PROCESSING APPARATUS USING SOURCE GAS AND REACTIVE GAS

• US 20090211526A1
• Filed: 05/04/2009
• Published: 08/27/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: TANAKA, Masayuki, KAI, Kouzo, MIYASHITA, Tetsuya, MURAKAMI, Seishi
• Application Number:
  US12/434,978
• Publication Number:
  US 20090211526A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 118/715
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4412 Details relating to the exhausts, e.g. pumps, filters, scrubbers, particle traps
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45561 Gas plumbing upstream of the reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/28556 by chemical means, e.g. CVD, LPCVD, PECVD, laser CVD H01L21/28518 - H01L21/28537 and H01L21/28568 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/28562 Selective deposition

Abstract

The present invention relates to a processing apparatus for performing a film-deposition process or the like for an object to be processed (such as a semiconductor wafer) by means of a source gas and a reactive gas. The processing apparatus includes: a processing vessel (22) that contains therein an object to be processed (W); a source gas supply system (50) that selectively supplies a source gas into the processing vessel; a reactive gas supply system (52) that selectively supplies a reactive gas into the processing vessel; and a vacuum evacuating system (36) having vacuum pumps (44, 46), the system exhausting an atmosphere in the processing vessel to form a vacuum. The processing apparatus further includes: a source gas by-pass line (62) that selectively feeds the source gas into the vacuum evacuating system with the source gas bypassing the processing vessel; and a reactive gas by-pass line that selectively feeds the reactive gas to the vacuum evacuating system with the reactive gas bypassing the processing vessel. The source gas by-pass line (62) has a source gas escape prevention valve (X1) that prevents an escape of the source gas from the by-pass line into the vacuum evacuating system when the valve is in the closed condition. The reactive gas by-pass line (66) has a reactive gas escape prevention valve (Y1) that prevents an escape of the reactive gas from the by-pass line into the vacuum evacuating system when the valve is in the closed condition.

Claims

1-23. -23. (canceled)

24. A processing control method by using a processing apparatus comprising:

a processing vessel that contains therein an object to be processed;

a source gas supply system that selectively supplies a source gas into the processing vessel;

a reactive gas supply system that selectively supplies a reactive gas into the processing vessel;

a vacuum evacuating system, that evacuates an atmosphere in the processing vessel to form therein a vacuum;

a source gas by-pass line connecting the source gas supply system to the vacuum evacuating system, the by-pass line bypassing the processing vessel;

a source gas buffer tank provided in the source gas by-pass line, that temporarily stores therein the source gas;

the processing control method comprising;

a gas supply step of supplying the source gas and the reactive gas alternately and intermittently to the processing vessel from the source gas supply system and from the reactive gas supply system respectively, and

a pre-flow step of supplying the source gas to the source gas by-pass line from the source gas supply system while supplying the reactive gas to the processing vessel from the reactive gas supply system,

wherein in the pre-flow step, the source gas is stored in the source gas buffer tank in order to prevent the source gas from flowing to the vacuum evacuating system.

25. The processing control method according to claim 24, wherein the source gas stored in the source gas buffer tank flows to the vacuum evacuating system when the reactive gas is not supplied from the reactive gas supply system to the processing vessel.

26. The processing control method according to claim 24, wherein the source gas is so controlled that it is stored in the source gas buffer tank and then the source gas stored in the source gas buffer tank flows to the vacuum evacuating system by using an on-off valve disposed in the source gas by-pass line between the source gas buffer tank and the vacuum evacuating system.

27. The processing method according to claim 24, wherein the pre-flow step is performed for a certain time until when the flow rate of the source gas is stabilized.

28. The processing method according to claim 24, wherein the source gas is WF6 gas, and the reactive gas is SiH₄ gas.