SURFACE PROCESSING APPARATUS
First Claim
1. A surface processing apparatus for use in the surface processing of a substrate, the surface processing apparatus comprising:
- a plasma source; and
a processing chamber in which a substrate is mounted in use, the processing chamber being operatively connected to the plasma source;
the surface processing apparatus characterised by;
a transmission plate for the transmission of plasma in use between the plasma source and processing chamber, the transmission plate comprising one or more apertures wherein the physical form of the one or more apertures and/or the distribution of the one or more apertures is adapted to provide a predetermined processing pattern upon the surface of the substrate.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A surface processing apparatus is provided for use in the surface processing of a substrate. The surface processing apparatus comprises a plasma source and processing chamber in which a substrate is mounted in use. The processing chamber is operatively connected to the plasma source and the surface processing apparatus is characterised by a transmission plate for the transmission of plasma in use between the plasma source and processing chamber. The transmission plate comprises one or more apertures wherein the physical form of the one or more apertures and/or the distribution of the one or more apertures is adapted to provide a predetermined processing pattern upon the surface of the substrate. Typically the design of the apertures is adapted to provide a substantially uniform deposition rate across a wafer substrate.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A surface processing apparatus for use in the surface processing of a substrate,
the surface processing apparatus comprising: -
a plasma source; and
a processing chamber in which a substrate is mounted in use, the processing chamber being operatively connected to the plasma source;
the surface processing apparatus characterised by;
a transmission plate for the transmission of plasma in use between the plasma source and processing chamber, the transmission plate comprising one or more apertures wherein the physical form of the one or more apertures and/or the distribution of the one or more apertures is adapted to provide a predetermined processing pattern upon the surface of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A method for the fabrication of a transmission plate for use in the surface processing of a substrate mounted within a processing chamber, the transmission plate being mounted in use between a plasma source and the processing chamber and comprising one or more apertures to allow the transmission of plasma from the plasma source to the processing chamber, the method comprising the steps of:
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a) measuring the processing rate of a surface process on the substrate with respect to the radius of the substrate, r, using the plasma source and the processing chamber without a transmission plate;
b) fitting a process rate function d(r) to the measured process rate;
c) calculating a plasma transmission function T(r) as a function of the radius from a centre of the transmission plate, such that d(r)×
T(r) is a constant;
d) defining an aperture design for the physical form of the one or more apertures and/or the distribution of the one or more apertures such that a measured plasma transmission function for the transmission plate provides a best fit to the plasma transmission function T(r); and
e) fabricating a transmission plate using the aperture design defined in step d). - View Dependent Claims (30)
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31. A method of operating a surface processing apparatus, the surface processing apparatus comprising:
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a plasma source; and
a processing chamber in which a substrate is mounted in use, the processing chamber being operatively connected to the plasma source;
the surface processing apparatus characterised by a transmission plate for the transmission of plasma in use between the plasma source and processing chamber, the transmission plate comprising one or more apertures wherein the physical form of the one or more apertures and/or the distribution of the one or more apertures is adapted to provide a predetermined processing pattern upon the surface of the substrate;
the method comprising;
a) injecting a first gas or gas mixture into the plasma source on one side of the transmission plate;
b) injecting a second gas or gas mixture into the processing chamber of the other side of the transmission plate;
c) adjusting the gas flow ratio of the two injected gases in response to a measured processing rate. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34)
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Specification