Continuous flow deposition system
First Claim
1. An atomic layer deposition system comprising:
- a) a deposition chamber;
b) a first reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the first reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a first reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the first reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the first reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the first reaction chamber;
c) a second reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the second reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a second reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the second reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the second reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the second reaction chamber;
d) a vacuum pump having an input that is in vacuum communication with a region between the first and the second reaction chambers, the vacuum pump reducing pressure inside the region between the first and the second reaction chambers to a pressure that is less than a pressure inside the first and the second reaction chamber; and
e) a transprot mechanism that transports a substrate in a path through the first reaction chamber and through the second reaction chamber at a constant transport rate, thereby depositing a film on the substrate by atomic layer depositon.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An atomic layer deposition system is described that includes a deposition chamber. A first and second reaction chamber are positioned in the deposition chamber and contain a first and a second reactant species, respectively. A monolayer of the first reactant species is deposited on a substrate passing through the first reaction chamber. A monolayer of the second reactant species is deposited on a substrate passing through the second reaction chamber. A transport mechanism transports a substrate in a path through the first reaction chamber and through the second reaction chamber, thereby depositing a film on the substrate by atomic layer deposition. The shape of the first and the second reaction chambers are chosen to achieve a constant exposure of the substrate to reactant species when the transport mechanism transports the substrate in the path through the respective reaction chambers at the constant transport rate.
399 Citations
32 Claims
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1. An atomic layer deposition system comprising:
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a) a deposition chamber; b) a first reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the first reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a first reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the first reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the first reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the first reaction chamber; c) a second reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the second reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a second reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the second reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the second reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the second reaction chamber; d) a vacuum pump having an input that is in vacuum communication with a region between the first and the second reaction chambers, the vacuum pump reducing pressure inside the region between the first and the second reaction chambers to a pressure that is less than a pressure inside the first and the second reaction chamber; and e) a transprot mechanism that transports a substrate in a path through the first reaction chamber and through the second reaction chamber at a constant transport rate, thereby depositing a film on the substrate by atomic layer depositon. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An atomic layer deposition system comprising:
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a) a deposition chamber; b) a first reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the first reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a first reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the first reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the first reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the first reaction chamber; c) a second reaction chamber being positioned in the deposition chamber, the second reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a second reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the second reactant species from escaping, a monolayer of the sceond reactant species being deposited on a substrate passing through the second reaction chamber; d) a vacuum pump having an input that is in vacuum communication with a region between the first and the second reaction chambers, the vacuum pump reducing pressure inside the region between the first and the second reaction chambers to a pressure that is less than a pressure inside the first and the second reaction chamber; e) a processing region that is positioned in the deposition chamber, a surface treatment being performed on a substrate passing through the processing region; and f) a transport mechanism that transports a substrate in a path through the first reaction chamber, through the second reaction chamber, and through the processing region, thereby depositing a film on the substrate by atomic layer deposition. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. An atomic layer deposition system comprising:
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a) means for transporting a substrate through a first reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a first reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the first reactant species from escaping, thereby forming a monolayer of the first reactant species on the substrate; b) means for transporting a substrate through a second reaction chamber comprising solid walls that contain a second reactant species and a seal comprising at least one of a sliding seal and a corrugated seal that prevents the second reactant species from escaping, thereby forming a monolayer of the second reactant species on the substrate; c) means for evacuating a region between the first and the second reaction chambers to a pressure that is less than a pressure inside the first and the second reaction chamber; and d) means for transporting a substrate through a processing region, thereby performing a surface treatment on the substrate.
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Specification