Method and apparatus for low temperature, low pressure chemical vapor deposition of epitaxial silicon layers
First Claim
1. A method for depositing a silicon containing layer onto a substrate, including the following steps:
- providing said substrate in a CVD apparatus,establishing a total base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr. in said CVD apparatus,establishing a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C. in said apparatus,introducing a gas containing silicon into said apparatus which gas interacts heterogeneously with said substrate to deposit a layer containing silicon thereon, the total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon being sufficiently low to substantially prevent gas phase pyrolysis, andcontinuing said deposition until a desired thickness of a silicon containing layer is obtained.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for depositing single crystal, epitaxial films of silicon on a plurality of substrates in a hot wall, isothermal deposition system is described. The deposition temperatures are less than about 800° C., and the operating pressures during deposition are such that non-equilibrium growth kinetics determine the deposition of the silicon films. An isothermal bath gas of silicon is produced allowing uniform deposition of epitaxial silicon films simultaneously on multiple substrates. This is a flow system in which means are provided for establishing an ultrahigh vacuum in the range of about 10-9 Torr prior to epitaxial deposition. The epitaxial silicon layers can be doped in-situ to provide very abruptly defined regions of either n- or p-type conductivity.
182 Citations
59 Claims
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1. A method for depositing a silicon containing layer onto a substrate, including the following steps:
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providing said substrate in a CVD apparatus, establishing a total base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr. in said CVD apparatus, establishing a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C. in said apparatus,introducing a gas containing silicon into said apparatus which gas interacts heterogeneously with said substrate to deposit a layer containing silicon thereon, the total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon being sufficiently low to substantially prevent gas phase pyrolysis, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of a silicon containing layer is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
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10. A method for depositing a silicon containing layer on a plurality of substrates, comprising the steps of:
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placing said substrates into a CVD reactor, evacuating said reactor to a total base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr., heating said reactor to a temperature not in excess of about 800°
C.,introducing a silicon-containing gas into said reactor for deposition of a silicon containing layer onto said substrates, establishing a total operating pressure of said silicon-containing gas during said deposition at a total operating pressure sufficiently low to substantially prevent gas phase pyrolysis, and reacting said gas on said substrates to deposit Si containing layers thereon. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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16. A method for deposition of a silicon containing layer onto a substrate, comprising the following steps:
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placing said substrate into a CVD reactor, evacuating said reactor to a base vacuum less than the partial pressures of any contaminants in said reactor, heating said reactor to a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C.,introducing a gas containing silicon into said reaction chamber for deposition of a silicon containing layer onto said substrate, establishing a total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon during deposition which is sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon-containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said silicon containing layer is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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40. A method for depositing a silicon-containing layer onto a substrate, including the following steps:
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providing said substrate in a hot wall, thermally driven CVD apparatus, establishing a total base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr. in said apparatus, establishing a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C. in said apparatus,introducing a gas containing silicon into said apparatus which gas interacts heterogeneously with said substrate to deposit a silicon-containing layer thereon, the total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon being less than several hundred mTorr, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said silicon-containing layer is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42)
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43. A method for epitaxial deposition of a layer containing silicon onto a plurality of substrates, comprising the following steps:
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placing said plurality of substrates into a hot wall CVD reactor, evacuating said reactor to a base ultra high vacuum less than the partial pressures of any contaminants in said reactor, heating said reactor to a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C.,introducing a gas containing silicon into said reaction chamber for epitaxial deposition of said layers onto said substrates, establishing a total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon during deposition which is sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon-containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said epitaxial layers is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47)
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48. A method for depositing a layer containing silicon onto a substrate, including the following steps:
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loading a substrate into a chamber which can be pumped to a vacuum level, heating said substrate in said chamber to a temperature less than about 200°
C. and establishing a vacuum level in said chamber,transferring said substrate into a CVD apparatus in which a base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr. has been established, establishing a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C. in said CVD apparatus,introducing a gas containing silicon into said apparatus which gas interacts heterogeneously with said substrate to deposit a silicon containing layer thereon, the total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon being sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon-containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said silicon containing layer is obtained.
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49. A method for depositing silicon on a plurality of substrates, comprising the steps of:
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placing said substrates into a load chamber, heating said substrates while establishing a vacuum level in said load chamber, transferring said substrates into a CVD reactor evacuated to a total base pressure less than about 10-8 Torr., heating said reactor to a temperature not in excess of 800°
C.,introducing a silicon containing gas into said reactor for deposition of silicon onto said substrates, establishing a total operating pressure of said silicon containing gas during said deposition being sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon-containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and reacting said gas on said substrates to deposit single crystal silicon containing layers thereon. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51, 52, 53)
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54. A method for epitaxial deposition of silicon layers onto a plurality of substrates, comprising the following steps:
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placing said substrates into a load chamber, heating said substrates while pumping said load chamber to a pressure less than 10-6 Torr., transferring said plurality of substrates into a CVD reactor evacuated to a base vacuum less than the partial pressures of any contaminants in said reactor, heating said reactor to a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C.,introducing a gas containing silicon into said reaction chamber for epitaxial deposition of silicon onto said substrates, establishing a total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon during deposition which is sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said epitaxial silicon layers is obtained.
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55. A method for deposition of an epitaxial silicon containing layer onto a plurality of substrates, comprising the following steps:
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placing said substrates in a load chamber, pumping said load chamber to a pressure less than 10-6 Torr., transferring said plurality of substrates into a CVD reactor evacuated to a base vacuum less than the partial pressures of any contaminants in said reactor, heating said reactor to a deposition temperature less than about 800°
C.,introducing a gas containing silicon into said reaction chamber for epitaxial deposition of silicon onto said substrates, establishing a total operating pressure of said gas containing silicon during deposition which is sufficiently low at said deposition temperature that homogeneous reactions of said silicon containing gas in the gas phase are substantially eliminated, and continuing said deposition until a desired thickness of said epitaxial silicon containing layer is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58, 59)
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Specification