Apparatus and Methods for Cyclical Oxidation and Etching
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for performing a cyclical oxidation and etching process on a material layer, comprising:
- a processing chamber a chamber body having a plurality of walls defining a processing region within the processing chamber including a substrate support to hold a substrate having a material layer within the processing region;
a lid assembly disposed on an upper surface of the chamber body, the lid assembly comprising a first electrode and a second electrode that define a plasma cavity therebetween, wherein the second electrode is heated and adapted to heat the substrate;
an oxygen-containing gas supply, an inert gas supply and an etching gas supply in fluid communication with at least one the process chamber and lid assembly to deliver the oxygen-containing gas, the inert gas and the etching gas into one of the process chamber and the lid;
a heating system to heat the substrate within the chamber to a first temperature greater than about 100°
C.;
a cooling system to cool the substrate within the chamber to a second temperature below the first; and
a control system to cycle the substrate within the chamber between the first temperature the second temperature.
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Abstract
Apparatus and methods for the manufacture of semiconductor devices suitable for narrow pitch applications and methods of fabrication thereof are described herein. Disclosed are various single chambers configured to form and/or shape a material layer by oxidizing a surface of a material layer to form an oxide layer; removing at least some of the oxide layer by an etching process; and cyclically repeating the oxidizing and removing processes until the material layer is formed to a desired shape. In some embodiments, the material layer may be a floating gate of a semiconductor device.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for performing a cyclical oxidation and etching process on a material layer, comprising:
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a processing chamber a chamber body having a plurality of walls defining a processing region within the processing chamber including a substrate support to hold a substrate having a material layer within the processing region; a lid assembly disposed on an upper surface of the chamber body, the lid assembly comprising a first electrode and a second electrode that define a plasma cavity therebetween, wherein the second electrode is heated and adapted to heat the substrate; an oxygen-containing gas supply, an inert gas supply and an etching gas supply in fluid communication with at least one the process chamber and lid assembly to deliver the oxygen-containing gas, the inert gas and the etching gas into one of the process chamber and the lid; a heating system to heat the substrate within the chamber to a first temperature greater than about 100°
C.;a cooling system to cool the substrate within the chamber to a second temperature below the first; and a control system to cycle the substrate within the chamber between the first temperature the second temperature. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification