Substrate Processing Apparatus, Method of Manufacturing Semiconductor Device, and Non-Transitory Computer-readable Recording Medium

• US 20200135506A1
• Filed: 12/23/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2016
• Status: Active Application

• Current Assignee: Kokusai Electric Corp.
• Original Assignee: Kokusai Electric Corp.
• Inventors: KAGA, Yukinao, YOSHIDA, Ryosuke
• Application Number:
  US16/725,475
• Publication Number:
  US 20200135506A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/34 Nitrides C23C16/303 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/45544 characterized by the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/4583 the substrate being supported substantially horizontally
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0228 deposition by cyclic CVD, e.g. ALD, ALE, pulsed CVD
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/0262 Reduction or decomposition of gaseous compounds, e.g. CVD
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67017 Apparatus for fluid treatment H01L21/67126, H01L21/6715 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67109 mainly by convection
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67253 Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/677 for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67757 vertical transfer of a batch of workpieces
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/6776 Continuous loading and unloading into and out of a processing chamber, e.g. transporting belts within processing chambers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67778 involving loading and unloading of wafers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 22/12 for structural parameters, e.g. thickness, line width, refractive index, temperature, warp, bond strength, defects, optical inspection, electrical measurement of structural dimensions, metallurgic measurement of diffusions electrical measurement of diffusions H01L22/14

Abstract

Described herein is a technique capable of improving the controllability of a thickness of a film formed on a large surface area substrate having a surface area greater than a surface area of a bare substrate and improving the thickness uniformity between films formed on a plurality of large surface area substrates accommodated in a substrate loading region by reducing the influence of the surface area of the large surface area substrate and the number of the large surface area substrates due to a loading effect even when the plurality of large surface area substrates are batch-processed using a batch type processing furnace.

Claims

1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:

a process chamber where a substrate retainer holding a plurality of substrates is accommodated;

a gas supply system configured to supply a plurality of process gases to the plurality of substrates;

a substrate transfer system configured to transfer the plurality of substrates to the substrate retainer; and

a controller configured to control the gas supply system and the substrate transfer system so as to adjust number of cycle of supplying the plurality of process gasses based on at least one among;

number of the substrates held by the substrate retainer and a total surface area of the substrates held by the substrate retainer.

2. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the gas supply system comprises:

a source gas supply system configured to supply a source gas; and

a reactive gas supply system configured to supply a reactive gas, and

the controller is further configured to control the substrate transfer system, the source gas supply system and the reactive gas supply system so as to adjust number of cycle of alternately supplying the source gas and the reactive gas to the plurality of substrates.

3. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control the gas supply system and the substrate transfer system so as to adjust the number of the cycle based both on the number of the substrates and the total surface area of the substrates.

4. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to control the substrate transfer system, the source gas supply system and the reactive gas supply system so as to adjust the number of the cycle of alternately supplying the source gas and the reactive gas based both on the number of the substrates and the total surface area of the substrates.

5. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control the substrate transfer system and the gas supply system so as to adjust the number of the cycle based on a value obtained by multiplying the number of the substrates and the total surface area of the substrates.

6. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to control the substrate transfer system, the source gas supply system and the reactive gas supply system so as to adjust the number of the cycle of alternately supplying the source gas and the reactive gas based on a value obtained by multiplying the number of the substrates and the total surface area of the substrates.

7. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the number of the cycle when the number of the substrates is less than a maximum number of substrates that the substrate retainer is capable of hold.

8. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the number of the cycle of alternately supplying the source gas and the reactive gas when the number of the substrates is less than a maximum number of substrates that the substrate retainer is capable of hold.

9. The substrate processing apparatus of claim 3, wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the number of the cycle when the number of the substrates is less than a maximum number of substrates that the substrate retainer is capable of hold.

10. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:

a process chamber where a substrate retainer holding at least one substrate is accommodated;

a gas supply system configured to supply a process gas to the at least one substrate;

a substrate transfer system configured to transfer the at least one substrate to the substrate retainer; and

a controller configured to control the gas supply system and the substrate transfer system so as to adjust number of cycle of supplying the process gas based on at least one among;

number of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer and a total surface area of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer.

11. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising:

(a) holding at least one substrate by a substrate retainer;

(b) loading the substrate retainer into a process chamber;

(c) performing a cycle of supplying a process gas to the at least one substrate;

(d) adjusting number of the cycle in (c) based on at least one among;

number of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer in (a) and a total surface area of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer in (a).

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a source gas and a reactive gas are alternately supplied in (c).

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the number of the cycle are adjusted in (d) based both on the number of the at least one substrate and the total surface area of the at least one substrate.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the numbers of the cycle are adjusted in (d) based both on the number of the at least one substrate and the total surface area of the at least one substrate.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the numbers of the cycle are adjusted in (d) based on a value obtained by multiplying the number of the at least one substrate and the total surface area of the at least one substrate.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the numbers of the cycle are adjusted in (d) based on a value obtained by multiplying the number of the at least one substrate and the total surface area of the at least one substrate.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein (d) is performed when the number of the at least one substrate is less than a maximum number of substrates that the substrate retainer is capable of hold.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein (d) is performed when the number of the at least one substrate is less than a maximum number of substrates that the substrate retainer is capable of hold.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a program that causes a computer to execute:

(a) holding at least one substrate by a substrate retainer;

(b) loading the substrate retainer into a process chamber;

(c) performing a cycle of supplying a process gas to the at least one substrate;

(c) adjusting numbers of the cycle in (c) based on at least one among;

number of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer in (a) and a total surface area of the at least one substrate held by the substrate retainer in (a).