Thin film deposition method and semiconductor process apparatus
By adjusting the low-frequency radio frequency power and chamber pressure in the PECVD process, the directional migration capability of plasma is enhanced, solving the problem of thin film particle defects, achieving precise control and uniformity improvement of thin film surface morphology, and ensuring the electrical properties and yield of the product.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- BEIJING INTEGRATED CIRCUIT EQUIPMENT INNOVATION CENTER CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2025-07-07
- Publication Date
- 2026-04-10
AI Technical Summary
The existing PECVD process has a weak effect on repairing and improving thin film particle defects, resulting in the failure to effectively improve product electrical properties and yield.
After the deposition step of the PECVD process is completed, the high-frequency radio frequency power is turned off, the low-frequency radio frequency power is maintained, the low-frequency radio frequency power is increased and the running time is extended. At the same time, the directional migration ability of the plasma is enhanced by adjusting the chamber pressure, and the probability and force of the plasma collision with particles are increased to decompose the thin film and particles in the process chamber.
It significantly reduces film surface roughness, improves film surface smoothness and uniformity, reduces film particle defects, and ensures the electrical properties and yield of finished products obtained from subsequent processing.
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Figure CN120719286B_ABST
Abstract
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of semiconductor, and in particular to a thin film deposition method and a semiconductor process equipment. BACKGROUND
[0002] With the miniaturization of semiconductor device feature size, higher requirements are put forward for the stability and controllability of each process in the process of processing semiconductor devices. As an important basic process for processing semiconductor devices, the quality of the thin film formed by the deposition process directly affects the yield of semiconductor devices. For example, particle defects in the thin film will cause gate leakage, dielectric breakdown and other reliability problems.
[0003] Plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) has the technical advantages of low temperature compatibility, high deposition rate and uniformity, complex structure coverage capability, material and performance diversity, and is mainly applied to the deposition of inter-layer dielectric (ILD), passivation layer and the like. In the process of depositing a thin film by a PECVD process according to related technologies, a repair step is generally performed after the deposition step (Dep) is completed to repair and improve the particle defects generated in the thin film. However, the repair and improvement effect of the particle defects in related technologies is weak, resulting in that the product electrical properties and yield still need to be improved. SUMMARY
[0004] The present application aims to provide a thin film deposition method and a semiconductor process equipment to solve the technical problem that the repair and improvement effect of the particle defects in related technologies is weak, resulting in that the product electrical properties and yield still need to be improved.
[0005] To solve the above problems, the present application provides a thin film deposition method, comprising:
[0006] In the deposition step, after a pre-set plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process is performed on the substrate, the high-frequency radio frequency power is turned off, the low-frequency radio frequency power is kept on, and the input of the silicon source gas is stopped.
[0007] In the repair step, after the low-frequency radio frequency power is operated for a pre-set time period, the low-frequency radio frequency power is turned off.
[0008] Optionally, in the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 100-1000 W; in the repair step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 200-1100 W, and the low-frequency radio frequency power in the repair step is greater than the low-frequency radio frequency power in the deposition step.
[0009] Optionally, in the depositing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 700-740 W; and in the repairing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 750-800 W.
[0010] Optionally, in the repairing step, the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure before or simultaneously with the increase of the low-frequency radio frequency power.
[0011] Optionally, in the step of reducing the chamber pressure to the target pressure, the step comprises:
[0012] controlling the chamber pressure to decrease in steps to the target pressure.
[0013] Optionally, the repairing step comprises:
[0014] a first repairing step of reducing the chamber pressure to a preset pressure;
[0015] a second repairing step of increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power and reducing the chamber pressure to the target pressure, and after running for a preset time length, the low-frequency radio frequency power is turned off; wherein the target pressure is less than the preset pressure.
[0016] Optionally, in the depositing step, the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 Torr; and in the repairing step, the target pressure is 0.5-1.5 Torr, and the target pressure is less than the chamber pressure in the depositing step.
[0017] Optionally, in the depositing step, the chamber pressure is 1.9-2.5 Torr; in the repairing step, the preset pressure is 1.3-1.8 Torr, and the target pressure is 0-1.2 Torr.
[0018] Optionally, the preset time length is 5-60 s.
[0019] The application further provides a semiconductor process equipment, comprising a process chamber, a supporting base, an upper radio frequency power source, a lower radio frequency power source, a gas inlet assembly, a gas extraction assembly and a controller, wherein:
[0020] the supporting base is used for supporting a silicon substrate;
[0021] the upper radio frequency power source is used for loading high-frequency radio frequency power to the process chamber;
[0022] the lower radio frequency power source is used for loading low-frequency radio frequency power to the supporting base;
[0023] the gas inlet assembly is used for introducing process gas into the process chamber;
[0024] the gas extraction assembly is used for extracting gas from the process chamber;
[0025] The controller comprises a memory and a processor, the memory stores computer instructions, and the processor executes the computer instructions to perform the thin film deposition method of any one of claims 1-9.
[0026] The thin film deposition method provided by the application, at the end of the deposition step, the repair step is continued, and the low-frequency radio frequency power is increased to the target power based on the current low-frequency radio frequency power, so as to increase the traction ability of the low-frequency radio frequency power to the plasma, thereby enhancing the directional migration ability of the plasma, increasing the collision probability and intensity of the plasma with the particles suspended in the process chamber and the particles formed on the thin film, and breaking through the binding energy threshold of the particles on the thin film and the substrate, thereby effectively decomposing the particles on the current thin film, reducing the number of particles in the thin film, reducing the particle defects of the thin film, realizing accurate regulation of the surface morphology of the thin film, significantly reducing the surface roughness of the thin film, and improving the flatness and uniformity of the thin film surface; at the same time, the particles suspended in the process chamber are effectively decomposed to reduce the particles formed on the thin film in the next cycle, thereby further reducing the number of particles in the thin film, further reducing the particle defects of the thin film, improving the uniformity of the thin film, and further ensuring the electrical properties and yield of the finished product obtained by subsequent processing. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the specific embodiments or the related art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the specific embodiments or the related art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present application, and those skilled in the art can also obtain other drawings according to these drawings without creative labor.
[0028] Figure 1 It is a flowchart of the thin film deposition method in the related art;
[0029] Figure 2 It is a first flowchart of the thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application;
[0030] Figure 3 It is a second flowchart of the thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application;
[0031] Figure 4 It is a flowchart of the thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application for preparing SiCN thin film;
[0032] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the relationship between the different cumulative process times in the process chamber and the number of particles in the thin film according to the thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application;
[0033] Figure 6A schematic view of a semiconductor process equipment according to an embodiment of the present application.
[0034] Legend of reference signs:
[0035] 10 - base; 110 - process chamber; 120 - supporting susceptor; 130 - upper RF power source; 140 - upper matching device; 150 - RF coil; 160 - dielectric window; 170 - lower matching device; 180 - lower RF power source; 191 - gas inlet assembly; 192 - gas exhaust assembly. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0036] The technical solutions of the present application will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.
[0037] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inner", "outer" and the like indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and therefore cannot be understood as indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" are only for the purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.
[0038] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connecting", "connecting" should be understood broadly, for example, it can be fixedly connected, or it can be detachably connected, or integrally connected; it can be mechanically connected, or it can be electrically connected; it can be directly connected, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium; it can be the communication inside two elements. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.
[0039] Figure 1 A flowchart of a thin film deposition method in the related art.
[0040] As Figure 1As shown, in the process of depositing the thin film by the PECVD process, first, step S102 is performed: process gas is introduced into the process chamber, and the chamber pressure of the process chamber is controlled to be the process pressure; then step S104 is performed: the high-frequency RF power and the low-frequency RF power are turned on to deposit the thin film on the substrate; after the thin film deposition of step S104 is completed, step S106 is continued: the particle defects of the thin film are improved and repaired by plasma extinction or process gas flow adjustment and other repair steps. However, the repair steps in the related art have weak decomposition effect on the particles in the thin film, resulting in that the thin film still has many particle defects, which affects the electrical properties and yield of the product formed by subsequent processing.
[0041] The embodiment of the present application provides a thin film deposition method. After the deposition step is completed, the low-frequency RF power is further increased on the basis of the low-frequency RF power in the deposition step and continuously runs for a preset time length. Through the higher low-frequency RF power, the directional migration ability of the plasma is enhanced, so that the collision probability of the plasma and the particles is increased, and the binding energy threshold of the particles and the substrate in the thin film is broken through, so that the particles are effectively decomposed, the uniformity of the thin film is improved, and then the electrical properties and yield of the finished product obtained by subsequent processing are ensured. The thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0042] Figure 2 A first flowchart of the thin film deposition method provided by the embodiment of the present application is shown.
[0043] As shown in the embodiment of the present application, a thin film deposition method is provided, which comprises: Figure 2 As shown in the embodiment of the present application, a thin film deposition method is provided, which comprises:
[0044] S202, after the substrate is subjected to the preset plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process, the high-frequency RF power is turned off, the low-frequency RF power is kept on, and the introduction of the silicon source gas is stopped.
[0045] According to the type of the thin film, a process recipe is determined, a substrate to be processed is placed on a supporting base of a process chamber, and then a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process is performed according to the preset process recipe, specifically including: introducing process gas into the process chamber, the process gas at least including a silicon source gas and a reaction gas such as a nitrogen source gas capable of reacting with the silicon source gas to generate a target thin film, controlling the chamber pressure of the process chamber to be a process pressure, and then turning on an upper radio frequency power supply to apply a high-frequency radio frequency power and turning on a lower radio frequency power supply to apply a low-frequency radio frequency power, under the excitation action of the high-frequency radio frequency power, the reaction gas forms a plasma, and under the traction action of the low-frequency radio frequency power, the plasma collides and reacts toward the substrate, and the thin film is deposited on the surface of the substrate; after depositing the thin film for a certain period of time, the introduction of the silicon source gas is stopped to reduce the secondary deposition of unreacted precursors; the high-frequency radio frequency power is turned off to reduce the high-energy electron density, interrupt the continuous bombardment of the plasma on the surface of the thin film, and reduce the excessive etching damage to the substrate; at the same time, the low-frequency radio frequency power is kept on, so as to stop the continuation of the deposition reaction, and the deposition step ends.
[0046] In the present embodiment, the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the high-frequency radio frequency power is not less than 13.56 MHz, and the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the low-frequency radio frequency power is not higher than 2 MHz, specifically can be 40-400 kHz.
[0047] In the present embodiment, the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the high-frequency radio frequency power is not less than 13.56 MHz, and the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the low-frequency radio frequency power is not higher than 2 MHz, specifically can be 40-400 kHz.
[0048] In the present embodiment, the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the high-frequency radio frequency power is not less than 13.56 MHz, and the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the low-frequency radio frequency power is not higher than 2 MHz, specifically can be 40-400 kHz.
[0049] In the present embodiment, the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the high-frequency radio frequency power is not less than 13.56 MHz, and the radio frequency frequency of the electric field corresponding to the low-frequency radio frequency power is not higher than 2 MHz, specifically can be 40-400 kHz.
[0050] In the embodiment of the present application, in the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 100-1000 W; in the repairing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 200-1100 W, and the low-frequency radio frequency power in the repairing step is greater than that in the deposition step. In the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is in the range of 100-1000 W to ensure its traction effect on the plasma, so that it can form a thin film on the surface of the substrate; in the repairing step, the target power is in the range of 200-1100 W and is greater than the low-frequency radio frequency power in the deposition step, and the increase of the low-frequency radio frequency power improves its traction ability on the plasma, effectively improves the decomposition ability of the plasma on the suspended particulate matter in the process chamber and the particulate matter formed on the thin film, thereby ensuring the uniformity of the formed thin film.
[0051] In the embodiment of the present application, further, in the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 700-740 W, and specifically can be 710 W; in the repairing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 750-800 W, and specifically can be 780 W.
[0052] In the embodiment of the present application, in the repairing step, the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure at the same time or before the low-frequency radio frequency power is increased. Before the low-frequency radio frequency power is increased or at the same time, the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure, that is, after the deposition step, the step of reducing the chamber pressure to the target pressure is not later than the step of increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power, so as to suppress the deposition of by-products and limit the diffusion range of the plasma, thereby ensuring that the energy of the plasma is concentrated on the area where the thin film is located, so as to ensure the effective decomposition of the plasma on the particulate matter in the repairing step, and accordingly ensure the uniformity of the thin film after the improved repair, and ensure the electrical properties and yield of the product obtained in the subsequent processing. Specifically, the chamber pressure can be adjusted by a controllable swing valve.
[0053] In the embodiment of the present application, in the step of reducing the chamber pressure to the target pressure, the chamber pressure is controlled to decrease in a stepwise manner to the target pressure. After the deposition step, the chamber pressure is gradually decreased in a stepwise and small amplitude manner to the target pressure, so as to maintain the uniform shrinkage of the plasma sheath layer, avoid the re-suspension and re-adsorption of particulate matter caused by the turbulent effect due to the sudden drop of the pressure, thereby ensuring the decomposition effect of the plasma on the particulate matter, reducing the concentration of the particulate matter in the process chamber, and further reducing the number of particulate defects formed in the thin film; at the same time, it can also reduce the stress damage of the thin film caused by the sudden change of the pressure, and ensure the quality of the thin film; then, after the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure, the diffusion range of the plasma is limited, and the energy of the plasma is concentrated on the area where the thin film is located.
[0054] Through the above coordinated control of the low-frequency radio frequency power, the chamber pressure and the process gas, the risk of secondary pollution of the particulate matter can be significantly reduced and the process repeatability can be improved.
[0055] In the embodiment of the present application, the repairing step includes: a first repairing step of reducing the chamber pressure to a preset pressure; and a second repairing step of increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power and reducing the chamber pressure to a target pressure, and then turning off the low-frequency radio frequency power after a preset time period. The target pressure is less than the preset pressure. Specifically, after the deposition step, the chamber pressure is reduced in a stepwise manner twice. In the first repairing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power remains unchanged, and the chamber pressure is reduced to the preset pressure, compared with the deposition step. After the first repairing step is completed, the second repairing step is performed. In the second repairing step, compared with the first repairing step, the chamber pressure is reduced from the preset pressure to the target pressure, and the low-frequency radio frequency power is increased to improve the control efficiency and reduce the process step time. Then, the low-frequency radio frequency power is operated for a preset time period under the lower chamber pressure and the higher low-frequency radio frequency power, to ensure the effective action of the low-frequency radio frequency power on the plasma, thereby ensuring the effective decomposition of the plasma on the particulate matter and the effective reduction of the thin film particulate defects.
[0056] Compared with the repairing step in which the low-frequency radio frequency power is not increased and only the chamber pressure is reduced, the embodiment of the present application realizes the accurate regulation of the plasma energy by the time sequence design of the three-step method of "reaction termination-transient stabilization-directional removal", can reduce the particulate residual rate by more than 60%, and can also avoid the secondary oxidation defects caused by the traditional oxygen plasma treatment.
[0057] In the embodiment of the present application, in the deposition step, the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 Torr; and in the repairing step, the target pressure is 0.5-1.5 Torr, and the target pressure is less than the chamber pressure in the deposition step. In the deposition step, the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 Torr, to ensure the deposition reaction of the reaction gas and form a thin film on the substrate; and in the repairing step, the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure, and the target pressure is 0.5-1.5 Torr, to limit the diffusion range of the plasma and ensure that the energy of the plasma is concentrated on the area where the thin film is located, thereby ensuring the effective decomposition of the plasma on the particulate matter in the repairing step.
[0058] Specifically, in the deposition step, the chamber pressure is 1.9-2.5 Torr, and specifically can be 2.1 Torr. In the repairing step, the preset pressure is 1.3-1.8 Torr, and specifically can be 1.5 Torr; and the target pressure is 0-1.2 Torr, and specifically can be 1 Torr.
[0059] In the repairing step, the chamber pressure is reduced to the target pressure, and the low-frequency radio frequency power is raised to the target power, and the preset duration of continuous operation is 5-60s, and specifically can be 5s.
[0060] In the embodiment of the present application, before the depositing step, a preheating step can be performed first: the substrate to be processed is placed on the supporting base of the process chamber, the supporting base is controlled to heat the substrate, and at the same time, the heat-conducting gas is introduced to improve the heating uniformity of the substrate, thereby ensuring the efficiency and uniformity of the thin film formed in the subsequent depositing step.
[0061] In the embodiment of the present application, after the repairing step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is turned off, the introduction of the process gas is stopped, and the process chamber is vacuumized to extract the residual precursors, particles and the like in the process chamber, thereby further reducing the particle defects of the thin film caused by the deposition of particles
[0062] Figure 3 The second flowchart of the thin film deposition method according to the embodiment of the present application is provided. As shown in the figure, Figure 3 The thin film deposition method comprises:
[0063] S301 places the substrate to be processed on the supporting base of the process chamber, and controls the supporting base to heat the substrate while introducing the heat-conducting gas.
[0064] S302 mixes the reaction gas.
[0065] S303 introduces the mixed reaction gas into the process chamber, and controls the chamber pressure of the process chamber to be the process pressure.
[0066] S304 turns on the upper radio frequency power supply to apply high-frequency radio frequency power, turns on the lower radio frequency power supply to apply low-frequency radio frequency power, and deposits a thin film on the substrate.
[0067] S305 turns off the high-frequency radio frequency power, keeps the low-frequency radio frequency power on, and stops introducing the silicon source gas in the reaction gas.
[0068] S306 reduces the chamber pressure to the preset pressure.
[0069] S307 raises the low-frequency radio frequency power to the target power, reduces the chamber pressure to the target pressure, and operates for a preset duration. To effectively repair and improve the particle defects of the thin film, improve the uniformity of the formed thin film, and ensure the electrical properties and yield of the product obtained in the subsequent processing.
[0070] S308 turns off the low-frequency radio frequency power and evacuates the process chamber.
[0071] Figure 4 A flowchart of a SiCN film prepared by a film deposition method according to an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. 1. As shown in the figure, the film deposition method includes: Figure 4
[0072] S401 places a wafer on a supporting base of a process chamber, controls the supporting base to heat a substrate, and introduces He. The wafer is used as the substrate, and the high thermal conductivity of He helps maintain the uniformity of the reaction temperature and reduces film defects caused by local overheating of the wafer. The flow rate of He is 5000-10000 sccm, and can be 10000 sccm. The chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 torr, and can be 2.4 torr. The operation time is 1-60 sec, and can be 20 sec.
[0073] S402 mixes the reaction gases NH3 and 4MS. He is introduced, and the flow rate is reduced. 4MS is used as the silicon source gas in the reaction gas, and NH3 and 4MS are mixed by reserving the vacuum exhaust pipeline (Flow Divert) of the gas introduction and exhaust assembly. The flow rate of NH3 is 1000-5000 sccm, and can be 3600 sccm. The flow rate of 4MS is 500-1000 sccm, and can be 850 sccm. The chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 torr, and can be 2.1 torr. The operation time is 1-60 sec, and can be 5 sec.
[0074] S403 introduces the mixed NH3 and 4MS into the process chamber, and controls the chamber pressure of the process chamber to be the process pressure. The flow rate of He is 1000-10000 sccm, and can be 3500 sccm. The flow rate of NH3 is 1000-5000 sccm, and can be 3600 sccm. The flow rate of 4MS is 500-1000 sccm, and can be 850 sccm. The chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 torr, and can be 2.1 torr. The operation time is 1-60 sec, and can be 2 sec.
[0075] S404 turns on the upper radio frequency power supply to apply high frequency radio frequency power (HF power) and turns on the lower radio frequency power supply to apply low frequency radio frequency power (LF power) to deposit SiCN film on the substrate. The HF power is 100-2000W, specifically 1200W; the LF power is 100-1000W, specifically 710W; the flow rate of He is 1000-10000sccm, specifically 3500sccm; the flow rate of NH3 is 1000-5000sccm, specifically 3600sccm; the flow rate of 4MS is 500-1000sccm, specifically 850sccm; the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5torr, specifically 2.1torr; and the running time is 1-60sec, specifically 28.5sec.
[0076] S405 turns off the high frequency radio frequency power, keeps the low frequency radio frequency power on, and stops the 4MS from flowing. The 4MS is switched from flowing to the chamber to flowing to the vacuum pumping line of the pumping assembly, the low frequency radio frequency power can combine the unsaturated dangling bonds in the film with hydrogen atoms, reduce the interface energy, and facilitate the decomposition of the particles on the film by the plasma; wherein the LF power is 100-1000W, specifically 710W; the flow rate of He is 1000-10000sccm, specifically 3500sccm; the flow rate of NH3 is 1000-5000sccm, specifically 3600sccm; the flow rate of 4MS is -1-0sccm, specifically -1sccm; the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5torr, specifically 2.1torr; and the running time is 1-60sec, specifically 3sec.
[0077] S406 reduces the chamber pressure to a preset pressure. The LF power is 100-1000W, specifically 710W; the flow rate of He is 1000-10000sccm, specifically 3500sccm; the flow rate of NH3 is 1000-5000sccm, specifically 3600sccm; the flow rate of 4MS is -1-0sccm, specifically -1sccm; the chamber pressure is 1.3-1.8torr, specifically 1.5torr, wherein the chamber pressure is reduced from 2.1torr to 1.5torr within 1sec; and the running time is 1-60sec, specifically 5sec.
[0078] The S407 increases the low-frequency radio frequency power to the target power, reduces the chamber pressure to the target pressure, and runs for a preset time. This effectively repairs and improves particle defects in the thin film, enhances the uniformity of the formed film, and ensures the electrical properties and yield of the product obtained in subsequent processing. Specifically, the LF power is 200–1100W, specifically 780W; the He flow rate is 1000–10000 sccm, specifically 3500 sccm; the NH3 flow rate is 1000–5000 sccm, specifically 3600 sccm; the 4MS flow rate is -1–0 sccm, specifically -1 sccm; the chamber pressure is 0–1.2 torr, specifically 1 torr, with the chamber pressure decreasing from 1.5 torr to 1 torr within 1 second; and the running time is 1–60 seconds, specifically 5 seconds.
[0079] S408 shuts down the low-frequency RF power, stops the supply of NH3 and He, and evacuates the process chamber. N2 is then introduced into the process chamber at a flow rate of 1000–10000 sccm (specifically 9000 sccm) to maintain the chamber pressure at 0.5–1.5 torr (specifically 1 torr); the operating time is 1–60 seconds (specifically 20 seconds).
[0080] Figure 5 This diagram illustrates the relationship between different cumulative process iterations and the number of particles in the thin film within the process chamber, according to an embodiment of the present invention. The horizontal and vertical axes represent the number of repeated processes from 1 to 50, and the vertical axis represents the number of particles with a diameter greater than 0.037 μm in the thin film, ea, as shown. Figure 5 As shown, the number of particles in the film did not increase significantly with the increase of the cumulative number of processes. This indicates that the repair step in the thin film deposition method provided by the present invention can effectively suppress the formation of particles, thereby improving the uniformity of the film and ensuring the electrical properties and yield of the semiconductor device obtained in subsequent processing.
[0081] This invention also provides a semiconductor process apparatus, such as... Figure 6As shown, the semiconductor process equipment includes: a process chamber 110, a supporting base 120, an upper radio frequency power source 130, a lower radio frequency power source 180, a gas inlet assembly 191, a gas exhaust assembly 192, and a controller. The supporting base 120 is configured to support the silicon substrate 10. The upper radio frequency power source 130 is configured to supply high frequency radio frequency power to the process chamber 110. The lower radio frequency power source 180 is configured to supply low frequency radio frequency power to the supporting base 120. The gas inlet assembly 191 is configured to supply process gas into the process chamber 110. The gas exhaust assembly 192 is configured to exhaust the process chamber 110. The controller includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores computer instructions. The processor executes the computer instructions to perform the thin film deposition method. The semiconductor process equipment can perform the thin film deposition method and has all the advantages of the thin film deposition method, which will not be repeated here.
[0082] Specifically, in the semiconductor process equipment, the supporting base 120 is arranged above the process chamber 110, a dielectric window 160 is arranged above the supporting base 120, a radio frequency coil 150 is arranged above the dielectric window 160, and an upper matching device 140 is arranged between the radio frequency coil 150 and the upper radio frequency power source 130. The upper radio frequency power source 130 supplies high frequency radio frequency power to the radio frequency coil 150 through the upper matching device 140, so that the radio frequency coil 150 excites the process gas in the process chamber 110 to generate plasma. A lower matching device 170 is arranged between the supporting base 120 and the lower radio frequency power source 180. The lower radio frequency power source 180 supplies low frequency radio frequency power to the supporting base 120 through the lower matching device 170. The supporting base 120 can be an electrostatic chuck, a mechanical chuck, or a vacuum chuck.
[0083] The semiconductor process equipment of the embodiments of the present application can be an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) device or a capacitively coupled plasma (CCP) device. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the type of semiconductor process equipment.
[0084] Finally, it should be noted that: the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, and not to limit them; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions recorded in the foregoing embodiments, or make equivalent replacement for part or all of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.
Claims
1. A thin film deposition method, characterized by, Comprising: a deposition step, after performing a preset plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process on a substrate, turning off high-frequency radio frequency power, keeping low-frequency radio frequency power on, and stopping the input of a silicon source gas to stop the continuation of the deposition reaction; a repair step, after increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power for a preset time, turning off the low-frequency radio frequency power; and, simultaneously or before increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power, controlling the chamber pressure to decrease in steps to a target pressure.
2. The thin film deposition method of claim 1, wherein, In the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 100-1000 W; in the repair step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 200-1100 W, and the low-frequency radio frequency power in the repair step is greater than that in the deposition step.
3. The thin film deposition method of claim 2, wherein, In the deposition step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 700-740 W; in the repair step, the low-frequency radio frequency power is 750-800 W.
4. The thin film deposition method of claim 1, wherein, The repair step comprises: a first repair step, reducing the chamber pressure to a preset pressure; a second repair step, increasing the low-frequency radio frequency power and reducing the chamber pressure to the target pressure, and after running for a preset time, turning off the low-frequency radio frequency power; wherein the target pressure is less than the preset pressure.
5. The thin film deposition method of claim 1, wherein, In the deposition step, the chamber pressure is 0.5-2.5 Torr; in the repair step, the target pressure is 0.5-1.5 Torr, and the target pressure is less than the chamber pressure in the deposition step.
6. The thin film deposition method of claim 4, wherein, In the deposition step, the chamber pressure is 1.9-2.5 Torr; in the repair step, the preset pressure is 1.3-1.8 Torr, and the target pressure is 0-1.2 Torr.
7. The thin film deposition method of claim 1, wherein The preset time is 5-60 s.
8. A semiconductor process apparatus, characterized by, Comprising: a process chamber (110), a carrier base (120), an upper radio frequency power supply (130), a lower radio frequency power supply (180), a gas inlet assembly (191), a gas exhaust assembly (192), and a controller, wherein: the carrier base (120) is used to carry a silicon substrate (10); the upper radio frequency power supply (130) is used to load high-frequency radio frequency power to the process chamber (110); the lower radio frequency power supply (180) is used to load low-frequency radio frequency power to the carrier base (120); the gas inlet assembly (191) is used to input process gas into the process chamber (110); the gas exhaust assembly (192) is used to exhaust the process chamber (110); the controller comprises a memory and a processor, the memory stores computer instructions, and the processor executes the computer instructions to perform the thin film deposition method of any one of claims 1-7.
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