TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT AND CONTROL OF WAFER SUPPORT IN THERMAL PROCESSING CHAMBER

• US 20110089166A1
• Filed: 12/20/2010
• Published: 04/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Behdjat, Mehran, HUNTER, AARON MUIR, Ranish, Joseph M., Ramanujam, Rajesh S., Adams, Bruce E.
• Application Number:
  US12/973,112
• Publication Number:
  US 20110089166A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 219/647
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67115 mainly by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67248 Temperature monitoring

Abstract

The present invention provides apparatus and methods for achieving uniform heating to a substrate during a rapid thermal process. More particularly, the present invention provides apparatus and methods for controlling the temperature of an edge ring supporting a substrate during a rapid thermal process to improve temperature uniformity across the substrate.

Claims

1. A rapid thermal processing chamber, comprising:

a chamber body defining a chamber volume;

an edge ring to thermally couple to a substrate to be processed in the chamber, wherein the edge ring is disposed in the chamber volume;

a first heat source to heat a surface of the substrate; and

a second heat source to heat the edge ring.

2. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 1, further comprising a thermal probe to measure at least one thermal property of the edge ring.

3. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 2, further comprising a cooling device to reduce the temperature of the edge ring.

4. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the first and second heat sources together comprise a lamp assembly to radiantly heat the chamber volume, and the lamp assembly has independently temperature controllable zones.

5. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the first heat source and second heat source are disposed on opposite sides of the edge ring.

6. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 1, wherein the second heat source is one of a radiant heater, a conductive heat source, a resistive heater, an inductive heater, and a microwave heater.

7. A method for uniformly heating a substrate to a target temperature, comprising:

positioning the substrate in a processing chamber, wherein the processing chamber is connected with a first heat source;

thermally coupling a periphery of the substrate to an edge ring;

heating a surface of the substrate with the first heat source; and

maintaining the edge ring at a first temperature, wherein the first temperature differs from the target temperature.

8. The method of claim 7, further wherein maintaining the edge ring at the first temperature comprising heating the edge ring with a second heat source, wherein the first and second heat sources are independently controllable.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first and second heat sources together comprise a lamp assembly having independently controllable zones.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising cooling the edge ring using a purge gas.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

measuring a temperature of the edge ring using a thermal probe to determine a measured temperature; and

adjusting the second heat source according to the measured temperature.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the first temperature differs from the target temperature for about 10°

C. to about 15°

C.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the first temperature is higher than the target temperature.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the first temperature is lower than the target temperature.

15. A rapid thermal processing chamber, comprising:

a chamber body defining a processing volume;

a substrate support mechanism disposed in the processing volume;

an edge ring disposed on the substrate support mechanism, wherein the edge ring supports a substrate being processed by a peripheral edge of the substrate, and heat exchange between the edge ring and the peripheral edge of the substrate adjusts a temperature profile of the substrate near the peripheral edge;

a first heat source to rapidly heat the substrate disposed on the edge ring; and

a second heat source to heat the edge ring at a temperature different from a temperature of the substrate.

16. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 15, wherein the first heat source comprises an array of heating elements.

17. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 16, wherein the first heat source and the second heat source are disposed on opposite sides of the substrate.

18. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 17, wherein the second heat source comprises one or more laser heaters.

19. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 16, wherein the array of heating elements are lamps disposed outside the chamber body and configured to provide thermal energy through a quartz window of the chamber body, and the second heat source comprises a plurality of lamps disposed radially outwards of the first heat source.

20. The rapid thermal processing chamber of claim 15, further comprising:

a cooling device to reduce to temperature of the edge ring.