Exhaust flow spreading baffle-riser to optimize remote plasma window clean

• US 9,028,765 B2
• Filed: 08/23/2013
• Issued: 05/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lam Research Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lam Research Corporation
• Inventors: Gytri, Lisa Marie, Lau, Stephen Yu-Hong, Lee, James Forest
• Primary Examiner(s): Tai, Xiuyu
• Application Number:
  US13/974,540
• Publication Number:
  US 20150056108A1
• Time in Patent Office: 627 Days
• Field of Search: 422/186.3, 156/345.29, 156/345.5, 156/345.51
• US Class Current: 422/186.3
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32449 Gas control, e.g. control of the gas flow
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32834 Exhausting
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32844 Treating effluent gases
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 37/32862 In situ cleaning of vessels and/or internal parts
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02002 Preparing wafers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02C 20/30 of perfluorocarbons [PFC], hydrofluorocarbons [HFC] or sulfur hexafluoride [SF6]

Abstract

Porogen accumulation in a UV-cure chamber may be reduced by removing outgassed porogen by flowing a purge gas across a window through which a wafer is exposed to UV light. Porogens in the purge gas stream may, as they flow through the chamber and into an exhaust baffle, deposit on surfaces within the chamber, including on the exhaust baffle. The exhaust baffle may have particular features that cause such porogen deposition to be more uniformly distributed across the exhaust baffle, thus reducing the amount of time that may be required to fully clean the baffle of accumulated porogens during a cleaning process.

Claims

1. An exhaust baffle for a process chamber for a semiconductor process, the process chamber having a) a gas inlet region configured to flow process gases into the process chamber, across a window of the chamber, and between the window and a pedestal within the process chamber and b) a gas exhaust region configured to evacuate the gas flowed into the process chamber via the gas inlet region from the process chamber, the exhaust baffle comprising:

a base surface inscribed in a triangular region, the base surface having a first side edge, a second side edge, and an inlet edge;

an exhaust aperture in the base surface and located opposite the inlet edge;

a raised profile section located along the inlet edge, the raised profile section having an upper surface offset from the base surface by a first distance, wherein the exhaust baffle is configured to interface with at least one other component in the gas exhaust region of the process chamber such that the base surface is offset from the at least one other component in the gas exhaust region of the process chamber by a second distance and such that the first distance is at least 50% of the second distance.

2. The exhaust baffle of claim 1, wherein the exhaust baffle is substantially symmetric about a symmetry plane that intersects a vertex of the triangular region opposite a first leg of the triangular region proximate to the inlet edge and that is substantially perpendicular to the first leg.

3. The exhaust baffle of claim 2, wherein the inlet edge is substantially straight and corresponds with the first leg and the first side edge and the second side edge are substantially coincident with second and third legs of the triangular region.

4. The exhaust baffle of claim 2, wherein the base surface has a rounded corner proximate to the vertex of the triangular region opposite the first leg.

5. The exhaust baffle of claim 2, wherein the raised profile section has a cross-section in a plane parallel to the base surface that substantially corresponds with a semicircular area of radius R, wherein the semicircular area has a notch in it substantially centered on the symmetry plane and extending towards the inlet edge by a distance of at least approximately ½

R.

6. The exhaust baffle of claim 5, wherein the at least one other component of the process chamber with which the exhaust baffle is configured to interface includes a substantially semicircular recess with a radius R′

, where R′

is at least 1.05R.

7. The exhaust baffle of claim 6, wherein the difference between R′

and R is at least approximately twice as large as the difference between the first distance and the second distance.

8. The exhaust baffle of claim 5, wherein the notch is a triangular notch with an included angle of approximately 90°

.

9. The exhaust baffle of claim 5, wherein the notch is a semicircular notch.

10. The exhaust baffle of claim 5, wherein the first distance is at least 75% of the second distance.

11. The exhaust baffle of claim 2, wherein:

the raised profile section has a substantially symmetric trapezoidal cross-sectional shape in a plane substantially perpendicular to the inlet edge, and

the trapezoidal cross-sectional shape is widest at the base surface.

12. A UV semiconductor processing tool comprising:

a process chamber;

a pedestal located within the process chamber;

an ultraviolet (UV) light source positioned so as to expose the pedestal to UV radiation from the UV light source;

a window positioned between the UV light source and the pedestal;

a gas inlet region configured to flow process gases into the process chamber, across the window, and between the window and the pedestal; and

a gas exhaust region having an exhaust baffle, the gas exhaust region configured to evacuate the gas flowed into the process chamber via the gas inlet region from the process chamber, wherein the baffle has;

a base surface inscribed in a triangular region, the base surface having a first side edge, a second side edge, and an inlet edge;

an exhaust aperture in the base surface and located opposite the inlet edge;

a raised profile section located along the inlet edge, the raised profile section having an upper surface offset from the base surface by a first distance, wherein the exhaust baffle is configured to interface with at least one other component of the process chamber such that the base surface is offset from the at least one other component by a second distance and such that the first distance is at least 50% of the second distance.

13. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 12, wherein the exhaust baffle is substantially symmetric about a symmetry plane that intersects a vertex of the triangular region opposite a first leg of the triangular region proximate to the inlet edge and that is substantially perpendicular to the first leg.

14. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 13, wherein the inlet edge is substantially straight and corresponds with the first leg and the first side edge and the second side edge are substantially coincident with second and third legs of the triangular region.

15. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 13, wherein the raised profile section has a cross-section in a plane parallel to the base surface that substantially corresponds with a semicircular area of radius R, wherein the semicircular area has a notch in it substantially centered on the symmetry plane and extending towards the inlet edge by a distance of at least approximately ½

R.

16. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 15, wherein the at least one other component of the process chamber with which the exhaust baffle is configured to interface includes a substantially semicircular recess with a radius R′

, where R′

is at least 1.05R.

17. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 16, wherein the difference between R′

and R is at least approximately twice as large as the difference between the first distance and the second distance.

18. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 15, wherein the notch is a triangular notch with an included angle of approximately 90°

.

19. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 15, wherein the first distance is at least 75% of the second distance.

20. The UV semiconductor processing tool of claim 13, wherein:

the raised profile section has a substantially symmetric trapezoidal cross-sectional shape in a plane substantially perpendicular to the inlet edge, and

the trapezoidal cross-sectional shape is widest at the base surface.