Reliable sustained self-sputtering
First Claim
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1. A PVD plasma reactor system, comprising:
- a chamber to which is mountable a target;
a valve controlling a supply of a working gas into said chamber;
a source of DC electrical power connectable to said target and capable of exciting said gas into a plasma;
a power monitor monitoring a supply of said DC electrical power to said target; and
a controller controlling said valve in response to a change in an output of said power monitor.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A plasma physical vapor deposition (PVD) reactor configured for self sustained sputtering in which no sputtering working gas is required but the sputtered ions are sufficient to sustain the sputtering from the target. According to the invention, the power applied to the sputtering target is monitored to determine if sustained self-sputtering is being maintained. If the electrical parameters or other parameters in the chamber indicate that the self-sustained plasma has collapsed, a reinitialization procedure is begun including: admitting a working gas such as argon into the chamber; again exciting the plasma; and then effectively eliminating the working gas.
38 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A PVD plasma reactor system, comprising:
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a chamber to which is mountable a target; a valve controlling a supply of a working gas into said chamber; a source of DC electrical power connectable to said target and capable of exciting said gas into a plasma; a power monitor monitoring a supply of said DC electrical power to said target; and a controller controlling said valve in response to a change in an output of said power monitor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of maintaining a plasma in a sputtering chamber, comprising the steps of:
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placing a substrate to be fabricated into integrated circuits into a plasma sputtering chamber; admitting a working gas into said sputtering chamber; applying electrical power to a target in said sputtering chamber to cause said working gas to form a first plasma, to thereby sputter material of said target onto said substrate; monitoring said electrical power delivered to said target; and setting a threshold of said electrical power indicating a need to reignite said plasma. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A PVD plasma reactor system, comprising:
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a chamber to which is mountable a target; a valve controlling a supply of a working gas into said chamber; a source of DC electrical power connectable to said target and capable of exciting said gas into a plasma; a power monitor monitoring a supply of said DC electrical power to said target; and means responsive to a change in an output of said power monitor for controlling said valve. - View Dependent Claims (17, 19)
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16. A PVD plasma reactor system, comprising:
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a chamber to which is mountable a target; a valve controlling a supply of a gas into said chamber; a source of electrical power supply connectable to said target and capable of exciting said gas into a plasma; a power monitor monitoring a supply of said electrical power to said target, wherein said power monitor monitors a voltage associated with said target; and a controller controlling said valve in response to an output of said power monitor, wherein said controller compares a change in said monitored voltage to a threshold value.
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18. A PVD plasma reactor system, comprising:
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a chamber to which is mountable a target; a valve controlling a supply of a gas into said chamber; a source of electrical power supply connectable to said target and capable of exciting said gas into a plasma; a power monitor monitoring a supply of said electrical power to said target, wherein said power monitor monitors a current delivered to said target; and a controller controlling said valve in response to a change in an output of said power monitor.
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Specification