Crystallization processing for semiconductor applications
First Claim
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1. A method of treating a substrate, comprising:
- Identifying a first treatment zone;
forming a molten area of the first treatment zone by exposing a surface of the first treatment zone to a first laser pulse, wherein the first laser pulse has a non-uniformity of less than about 5 percent;
recrystallizing the molten area of the first treatment zone while exposing the first treatment zone to a plurality of laser pulses;
identifying a second treatment zone; and
repeating the forming a molten area and the recrystallizing the molten area with the second treatment zone, wherein the forming a molten area of each treatment zone further comprises exposing the surface of each treatment zone to a second laser pulse, and a duration between the first laser pulse and the second laser pulse is less than a time necessary for a portion of the molten area to refreeze, and wherein the first laser pulse and the second laser pulse have the same duration and intensity.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for forming a crystalline semiconductor layer on a substrate are provided. A semiconductor layer is formed by vapor deposition. A pulsed laser melt/recrystallization process is performed to convert the semiconductor layer to a crystalline layer. Laser, or other electromagnetic radiation, pulses are formed into a pulse train and uniformly distributed over a treatment zone, and successive neighboring treatment zones are exposed to the pulse train to progressively convert the deposited material to crystalline material.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method of treating a substrate, comprising:
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Identifying a first treatment zone; forming a molten area of the first treatment zone by exposing a surface of the first treatment zone to a first laser pulse, wherein the first laser pulse has a non-uniformity of less than about 5 percent; recrystallizing the molten area of the first treatment zone while exposing the first treatment zone to a plurality of laser pulses; identifying a second treatment zone; and repeating the forming a molten area and the recrystallizing the molten area with the second treatment zone, wherein the forming a molten area of each treatment zone further comprises exposing the surface of each treatment zone to a second laser pulse, and a duration between the first laser pulse and the second laser pulse is less than a time necessary for a portion of the molten area to refreeze, and wherein the first laser pulse and the second laser pulse have the same duration and intensity. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A method of treating a substrate, comprising:
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Identifying a first treatment zone; forming a molten area of the first treatment zone by exposing a surface of the first treatment zone to a first laser pulse, wherein the first laser pulse has a non-uniformity of less than about 5 percent; recrystallizing the molten area of the first treatment zone while exposing the first treatment zone to a plurality of laser pulses, wherein each pulse of the plurality of laser pulses has a duration or an intensity that is different from the first laser pulse; identifying a second treatment zone; and repeating the forming a molten area and the recrystallizing the molten area with the second treatment zone, and wherein the forming a molten area of each treatment zone further comprises exposing the surface of each treatment zone to a second laser pulse, and a duration between the first laser pulse and the second laser pulse is less than a time necessary for a portion of the molten area to refreeze. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method of treating a substrate, comprising:
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identifying a first treatment zone; forming a molten area of the first treatment zone by exposing a surface of the first treatment zone to a first group of one or more laser pulses and a second group of one or more laser pulses, wherein a power delivered by the second group of one or more laser pulses is higher than a power delivered by the first group of one or more laser pulses; recrystallizing the molten area of the first treatment zone while exposing the first treatment zone to a third group of one or more laser pulses, wherein a power delivered by the third group of one or more laser pulses is less than a power delivered by the first group of one or more laser pulses and a power delivered by the second group of one or more laser pulses; identifying a second treatment zone adjacent to the first treatment zone; and repeating the forming a molten area and the recrystallizing the molten area with the second treatment zone. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method of treating a substrate, comprising:
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identifying a first treatment zone; forming a molten area of the first treatment zone by exposing a surface of the first treatment zone to a first plurality of laser pulses, wherein the pulses of the first plurality of laser pulses have an overlap factor between about 10 percent and about 40 percent; recrystallizing the molten area of the first treatment zone while exposing the first treatment zone to a second plurality of laser pulses, wherein each pulse of the second plurality of laser pulses melts a portion of a recrystallized area; identifying a second treatment zone adjacent to the first treatment zone; and repeating the forming a molten area and the recrystallizing the molten area with the second treatment zone. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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Specification