Plasma confinement shield

• US 6,387,817 B1
• Filed: 09/07/1999
• Issued: 05/14/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bell Semiconductor, LLC (Hilco Inc. (d/b/a Hilco Global))
• Original Assignee: Agere Systems Guardian Corp. (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Buckfeller, Joseph W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Utech, Benjamin L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Binh X.
• Application Number:
  US09/390,181
• Time in Patent Office: 980 Days
• Field of Search: 438/706, 438/712, 438/714, 438/731, 438/729, 156/345
• US Class Current: 438/712
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/564 Means for minimising impurities in the coating chamber such as dust, moisture, residual gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32082 Radio frequency generated discharge H01J37/32357, H01J37/32366, H01J37/32394 and H01J37/32403 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32623 Mechanical discharge control means
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32862 In situ cleaning of vessels and/or internal parts
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67069 for drying etching

Abstract

Improvements of the shielding of the reactor chamber in a radio frequency (RF) reactor are realized by providing dressed edges on the apertures found in the shield. These improvements to the reactor chamber lead to decreased defect density on processed wafers and eliminate the need for frequent cleaning of the reactor chamber.

Claims

1. A method of processing a substrate, comprising the steps of:

mechanically cleaning a plasma confinement shield and an anode shield with a blast of carbon dioxide, said shields having a plurality of apertures having dressed edges and forming a space for receiving a substrate;

disposing said shields in a chamber;

placing said substrate within said space;

sealing said chamber;

pressurizing said chamber;

delivering a gas to said chamber; and

exciting said gas into a plasma state by applying a radio frequency power source to said gas.

2. A method of cleaning a plasma reactor, comprising the steps of:

providing a delivery gun in fluid communication with a gas container, said gas container containing a pressurized gas,

causing said delivery gun to expel said gas uniformly; and

applying said expelled gas to a shield having a plurality of apertures having dressed edges for removing mechanically adhered particles from said shield.

3. A method of etching a semiconductor, comprising the steps of:

mechanically cleaning a plasma confinement shield and an anode shield with a blast of carbon dioxide, said shields having a plurality of apertures having dressed edges and forming a space for receiving a substrate;

disposing said shields in a chamber;

placing said semiconductor within said space and sealing said chamber;

pressurizing said chamber;

delivering a gas to said chamber; and

exciting said gas into a plasma state by applying a radio frequency power source to said gas.

4. A method of processing a substrate, comprising the steps of:

placing a substrate in a space formed within a plasma confinement shield and an anode shield, said shields being disposed in a reactor chamber and having a plurality of apertures having a dressed edge;

pressurizing said chamber;

delivering a gas to said chamber; and

exciting said gas into a plasma state.