts.

49. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising an upper electrode in the processing chamber and an RF signal source coupled to the upper electrode, wherein the RF signal is in a frequency range from approximately 0.1 MHz. to approximately 200 MHz, and the RF signal power is less than approximately 10 watt/cm².

50. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source, a transformer-coupled plasma (TCP) source, a microwave powered plasma source, an electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) plasma source, a Helicon wave plasma source, or a surface wave plasma source, or a combination of two or more thereof, coupled to the processing chamber for cleaning the processing chamber.

51. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising a vacuum system coupled to the processing chamber so that the cleaning occurs at a chamber pressure in a range from approximately 0.1 mTorr to approximately 100 Torr.

52. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising a showerhead assembly and a substrate holder disposed in the process chamber, wherein a gap between the showerhead assembly and the substrate holder ranges from approximately 1 mm to approximately 200 mm during the cleaning.

53. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising a baffle plate disposed in the annular ring, wherein the baffle plate divides a space within the annular ring into an upstream region and a down stream region, the baffle plate controlling a flow direction, or a flow rate, or a combination thereof for the remote plasma species into the process chamber.

54. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the multiple outlets of the annular ring are tapered to control a flow direction, or a flow rate, or a combination thereof for the remote plasma species into the process chamber.

55. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein a surface of the annular ring is inactive to the remote plasma species.

56. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 55, wherein the inactive surface comprises Teflon, Al₂O₃, AlN, AlF, Y₂O₃, or YF, or any combination of two or more thereof.

57. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 53, wherein a surface on the baffle plate is inactive to the remote plasma species.

58. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 57, wherein the inactive surface comprises Teflon, Al₂O₃, AlN, AlF, Y₂O₃, or YF, or any combination of two or more thereof.

59. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein a surface on the multiple outlets is inactive to the remote plasma species.

60. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 59, wherein the inactive surface comprises Teflon, Al₂O₃, AlN, AlF, Y₂O₃, or YF, or any combination of two or more thereof.

61. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, further comprising a showerhead assembly coupled to the process chamber and a chamber cleaning gas supply coupled to the showerhead.

62. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 61, wherein the chamber cleaning gas supply supplies a fluorine-containing gas, chlorine-containing gas, oxygen containing-gas, argon, helium, neon, xenon or nitrogen, or any combination of two or more thereof.

63. The substrate processing chamber as claimed in claim 28, wherein the remote plasma source operates in a power range from approximately 1 W to approximately 3000 W.