In-situ integrated chamber

Abstract

The systems and methods discussed herein are used in a cluster tool that can be used for MOSFET device manufacturing, including NMOS and PMOS devices. The cluster tool includes a processing chamber for pre-cleaning, metal silicide or metal germanide film formation, and surface protection operations such as capping and nitridation. The cluster tool may include one or more processing chambers configured to form a source and a drain. The device manufactured in the cluster tool is manufactured to have at least one protective layer formed over the metal silicide or metal germanide film to protect the film from contamination during processing and transfer to a separation system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to the fabrication of field-effect transistors (FETs). Background Art

[0002] Field effect transistors are a family of transistors that rely on an electric field generated by a voltage on the gate in order to control the current between the drain and the source. One of the many types of FETs is the metal-oxide semiconductor FET (MOSFET). The manufacture of MOSFET devices includes multiple deposition and patterning operations that are performed to form and electrically connect and / or insulate various features of the device. At least one silicide layer is typically formed during the MOSFET manufacturing process. Depending on the many processing operations involved in MOSFET manufacturing, the nucleation of the silicide layer (which may be a metal silicide including polycrystalline ("poly") metal silicide) may be a challenge. Typically the silicide layer formation is not integrated in situ with the transistor source and drain film formation. After the transistor source / drain epitaxial film is formed, the source / contact area is protected with a hard mask (such as a nitride film) during the following transistor gate formation. After the gate is formed, the source / drain top contact area is opened by etching away the hard mask for the formation of the silicide film on top of the source and drain contact areas. The etching process for hard mask removal may also etch away some amount of the top source / drain film and damage the contact surface, which is not conducive to meeting the low contact resistance requirement. Without surface treatment (such as nitridation) or covering with other films (such as titanium nitride, silicon nitride), the grown metal nitride layer is easily oxidized in air. In-situ processing and hardware integration of source / drain film formation, silicide layer formation and surface protection will help minimize or reduce the transistor contact resistance between the top source / drain and the silicide layer.

[0003] Thus, there remains a need in the art for improved systems and methods for MOSFET fabrication. Summary of the invention

[0004] In one embodiment, the computer readable medium includes instructions configured to cause the system to perform the following steps: transferring the substrate from the transfer chamber into the pre-cleaning processing chamber for a pre-cleaning operation, and performing a pre-cleaning operation in the pre-cleaning processing chamber. After the pre-cleaning operation, the instructions are configured to transfer the substrate from the pre-cleaning processing chamber into the source / drain epitaxial deposition processing chamber, and form a source and a drain on the substrate in the source / drain epitaxial deposition processing chamber. After forming the source and the drain in the source / drain epitaxial deposition processing chamber, the instructions are configured to transfer the substrate from the source / drain epitaxial deposition processing chamber into the film formation processing chamber to form a metal silicide film or a metal germanide on the source and the drain, and form a metal silicide film or a metal germanide on the source and the drain in the film formation processing chamber. After forming the source and the drain, the instructions are configured to transfer the substrate from the film formation processing chamber into the surface protection processing chamber; and perform a surface protection operation in the surface protection processing chamber.

[0005] In one embodiment, a method for processing a substrate includes the following steps: using a central transfer robot disposed in a transfer space of a transfer chamber, transferring a substrate into a first process chamber among a plurality of process chambers, the first process chamber being configured to perform at least one pre-cleaning operation; performing at least one pre-cleaning operation in the first process chamber; after the at least one pre-cleaning operation, transferring the substrate from the first process chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and entering a second process chamber among the plurality of process chambers, the second process chamber being configured to form a source and a drain on the substrate; and forming a source and a drain on the substrate in the second process chamber among the plurality of process chambers. The method also includes the following steps: after forming the source and the drain, transferring the substrate from the second process chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and entering a third process chamber among the plurality of process chambers, the third process chamber being configured to form a film on the source and the drain; and forming a film on the source and the drain in the third process chamber. The method also includes the following steps: after forming the source and the drain, transferring the substrate from the third processing chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and entering a fourth processing chamber among the multiple processing chambers, wherein the fourth processing chamber is configured to form a protective film on the source and the drain; and forming a protective film on the source and the drain in the fourth processing chamber.

[0006] In one embodiment, a system includes a plurality of process chambers, and a first process chamber among the plurality of process chambers is configured for a pre-cleaning operation, a second process chamber among the plurality of process chambers is configured for an epitaxial deposition operation, and a third process chamber among the plurality of process chambers is configured to perform at least one of a capping layer forming operation or a nitridation operation; a transfer chamber coupled to each of the plurality of process chambers; a central transfer robot configured to transfer a substrate in or between the transfer chamber and one or more of the plurality of process chambers; and a controller configured to execute a plurality of instructions, the instructions including which process chambers among the plurality of process chambers to transfer the substrate to, operations to be performed in the process chambers among the plurality of process chambers when transferring the substrate, and an order in which to transfer the substrate to the process chambers. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Therefore, in order to be able to understand in detail the manner in which the above-mentioned characteristic structures of the present disclosure are used, a more specific description of the present disclosure briefly summarized above may be made with reference to various embodiments, some of which are shown in the accompanying drawings. However, it should be noted that the accompanying drawings only illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present disclosure, as the present disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

[0008] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for forming a semiconductor component according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0009] Figure 2 Flowchart of a method of forming a semiconductor component according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is also contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0011] The systems and methods discussed herein relate to the manufacture of MOSFET devices in a cluster tool, which includes multiple integrated processing chambers. Each operation may be performed in a single chamber configured to perform one or more operations, or may be performed in multiple processing chambers, each of which is configured to perform one or more operations. The operations performed in the processing chambers of the cluster tool discussed herein may include pre-cleaning, source / drain deposition, metal silicide or metal germanide film formation, and surface protection using substrate capping or nitridation. A central transfer robot is used to transfer substrates (which may include one or more material layers) in and between the processing chambers of the cluster tool. The central transfer robot is set in an environmentally controlled transfer space, which can be used for pressure and / or temperature control. In contrast, during conventional MOSFET device manufacturing, substrates are transferred in different systems (e.g., cluster tools) for different operations including film formation. The transfer of substrates between systems may expose the substrates to ambient air and / or contaminants, which may negatively affect downstream manufacturing operations and MOSFET device performance. However, using the systems and methods of MOSFET fabrication discussed herein, multiple operations are performed in a processing chamber that is part of a single cluster tool, which minimizes exposure of the substrate to undesirable processing environments.

[0012] The operations discussed herein may include two or more chambers on the same cluster tool, configured to perform similar operations, such as pre-clean, source / drain deposition, metal silicide film or metal germanide film formation, or surface protection operations. One or more processing chambers may be used to perform each of the pre-clean, source / drain ("s / d") deposition, film formation, and / or surface protection operations. The execution of multiple consecutive MOSFET manufacturing operations in a cluster tool minimizes the transfer of substrates between other cluster tools, thereby minimizing exposure to the surrounding environment. The reduced handling of substrates in and between different cluster tools reduces the possibility and / or amount of substrate contamination. Due to the manufacture of films and surface protection layers in the cluster tools discussed herein, the quality of contacts formed during MOSFET manufacturing is improved using the systems and methods discussed herein, which are manufactured in the same cluster tool as other MOSFET manufacturing processes due to the manufacture of films and surface protection layers in the cluster tools discussed herein.

[0013] Figure 1Schematic plan view of a system 100 for forming a MOSFET device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. System 100 is a cluster tool having one or more processing chambers. System 100 is configured to perform one or more MOSFET manufacturing operations. In one example, system 100 includes a plurality of processing chambers 104, 106, 108, 110, and 124 (five are shown), and a transfer chamber 112. A central transfer robot 116 is disposed in a transfer space 118 of the transfer chamber 112. A plurality of processing chambers 104, 106, 108, 110, and 124 may be arranged at different locations around the transfer chamber 112, and may be configured to perform different MOSFET manufacturing operations. Although processing chamber 104, processing chamber 106, processing chamber 108, processing chamber 110, and processing chamber 124 are illustrated, it is contemplated that system 100 may include more or less than five processing chambers disposed about transfer chamber 112. System 100 discussed herein is configured to perform MOSFET manufacturing operations, including some or all of the following operations: (A) pre-cleaning substrates, (B) epitaxial deposition of sources and drains of NMOS or PMOS devices, (C) metal silicide film or metal germanide film formation on the source and drain, and (D) surface treatment / protection after film formation.

[0014] The system 100 may be communicatively, electrically, mechanically, or otherwise coupled to one or more additional systems, such as other cluster tools, and Figure 1 The second system 122 is shown together with the second system 122 in the system 100. The second system 122 can be used for different operations, including film formation, patterning, and / or thermal annealing, which can occur before and / or after performing one or more operations in the system 100. In one example, the source and drain of the MOSFET device are formed before the substrate enters the system 100. In another example, the source and drain are formed as discussed below using the system 100.

[0015] The substrate is transferred to the system 100 and transferred from the system 100 to the system 122 using a transfer system, and the substrate is exposed to ambient air, processing damage and / or other contaminants or undesirable conditions. In one example, the substrate can be transferred from the second system 122 into the factory interface 114 of the system 100. From the factory interface 114, the substrate can be transferred to the transfer chamber 112. The transfer space 118 of the transfer chamber 112 can be an environmentally controlled environment, such as an environment in which the temperature and / or pressure can be set and maintained and / or adjusted. In one example, the transfer chamber 112 is maintained at a vacuum pressure and a temperature of about 25° C. to about 150° C. during MOSFET manufacturing. The central transfer robot 116 is configured to transfer substrates in and between the processing chambers 104, 106, 108, 110, and 124.

[0016] As discussed herein, system 100 may include Figure 1 The illustrated processing chamber 104, processing chamber 106, processing chamber 108, processing chamber 110, and processing chamber 124 may be more or fewer processing chambers. Each processing chamber 104, processing chamber 106, processing chamber 108, processing chamber 110, and processing chamber 124 may be configured to perform one or more operations. It is contemplated that the system 100 may include duplicate chambers. For example, the system 100 may include multiple pre-cleaning chambers configured to perform the same or different pre-cleaning operations. Similarly, the system 100 may include multiple deposition chambers configured to perform the same or different deposition processes.

[0017] In one example, controller 120 is communicatively coupled to system 100 and configured to execute a plurality of instructions including a sequence of operations to perform to form all or part of a MOSFET device. The sequence of operations may include which processing chambers 104, 106, 108, 110, and 124 to transfer the substrate to, which operations to perform in the processing chambers, and / or the order in which the transfer and / or operation performance occurs. The sequence of operations may further include additional MOSFET manufacturing process details, including chamber parameters such as pressure, temperature, precursor type, gas flow rate, plasma generation parameters, and / or other parameters that may be used to manufacture various MOSFET devices as discussed herein.

[0018] The system 100 is configured to perform one or more cleaning operations in the pre-clean processing chamber 108. Figure 1Only a single pre-clean processing chamber 108 is illustrated in the drawings, but it is contemplated that the system 100 may include multiple pre-clean processing chambers 108. Pre-cleaning prepares the substrate for subsequent operations such as film formation to improve the quality of the film formed on the clean substrate. Each pre-clean processing chamber 108 is configured to prepare the substrate for subsequent operations by removing one or more of native oxide or residual carbon, and / or by repairing surface defects including defects of previously deposited and / or patterned films. The native oxide may be formed due to processing after upstream operations, and the residual carbon may be the result of a hard mask used in upstream operations. In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments, the system 100 includes one or more source / drain epitaxial deposition processing chambers ("s / d chambers"), two of which (104, 106) are shown. In one example, the s / d chamber 104 is configured for PMOS formation, and the s / d chamber 106 is configured for NMOS formation. In this example, s / d chamber 104 is configured to form a P-type MOSFET device, and s / d chamber 106 is configured to form an N-type MOSFET device. In one example, s / d chamber 104, s / d chamber 106 can be omitted from system 100. In this example, the substrate provided to system 100 already includes a source and a drain formed thereon.

[0019] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments, the system 100 includes a film-forming processing chamber 110. Although only a single film-forming processing chamber 110 is illustrated, it is contemplated that the system 100 may include a plurality of film-forming processing chambers 110. In an example in which the film-forming operation includes one or more film-forming processing chambers 110, each film-forming processing chamber 110 may be configured to form one or more of a metal silicide film and / or a metal germanide film on a source and a drain. The one or more film-forming processing chambers 110 may include a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber or an atomic layer deposition (ALD) chamber.

[0020] The system 100 includes a surface protection processing chamber 124. Although only a single surface protection processing chamber 124 is shown, it is contemplated that the system 100 may include a plurality of surface protection processing chambers 124 configured to perform a capping operation and / or a nitridation operation. Capping is the operation of forming a layer over a substrate surface (such as the source and drain of a MOSFET device). In one example, the layer may be formed of titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN), silicon nitride, and / or silicon (Si). In one example, the surface protection processing chamber 124 is configured to perform a nitridation operation. After depositing a metal silicide film or a metal germanide film, nitridation (nitridation) exposes at least a portion of the substrate (such as the source and drain of the substrate) to a nitrogen source. Exposure to a nitrogen source forms a hardened protective surface layer over the metal silicide film or the metal germanide film. Once the structure formed in the cluster tool is transferred to a different tool for further processing, the protective layer formed during the nitridation prevents or reduces oxidation of the metal silicide film or the metal germanide film. In one example, the surface protection layer formed by the surface protection processing chamber 124 is an intermediate layer to facilitate downstream operations including forming and / or patterning one or more target layers.

[0021] As discussed above, the system 100 includes one or more pre-cleaning processing chambers 108 (one is shown). In one example, the one or more pre-cleaning processing chambers 108 include one or more of the following operations: a first pre-cleaning processing chamber for native oxide removal operations; a second pre-cleaning processing chamber configured to generate a hydrogen (H2) plasma to remove residual carbon; and a third pre-cleaning processing chamber. In one example, the third pre-cleaning processing chamber is configured to generate a chlorine (Cl) plasma to remove thin defective layers from a substrate, including epitaxial layers. Additionally or alternatively, in one of the pre-cleaning chambers 108, residual carbon is removed. Residual carbon may remain on the substrate from previous film formation and patterning operations, which may include the use of a carbon-containing hard mask layer.

[0022] In one example, the NMOS chamber 106 is configured to form an N-type source and an N-type drain, and the PMOS chamber 104 is configured to form a P-type source and a P-type drain. The NMOS chamber 106 is connected to one or more precursor sources, including silicon (Si), phosphorus (P), arsenic (As), antimony (Sb), bismuth (Bi) and / or lithium (Li). The PMOS chamber 104 is connected to one or more precursor sources, such as boron (B), gallium (Ga), tin (Sn), indium (In), germanium (Ge) and / or silicon (Si).

[0023] The film forming processing chamber 110 is configured to form a metal silicide film or a metal germanide film on the source and drain. As discussed above, although a single film forming processing chamber 110 is illustrated, it is envisioned that the system 100 may include multiple film forming processing chambers 110. In one example, the film forming processing chamber 110 includes one or more of the following: a first film forming processing chamber configured as a CVD chamber to form a metal silicide film on the source and drain using lamp heat or a resistive heater, and / or a second film forming processing chamber configured as a CVD chamber to form a metal germanide film using lamp heat or a resistive heater. The film forming processing chamber 110 may additionally or alternatively include a third film forming processing chamber configured to form either or both of a metal silicide and / or a metal germanide film. In one example, the film forming processing chamber 110 is lamp heated and configured to form a metal silicide or metal germanide film. In one example, the film forming processing chamber 110 is resistively heated (e.g., using a heated substrate support) and is configured to form a metal silicide or metal germanide film. The NMOS chamber 106 and / or the PMOS chamber 104 are used to form a metal silicide or metal germanide film and may be lamp heated.

[0024] The system 100 includes a surface protection processing chamber 124. The surface protection operation is used to prevent oxidation of the metal silicide film or the metal germanide film when exposed to air, such as when the MOSFET structure is transferred to the second system 122. Although a single surface protection processing chamber 124 is shown, it is contemplated that the system 100 may include multiple surface protection processing chambers. The surface protection processing chamber 124 may be lamp-heated in an example in which nitridation is the surface protection operation, or if the surface protection operation includes forming a Ti-containing capping layer, the surface protection processing chamber 124 may be resistively heated. In one example, the system 100 includes one or more of the following: a first surface protection processing chamber 124 configured as a plasma chamber to perform one or more operations, the operations including SiN capping, Si capping, or nitridation of a metal silicide film or a metal germanide film; and / or a second surface protection processing chamber 124 configured as a plasma chamber capable of forming a Ti or TiN cap. The one or more surface protection processing chambers 124 may include a third surface protection processing chamber 124 configured to perform nitridation on the metal silicide film or the metal germanide film and form a Ti or TiN cap. In one example, the one or more surface protection processing chambers 124 may include a fourth surface protection processing chamber 124 configured to perform nitridation without forming a cap; and a fifth surface protection processing chamber 124 configured to form a Si cap on the metal silicide or metal germanide film.

[0025] The system 100 includes one or more sensors that monitor conditions and / or properties of one or more aspects of the system, such as a transfer space 118 of a transfer chamber 112. The system 100 includes one or more modules 190 (one shown) having one or more sensors 191a-191d (four shown). The modules 190 having sensors 191a-191d are disposed in the transfer space 118 of the transfer chamber 112. The modules 190 having sensors 191a-191d may be attached to the transfer chamber 112, such as to an inner surface of the transfer chamber 112. At least one of the sensors 191a-191d is configured to detect, monitor and / or measure contaminants and their concentrations in the transfer space 118, such as when the central transfer robot 116 transfers a substrate. In one example, the one or more sensors 191a-191d include one or more in-situ metrology sensors. At least one of the sensors 191a-191d is configured to detect, monitor, and / or measure conditions and / or properties of substrates being processed in the system 100, such as when the substrates are being transferred by the central transfer robot 116. In one example, the one or more sensors 191a-191d include one or more on-wafer spectroscopy sensors, and / or one or more contaminant sensors. In one example, the one or more sensors 191a-191d include one or more oxygen sensors, one or more water vapor sensors, one or more X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) sensors, and / or one or more X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) sensors. The plurality of instructions executed by the controller 120 include instructions that instruct the one or more sensors 191a-191d to detect, monitor, and / or measure contaminants, conditions, and / or properties.

[0026] Some or all of the processing chambers 104, 106, 108, 110, and / or 124 may be used to form a MOSFET device, as described below. Figure 2 As discussed in the method in . Figure 2 2 is a method 200 for forming a MOSFET device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 11 and 2. The system 100 is discussed in detail in the embodiment of the present invention. At operation 202, a pre-cleaning operation occurs in the pre-cleaning processing chamber 108. In one example, the first pre-cleaning processing chamber 108 is used alone at operation 202 to remove native oxide from the substrate. The first pre-cleaning processing chamber 108 can use plasma of hydrogen, or a NF3 / NH3 mixture, to remove native oxide from the substrate during operation 202. Additionally or alternatively, at operation 202, a second pre-cleaning chamber 108 can be used. The second pre-cleaning chamber 108 uses plasma, such as hydrogen plasma, argon plasma, or hydrogen-argon plasma, to remove residual carbon from the substrate. As discussed above, the residual carbon can be the result of an upstream operation, such as an operation including the use of a hard mask. In one example, at operation 202, the substrate is transferred into the first pre-cleaning processing chamber 108 to first remove native oxide from the substrate, and then into the second pre-cleaning chamber to remove residual carbon. In one example and at operation 202, the substrate is transferred into the second pre-clean processing chamber 108 to remove residual carbon and then transferred into the first pre-clean processing chamber 108 to remove native oxide.

[0027] In one example and at operation 202, a third pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 is utilized. The first pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 and the third pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 are used together sequentially. In this example, the substrate may be transferred to the first pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 to remove native oxide from the substrate, and then transferred to the third pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108, which is configured to use Cl plasma, or hydrogen-argon plasma to clean the substrate. In one example and at operation 202, the substrate may be transferred to the third pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 to clean the substrate using Cl plasma or hydrogen-argon plasma, and then transferred to the first pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 to remove native oxide from the substrate. In one example of the pre-cleaning operation at operation 202, the first pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108, the second pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108, and the third pre-cleaning treatment chamber 108 are used in different orders and combinations to remove native oxide and / or residual carbon and clean the substrate.

[0028] At operation 204, epitaxial deposition of source and drain electrodes occurs, for example, in a source and drain epitaxial deposition chamber, such as Figure 1In the example of method 200, the NMOS chamber 106 is used to form an N-type source and an N-type drain. In the example of method 200, the PMOS chamber 104 is used to form a P-type source and a P-type drain. In one example, operation 204 occurs after operation 202. In either or both examples of NMOS and / or PMOS manufacturing, a substrate having a source and a drain deposited thereon is received at operation 202. In one example where the source and the drain have been deposited, the substrate is pre-cleaned at operation 202 but operation 204 is not performed, and the method proceeds to operation 206.

[0029] At operation 206, a metal silicide film or a metal germanide film is formed on the source and drain, for example, by using a CVD process. The film formed at operation 206 may be formed using one or more film forming process chambers 110 discussed herein. Once the film is formed at operation 206, method 200 may proceed to operation 208. However, in one example, before the film is formed at operation 206, one or more pre-treatments may be performed to promote film formation at operation 206. In one example, the s / d chamber 104, s / d chamber 106 is configured to perform one or more pre-treatments to promote film formation at operation 206. In one example, during operation 204 in the NMOS chamber 106 or the PMOS chamber 104, one or more pre-treatment operations may be performed as part of source / drain formation. One or more pre-treatments may be performed in a sub-operation, after the source / drain is formed at operation 204, but before the substrate is transferred to the film forming process chamber 110 at operation 206. As part of operation 206, after the substrate is transferred to the film formation processing chamber 110, a pre-treatment operation may be performed as a sub-operation. The pre-treatment operation performed may include pre-treating the substrate (e.g., source and drain) to increase the doping concentration of the substrate surface and / or increase the surface roughness of the substrate. In one example, a substrate without source / drain formed is received, and the method 200 does not include source / drain formation at operation 204. In this example, the substrate is pre-cleaned at operation 202, and then a metal silicide or metal germanide film is formed on the substrate adjacent to the channel region of the MOSFET device to be manufactured at operation 206.

[0030] After forming the metal silicide or germanide at operation 206, at operation 208, one or more surface protection processing chambers 124 ( Figure 1208, but additional surface protection processing chambers 124 are contemplated to cover or passivate the substrate surface. For example, at operation 208, the substrate may undergo nitridation to prevent oxidation, or have a deposited cap (including SiN, Ti, TiN and / or Si). In one example and at operation 208, the first surface protection processing chamber 124 is used for nitridation. In one example and at operation 208, a Si cap is formed on the substrate in either the first surface protection processing chamber 124 or the second surface protection processing chamber 124. The one or more surface protection processing chambers 124 used in operation 208 may depend on the MOSFET manufacturing process. For example, a metal silicide or metal germanide film may be formed before the metal gate is formed, or after the metal gate is formed. In one example, at operation 208, when operation 206 is performed before the metal gate is formed, a SiN cap may be formed in the first surface protection processing chamber 124. In one example and at operation 208 , when operation 206 is performed after the metal gate is formed, a Ti or TiN capping layer may be formed in the second surface protection processing chamber 124 .

[0031] In one example of method 200, system 100 is used to pre-clean a substrate at operation 202, and then a source and a drain are formed on the substrate at operation 204. At operation 206, a silicide or germanide film is formed on the source and the drain. Subsequently, a surface protection operation is performed at operation 208 and includes nitridation and / or capping with silicon nitride (SiN), titanium (Ti), titanium nitride (TiN) and / or silicon (Si). In one example, as discussed above, system 100 is configured to receive a substrate including a source and a drain at operation 202. In this example, the substrate is pre-cleaned at operation 202, a silicide or germanide film is formed at operation 206, and then a surface protection operation is performed at operation 208. When a substrate having already formed source and drain is received at operation 202, operation 208 may include using a surface protection processing chamber 124. At operation 210, the substrate may be transferred to another system outside of system 100, such as Figure 1 1. The second system 122 is shown in FIG. The second system 122 can be configured to perform operations including film formation, patterning, and thermal annealing. When the substrate is transferred out of the system 100 and / or transferred into another system (such as the second system 122), the capping or nitridation at operation 208 facilitates protecting the metal silicide or metal germanide layer from forming undesirable oxides or defects if the substrate is exposed to a potentially contaminated processing environment.

[0032] One or more sensors, such as the one or more sensors 191a-191d described above, can detect, monitor, and / or measure contaminants, conditions, and / or properties in method 200. In one example, during, before, and / or after performing aspects of operations 202, 204, 206, 208, and / or 210 of method 200, one or more sensors 191a-191d detect, monitor, and / or measure contaminants, conditions, and / or properties.

[0033] Using the systems and methods discussed herein, a cluster tool includes processing chambers arranged around a transfer chamber. The cluster tool can be used to perform various operations, including pre-cleaning a substrate, forming a source and a drain, forming a metal silicide film or a metal germanide film on the source and the drain, and / or forming a protective layer on the film. By manufacturing the film and the protective film before transferring the MOSFET device to a different system for subsequent operations, the integrity of the film is preserved, thereby facilitating the successful formation of subsequent features (including contacts).

[0034] While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope of the invention is determined by the claims that follow.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium comprising instructions configured to cause a system to perform the following steps: transferring the substrate from the transfer chamber into the first processing chamber; performing a pre-cleaning operation on the substrate in the first processing chamber; After performing the pre-cleaning operation on the substrate, transferring the substrate from the first processing chamber into a second processing chamber; epitaxially forming a source and a drain on the substrate in the second processing chamber; After forming the source and the drain in the second processing chamber, transferring the substrate from the second processing chamber to a third processing chamber; forming a metal silicide layer or a metal germanide layer on the source and the drain in the third processing chamber; After forming the metal silicide layer or the metal germanide layer on the source and the drain, transferring the substrate from the third processing chamber into a fourth processing chamber; and A surface protection operation is performed on the surface of the substrate in the fourth processing chamber, wherein the surface protection operation covers or passivates the surface of the substrate using at least one of the following: a nitridation operation, depositing a layer having one or more SiN, Ti, TiN or Si or a combination thereof.

2. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further configured to perform a pre-silicide process in the second processing chamber prior to transferring the substrate to the third processing chamber.

3. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the step of performing the pre-cleaning operation comprises the steps of: One or more of native oxide or residual carbon is removed from the substrate.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the step of epitaxially forming the source and the drain on the substrate comprises one or more of the following steps: forming an N-type source and an N-type drain, or forming a P-type source and a P-type drain.

5. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the step of performing the surface protection operation comprises one or more of the steps of depositing the layer on the source and the drain, or performing the nitridation operation on the source and the drain.

6. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions are further configured to instruct one or more sensors to measure at least one of: one or more contaminants in the transfer chamber or one or more properties of the substrate.

7. A method for processing a substrate, comprising the steps of: transferring the substrate into a first processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers using a central transfer robot disposed in a transfer space of the transfer chamber, the first processing chamber being configured to perform at least one pre-cleaning operation; performing the at least one pre-cleaning operation in the first processing chamber; After the at least one pre-cleaning operation, transferring the substrate from the first processing chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and into a second processing chamber of the plurality of processing chambers, the second processing chamber being configured to form a source and a drain on the substrate; forming the source and the drain on the substrate in the second processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers; After forming the source electrode and the drain electrode, transferring the substrate from the second processing chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and entering a third processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers, wherein the third processing chamber is configured to form a film on the source electrode and the drain electrode, wherein the film includes metal silicide or metal germanide; forming the film on the source and the drain in the third processing chamber; After forming the source electrode and the drain electrode, transferring the substrate from the third processing chamber through the transfer space of the transfer chamber and entering a fourth processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers, wherein the fourth processing chamber is configured to form a protective film on the source electrode and the drain electrode; and The protection film is formed on the source and the drain in the fourth processing chamber.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising the steps of: At least one of: one or more contaminants in the transfer space or one or more properties of the substrate is measured using one or more sensors disposed in the transfer space of the transfer chamber.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of performing the at least one pre-cleaning operation comprises the steps of: One or more of native oxide or residual carbon is removed from the substrate.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of forming the source electrode and the drain electrode on the substrate comprises one or more of the following steps: An N-type source and an N-type drain are formed, or a P-type source and a P-type drain are formed.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the step of forming the protection film on the source electrode and the drain electrode comprises one or more of the following steps: A capping layer is formed on the source electrode and the drain electrode, or the source electrode and the drain electrode are nitrided.

12. A system for processing a substrate, comprising: a plurality of process chambers, wherein a first process chamber of the plurality of process chambers is configured for a pre-cleaning operation, a second process chamber of the plurality of process chambers is configured for an epitaxial deposition operation, a third process chamber of the plurality of process chambers is configured to perform at least one of a capping layer formation operation or a nitridation operation, and a fourth process chamber is configured to form a film on a source and a drain, wherein the film comprises a metal silicide or a metal germanide; a transfer chamber coupled to each of the plurality of processing chambers; a central transfer robot configured to transfer substrates in and between the transfer chamber and one or more of the plurality of processing chambers; and a controller configured to execute a plurality of instructions including which of the plurality of processing chambers to transfer the substrate to, operations to be performed in the processing chambers of the plurality of processing chambers when the substrate is transferred, and an order in which the substrate is transferred to the processing chambers; wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed, cause: transferring the substrate from the transfer chamber into the first processing chamber; performing a pre-cleaning operation on the substrate in the first processing chamber; After the pre-cleaning operation, transferring the substrate from the first processing chamber into the second processing chamber; and In the second processing chamber, a doped epitaxial layer is formed on the substrate to produce the source and the drain.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed, transfer the substrate using the central transfer robot.

14. The system of claim 12, further comprising one or more sensors configured to measure at least one of: one or more contaminants in the transfer chamber or one or more properties of the substrate.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more sensors include: one or more sensors configured to measure one or more contaminants in the transfer chamber; and One or more sensors configured to measure one or more properties of the substrate.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more sensors configured to measure one or more contaminants in the transfer chamber include at least one of: one or more oxygen sensors or one or more water vapor sensors.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the one or more sensors configured to measure one or more properties of the substrate include at least one of: one or more XRF sensors or one or more XPS sensors.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the plurality of instructions that the controller is configured to execute include instructions to: The one or more sensors configured to measure one or more contaminants measure a concentration of one or more contaminants in the transfer chamber; and The one or more sensors configured to measure one or more properties measure one or more properties of the substrate.

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