Silicon carbide composite article particularly useful for plasma reactors

• US 5,904,778 A
• Filed: 07/26/1996
• Issued: 05/18/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Yin, Gerald Z, Lu, Hao A, Han, Nianci, Wu, Robert W
• Primary Examiner(s): Breneman, Bruce
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALEJANDRO MULERO, LUZ L
• Application Number:
  US08/687,740
• Time in Patent Office: 1,026 Days
• Field of Search: 118/723 R, 118/723 E, 118/723 MW, 118/723 ME, 118/723 MR, 118/723 MA, 118/723 AN, 118/723 ER, 118/723 I, 118/723 IR, 156/345, 134/1.1, 315/111.21, 315/111.31, 315/111.41, 315/111.51, 315/111.61, 315/111.71, 204/298.01, 204/298.02, 204/298.31
• US Class Current: 118/723.00R
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32467 Material
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/3255 Material
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 156/914 Differential etching apparatus including particular materials of construction

Abstract

A composite silicon carbide article and its method of making in which a surface layer or film of silicon carbide is deposited, for example by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), over a free standing silicon carbide substrate, as is formed by bulk methods such as sintering and hot pressing. The article is advantageously used in a plasma reactor, especially an oxide etcher for semiconductor fabrication, and may be any of several parts including the chamber wall, chamber roof, or collar around the wafer. The bulk SiC provides an inexpensive and strong support structure of perhaps a complex shape while the CVD SiC film has advantages for plasma processing and may be tailored to particular uses. The composite SiC structure is particularly useful in that the electrical conductivities of the bulk SiC and film SiC may be separately controlled so as to provide, among many possibilities, a grounding plane, a window for RF electromagnetic radiation, or both. The ultra-high purity achieved in CVD silicon carbide also benefits the control of micro-contamination inside the reactor chamber, a key factor for increased device yield.

Claims

1. A plasma collar for being fit onto a peripheral recess in a pedestal for supporting a substrate within a plasma reaction chamber, comprising:

a lower part comprising sintered silicon carbide; and

an upper part comprising silicon carbide formed over said lower part.

2. The plasma collar of claim 1, wherein said upper and lower parts are formed as annuli extending about an axis and arranged along said axis.

3. The plasma collar of claim 2, wherein said upper and lower parts have respective electrical resistivities of at least 10⁵ ohm-cm.

4. A plasma reactor, comprising:

a plasma reaction chamber having a plasma selectively generated within said chamber; and

a composite part placed within said chamber having a sintered silicon carbide portion overlaid with a deposited silicon carbide film facing said plasma, wherein said deposited film has a metal impurity concentration of less than 100 parts per billion.

5. The plasma reactor as recited in claim 4

wherein said sintered silicon carbide portion and said deposited film have electrical resistivities differing by a predetermined amount.

6. The plasma reactor as recited in claim 5, wherein said resistivity of said sintered silicon carbide portion is higher than said resistivity of said deposited film.

7. A plasma reactor, comprising:

a plasma reaction chamber having a plasma selectively generated within said chamber;

a pedestal for supporting a substrate; and

a composite part placed within said chamber having a sintered silicon carbide portion overlaid with a deposited silicon carbide film facing said plasma, wherein said composite part is formed as a ring disposed at an upper and outer periphery of said pedestal.

8. The plasma reactor as recited in claim 7, wherein said ring is fittable into a peripheral recess of said pedestal.

9. The plasma reactor as recited in claim 7, wherein both said sintered silicon carbide portion and said deposited film have resistivities of greater than 10⁶ ohm-cm at 150°

C.

10. A plasma reactor, comprising:

a plasma reaction chamber having a plasma selectively generated within said chamber; and

a composite part placed within said chamber having a sintered silicon carbide portion overlaid with a deposited silicon carbide film facing said plasma, wherein said film has a thickness of at least 3 mm.

11. A reaction chamber, comprising:

a wall of said reaction chamber comprising a bulk part comprising sintered silicon carbide and a film part comprising silicon carbide formed over said bulk part on a side of said wall facing an interior of said reaction chamber; and

a source of electromagnetic radiation positioned on a side of said wall opposite said interior of said reaction chamber;

wherein said bulk part is electrically insulative such that a skin depth of said electromagnetic radiation in said bulk part is greater than a thickness of said bulk part.

12. The reaction chamber of claim 11, wherein said film part is sufficiently electrically insulative that a skin depth of said electromagnetic radiation, in said skin part, is greater than a thickness of said film part.

13. The reaction chamber of claim 11, wherein said film part has a electrically resistivity less than an electrical resistivity of said bulk part but is sufficiently large that a skin depth of said electromagnetic radiation in said film part is greater than a thickness of said film part.

14. The reaction chamber of claim 13, wherein said electrical resistivity of said film part is less than 50 ohm-cm.

15. The reaction chamber of claim 13, further comprising an electrical circuit attached to said film part.

16. The reaction chamber of claim 15, wherein said electrical circuit comprises an electrical ground.

17. The reaction chamber of claim 15, wherein said electrical circuit includes a source of an oscillating electrical signal.

18. The plasma reactor of claim 13, wherein said skin depth of said electromagnetic radiation in said bulk part is at least ten times greater than said thickness of said bulk part and said skin depth of said electromagnetic radiation in said skin part is at least ten times greater than said thickness of said film part.

19. An RF plasma reactor, comprising:

a plasma reactor chamber;

an inductive antenna positioned outside a wall of said chamber; and

a window in said chamber wall to admit the inductive field of said antenna into the interior of said chamber;

wherein said window is a composite comprising a sintered silicon carbide layer overlaid with a deposited silicon carbide film facing said interior of said chamber.

20. The plasma reactor as in claim 19, wherein said window is also an electrode.

21. The plasma reactor as in claim 19, wherein said composite is a semiconductor.

22. The plasma reactor as in claim 19, wherein said window is adapted to be connected to an RF power source.

23. The plasma reactor as in claim 19, wherein said window is adapted to be connected to an RF ground.

24. The plasma reactor as in claim 19, wherein said window is electrically floating.

25. The plasma reactor of claim 19, wherein said window is of high electrical resistivity greater than 10⁶ ohm-cm.

26. The plasma reactor of claim 25, wherein said sintered carbide layer is of high electrical resistivity greater than 10⁶ ohm-cm.

27. The plasma reactor of claim 26, wherein said deposited film is of high electrical resistivity greater than 10⁶ ohm-cm.

28. The plasma reactor of claim 19, wherein said inductive antenna is adapted to accept RF power, and wherein the thickness of said window is less than the RF skin depth.

29. The plasma reactor as in claim 28, wherein said thickness of said window is less than one-tenth the RF skin depth.

30. The plasma reactor as in claim 28, wherein said window is of high electrical resistivity.

31. The plasma reactor as in claim 28, wherein said sintered layer is of greater electrical resistivity than said deposited film.

32. The plasma reactor as in claim 28, wherein said deposited layer is thinner than said sintered film.

33. An RF plasma reactor, comprising:

a plasma reaction chamber;

a pedestal electrode for supporting a workpiece to be processed within the chamber; and

a counter electrode facing said pedestal electrode in spaced relationship thereto, said counter electrode being a composite comprising a sintered silicon carbide layer and a deposited silicon carbide film, said film facing said pedestal electrode;

wherein said electrodes are adapted to accept RF power so as to capacitively couple energy into a plasma within said reaction chamber.

34. The RF plasma reactor of claim 33, wherein a roof of said chamber comprises a metal, and wherein said counter electrode is attached thereto.

35. The RF plasma reactor of claim 34, wherein said roof functions as an anode, and wherein said pedestal electrode functions as a cathode.

36. The RF plasma reactor of claim 33, wherein said counter electrode is electrically floating.

37. The RF plasma reactor as in claim 34, wherein said counter electrode shares the same electrical potential as that of the chamber roof.

38. The RF plasma reactor as in claim 33, wherein said counter electrode is of low electrical resistivity.

39. The RF plasma reactor as in claim 33, wherein said deposited film has a metal impurity concentration of less than one hundred parts per billion.

40. The RF plasma reactor as in claim 33, wherein said deposited film is much thinner than said sintered layer.

41. The RF plasma reactor as in claim 33, wherein said deposited film has a thickness of greater than 2 mm.