Rapid thermal heating apparatus and method

• US 5,743,643 A
• Filed: 10/16/1996
• Issued: 04/28/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Gibbons, James F., Gronet, Christian M.
• Primary Examiner(s): BENNETT, GEORGE B
• Application Number:
  US08/732,020
• Time in Patent Office: 559 Days
• Field of Search: 374/120, 374/121, 374/124, 374/126, 374/137, 374/110, 374/112, 250/338.1, 356/45
• US Class Current: 374/121
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/481 by radiant heating of the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/482 using incoherent light, UV to IR, e.g. lamps
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/10 Heating of the reaction chamber or the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/105 by irradiation or electric discharge
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 31/12 Heating of the reaction chamber
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 31/18 Controlling or regulating
• CPC Class Codes: F27B 17/0025 Especially adapted for treating semiconductor wafers
• CPC Class Codes: F27D 99/0006 Electric heating elements or system
• CPC Class Codes: F27D 99/0033 using burners manufacture of steel in an electric arc furnace equipped with burners C21C5/5217
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/0003 for sensing the radiant heat transfer of samples, e.g. emittance meter
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 5/06 Arrangements for eliminating effects of disturbing radiation; Arrangements for compensating changes in sensitivity for adjusting of solid angle of collected radiation G01J5/07; means for wavelength selection G01J5/0801
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67115 mainly by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/0425 Plinths borders for use between floor or ceiling and wall E04F19/04

Abstract

A rapid thermal heating apparatus in which lamps are disposed in a plurality of light pipes arranged to illuminate and supply heat to a substrate. The light pipes are positioned so that the illumination patterns overlap. The energy supplied to the lamps is controlled to provide a predetermined heating pattern to the substrate. A liquid cooled window cooperates with the light pipes to transmit energy to a wafer disposed in an evacuated chamber.

Claims

1. A method of measuring the temperature across a substrate during processing in a vacuum chamber having a quartz window, said substrate heated during processing by radiation from a radiant energy source that passes through the quartz window, comprising:

positioning a substrate in the vacuum chamber so that one side of the substrate faces the quartz window and another side of the substrate faces away from the quartz window;

positioning a radiation detector so that it images the side of the substrate that faces away from the quartz window;

using the quartz window to absorb the radiation from the radiant energy source such that it is not sensed by the radiation detector;

sensing infrared radiation emitted by the substrate with the radiation detector; and

determining any differences in the temperature of different regions of the substrate from the sensed radiation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the radiation detector comprises an infrared camera.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the radiation detector comprises a plurality of optical pyrometer detectors.

4. An apparatus for measuring the temperature across a substrate during processing, the apparatus comprising:

a radiant energy source constructed to produce radiation for heating a substrate during processing;

a quartz window;

a substrate carrier constructed to support the substrate so that one side of the substrate faces the quartz window and another side of the substrate faces away from the quartz window, the substrate carrier being positioned so that the substrate is heated by radiation from the radiant energy source that passes through the quartz window;

a radiation detector positioned to image the side of the substrate that faces away from the quartz window, the radiation detector being constructed to sense infrared radiation emitted by the substrate and to produce signals representative of the sensed radiation; and

a circuit constructed to receive the signals from the radiation detector and to determine from the received signals received any differences in the temperature of different regions of the substrate;

wherein the quartz window absorbs the radiation from the radiant energy source such that it is not sensed by the radiation detector.