PLASMA PROCESSING CHAMBER WITH ENHANCED GAS DELIVERY

• US 20110006038A1
• Filed: 07/13/2009
• Published: 01/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Kutney, Michael Charles, Lindley, Roger Alan
• Granted Patent: US 8,382,939 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 216/58
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/3244 Gas supply means
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32449 Gas control, e.g. control of the gas flow
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32834 Exhausting

Abstract

A method and apparatus for providing flow into a processing chamber are provided. In one embodiment, a vacuum processing chamber is provided that includes a substrate support pedestal disposed in an interior volume of a chamber body, a lid enclosing the interior volume, a gas distribution plate positioned below the lid and above the substrate support pedestal, and a vortex inducing gas inlet oriented to induce a vortex of gas circulating in a plenum around a center line of the chamber body prior to the gas passing through the gas distribution plate.

Claims

1. A vacuum processing chamber, comprising:

a chamber body having an interior volume;

a substrate support pedestal disposed in the interior volume;

a lid enclosing the interior volume;

a gas distribution plate positioned below the lid and above the substrate support pedestal; and

a vortex inducing gas inlet oriented to induce a vortex of gas circulating in a plenum around a center line of the chamber body prior to the gas passing through the gas distribution plate.

2. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the plenum is disposed in the lid.

3. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 2, wherein the lid further comprises:

a plurality of holes disposed on a common bolt circle fluidly coupling the plenum in the lid and a plenum defined between the gas distribution plate and the lid.

4. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 2, wherein the plenum is disposed in a vortex confinement ring disposed in the lid.

5. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the plenum is defined between the gas distribution plate and the lid.

6. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 5, wherein the vortex inducing gas inlet is embodied in a nozzle having an orientation substantially tangential to a radius originating from the center line of the chamber body.

7. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 6, wherein the plenum is disposed in a vortex confinement ring disposed between the gas distribution plate and the lid.

8. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 7, wherein the vortex confinement ring further comprises:

a plurality of holes disposed on a common bolt circle fluidly coupling the plenum in the vortex confinement ring and a plenum defined between the gas distribution plate and the lid.

9. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the gas distribution plate comprises at least two concentric and fluidly isolated plenums, one of the fluidly isolated plenums being the plenum in which the vortex inducing gas inlet is interfaced.

10. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 9 further comprising:

a vortex confinement ring disposed in at least one of the fluidly isolated plenums.

11. A vacuum processing chamber, comprising:

a chamber body having an interior volume;

a substrate support pedestal disposed in the interior volume;

a lid enclosing the interior volume;

a gas distribution plate positioned below the lid and above the substrate support pedestal;

a plenum defined between the gas distribution plate and the lid; and

a vortex inducing gas inlet oriented to induce a vortex of gas circulating in the plenum prior to the gas passing through the gas distribution plate.

12. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 11 further comprising:

a vortex confinement ring disposed in the plenum and having a channel plenum aligned with and accepting gas from the vortex inducing gas inlet.

13. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 12, wherein the vortex confinement ring further comprises:

a main body having the channel plenum formed therein, the main body having an inner wall bounding the channel plenum, the inner wall having a plurality of holes allowing fluid communication between the channel plenum and the plenum defined between the between the gas distribution plate and the lid.

14. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 13, wherein the vortex confinement ring further comprises:

a lip extending from the main body and maintaining the body in a spaced-apart relation relative to the gas distribution plate, the lip comprising a plurality of passages or grooves allowing flow to pass through the lip.

15. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 11, wherein the gas distribution plate further comprises:

a partition defining a second plenum between the lid and the gas distribution plate, the second plenum fluidly communicating with a second gas inlet formed in the lid and the interior volume of the processing chamber.

16. The vacuum processing chamber of claim 15 further comprising:

a vortex confinement ring disposed in the plenum and having a channel plenum aligned with and accepting gas from the vortex inducing gas inlet.

17. A method for enhancing gas delivery in a plasma processing chamber, the method comprising:

forming a vortex of gas upstream of a gas delivery plate;

creating a radial pressure gradient in a plenum defined adjacent the gas delivery plate from the gas from the vortex; and

flowing the gas from the plenum into an interior volume of the processing chamber.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein forming the vortex further comprises:

flowing gas into a channel plenum formed in a vortex confinement ring disposed in the plenum.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein creating the radial pressure gradient further comprises:

flowing gas from the channel plenum through holes residing on a common radius on the vortex confinement ring into the plenum.

20. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

forming a second vortex of gas upstream of the gas delivery plate;

creating a radial pressure gradient in a second plenum defined adjacent the gas delivery plate from the gas from the second vortex; and

flowing the gas from the second plenum into the interior volume of the processing chamber.