Reactive preclean prior to metallization for sub-quarter micron application
First Claim
1. A method of precleaning features formed in a dielectric layer on a semiconductor substrate, comprising:
- a) generating a plasma in a remote plasma source;
b) delivering radicals from the plasma to a process chamber which contains the substrate;
c) cleaning the features on the substrate prior to a barrier layer deposition; and
d) cleaning the features on the substrate after the barrier layer deposition and prior to a metal deposition.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention generally provides a precleaning process prior to metallization for submicron features on substrates. The method includes cleaning the submicron features with radicals from a plasma of a reactive gas such as oxygen, a mixture of CF4 /O2, or a mixture of He/NF3, wherein the plasma is preferably generated by a remote plasma source and the radicals are delivered to a chamber in which the substrate is disposed. Native oxides remaining in the submicron features are preferably reduced in a second step by treatment with radicals from a plasma containing hydrogen. Following the first or both precleaning steps, the features can be filled with metal by available metallization techniques which typically include depositing a barrier/liner layer on exposed dielectric surfaces prior to deposition of aluminum, copper, or tungsten. The precleaning and metallization steps can be conducted on available integrated processing platforms.
197 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of precleaning features formed in a dielectric layer on a semiconductor substrate, comprising:
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a) generating a plasma in a remote plasma source; b) delivering radicals from the plasma to a process chamber which contains the substrate; c) cleaning the features on the substrate prior to a barrier layer deposition; and d) cleaning the features on the substrate after the barrier layer deposition and prior to a metal deposition. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method of forming features on semiconductor substrates, comprising:
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a) depositing a dielectric layer on a semiconductor substrate having a surface comprising a conductive or a semiconductive sublayer; b) etching features in the dielectric layer to expose the sublayer; c) cleaning the features with radicals from a plasma of a reactive gas which comprises oxygen, a mixture of CF4 /O2, or a mixture of He/NF3, wherein the plasma is generated by a remote plasma source and the radicals are delivered to a chamber which contains the substrate; d) depositing a barrier layer on the feature; e) cleaning the barrier layer with radicals from a plasma consisting of hydrogen, or a mixture of hydrogen and N2, Ar, or He; and f) filling the features with a conductive or semiconductive material. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of precleaning and filling submicron features in a dielectric layer on a semiconductor substrate, comprising:
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a) cleaning the submicron features with radicals from a plasma comprising a reactive gas; b) reducing native oxides remaining in the submicron features with radicals from a plasma comprising hydrogen; c) depositing a barrier/liner layer on exposed surfaces of the dielectric layer; and d) cleaning the barrier/liner layer with radicals from the plasma of a reactive gas. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification