Reaction device and semiconductor heat treatment equipment

Abstract

The utility model relates to the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, particularly provides a reaction device and semiconductor heat treatment equipment, and aims to solve the problem that a temperature field and an airflow field in a cavity structure of an existing vertical reaction furnace are not uniform. Therefore, the reaction device provided by the utility model comprises a base, the cover body is provided with a first end and a second end which are opposite to each other, the first end is arranged on the base, and a cavity used for containing a workpiece to be machined is formed between the cover body and the base; one end of the gas inlet pipeline is communicated with a gas inlet, the gas inlet pipeline is communicated with the cavity and arranged on the outer side of the cover body in a surrounding mode, and process gas can enter the cavity from the gas inlet through the gas inlet pipeline; and the exhaust port is communicated with the chamber so as to exhaust the process gas in the chamber. The reaction device can provide a larger mixing space for the process gas and reduce the influence of the process gas on the temperature uniformity, so that the uniformity of the film thickness of the oxidation film is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and specifically provides a reaction device and semiconductor heat treatment equipment. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid development of the integrated circuit manufacturing industry, new processes and materials continue to emerge, which also promotes the continuous updating of process equipment. Taking semiconductor heat treatment equipment such as vertical oxidation furnaces used for heat treatment such as oxidation, alloying, diffusion and annealing as an example, in order to ensure the introduction of new processes and new materials, process indicators such as particle size control, film uniformity, metal content control, etc. are constantly improving with the update of process technology, and standard requirements are constantly improving.

[0003] In the related art, the vertical oxidation furnace usually adopts a chamber structure with single-side air intake to process wafers. Specifically, the chamber structure is located in the furnace cavity, and the chamber structure includes a reaction chamber and an air intake pipe connected thereto, and the air intake pipe is located on one side of the reaction chamber. The airflow first enters from the inlet end at the bottom of the air intake pipe, and then enters the reaction chamber from the outlet end at the top of the air intake pipe after passing through the air intake pipe. This structure has two defects: First, since the gas in the reaction chamber usually needs to have a higher temperature, but the air intake pipe is fed with room temperature gas, this will affect the uniformity of heat in the reaction chamber on this side of the air intake pipe, resulting in uneven temperature distribution on the surface of the wafer, which in turn affects the realization of the heat treatment process, such as affecting the uniformity of the film thickness on the surface of the wafer as a whole; second, when the mixed gas is introduced into the air intake pipe, due to the narrow space in the air intake pipe, the airflow is difficult to fully mix, resulting in the uniformity of the airflow field being affected, which in turn affects the uniformity of the film thickness.

[0004] In view of this, a new vertical oxidation furnace solution is needed in the art to solve the above problems. Utility Model Content

[0005] The present application aims to solve the above technical problem, that is, to solve the problem of uneven temperature field and air flow field in the chamber structure of the existing vertical reactor.

[0006] In a first aspect, the present application provides a reaction device, comprising:

[0007] Base;

[0008] A cover body having a first end and a second end opposite to each other, wherein the first end is disposed on the base, and a chamber for accommodating a workpiece to be processed is formed between the cover body and the base;

[0009] an air inlet pipe having an air inlet port disposed thereon, the air inlet pipe being in communication with the chamber and being disposed around the outer side of the cover body, and the process gas can enter the chamber from the air inlet port through the air inlet pipe; and

[0010] An exhaust port, which is communicated with the chamber to discharge the process gas in the chamber.

[0011] Optionally, a plurality of intake pipes are provided, and the plurality of intake pipes are arranged side by side outside the cover body.

[0012] Optionally, the cross-section of the intake pipe is circular or elliptical.

[0013] Optionally, it further includes:

[0014] A partition member, which is arranged in the chamber. The partition member divides the chamber into a first chamber and a second chamber. The first chamber is close to the second end, the intake pipe is communicated with the first chamber, and through holes communicating the first chamber and the second chamber are further arranged on the partition member.

[0015] Optionally, a plurality of the through holes are provided, and the plurality of through holes are arranged in an array on the partition member.

[0016] Optionally, the reaction device further includes:

[0017] A temperature monitoring device, which is arranged on the outer side wall of the cover body, and the intake pipe is arranged avoiding the temperature monitoring device.

[0018] Optionally, both the intake port and the exhaust port are arranged close to the first end.

[0019] Optionally, the central axes of the intake port and the exhaust port are located in the same radial section of the cover body; and / or, the orthographic projections of the intake port and the exhaust port in the radial section of the cover body do not coincide.

[0020] In a second aspect, the present application provides a semiconductor heat treatment device, including:

[0021] A reaction device as described in any one of the first aspect;

[0022] A furnace body, which is arranged outside the reaction device;

[0023] A carrying device, which is arranged in the chamber and is used for carrying the workpiece to be processed.

[0024] Optionally, the semiconductor heat treatment device further includes:

[0025] A heat preservation device, which is located in the chamber and is close to the base.

[0026] In the case of adopting the above technical solution, the intake pipe of the reaction device provided by the present application forms one or more annular bands around the outer side of the cover body and is arranged in a spiral shape. Compared with the single-side intake pipe, this spiral structure can extend the total length of the pipe, provide more space for the process gas to achieve sufficient mixing, thereby improving the uniformity of gas mixing and the uniformity of wafer film formation. At the same time, this intake pipe helps to reduce the influence of the process gas on the temperature field distribution in the chamber, make the temperature field more uniform, and reduce the influence of temperature difference on the oxidation film formation of the wafer.

[0027] The semiconductor heat treatment equipment provided by the present application includes the above reaction device, so it also has the above advantages. Compared with the existing heat treatment equipment such as a vertical oxidation furnace, it can optimize the in-plane temperature field and gas flow field of the wafer, which is beneficial to forming a high-quality thin film on the wafer surface and meeting the process requirements. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] The preferred embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0029] Figure 1 is the front view structural schematic diagram of the reaction device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 2 is the left view structural schematic diagram of the reaction device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 3 is the top view structural schematic diagram of the reaction device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 4 is the structural sectional view schematic diagram of the semiconductor heat treatment equipment according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0033] List of reference signs:

[0034] 11 - Base, 12 - Cover body, 120 - Chamber, 1201 - First chamber, 1202 - Second chamber, 121 - First end, 122 - Second end, 123 - Partition member, 1230 - Through hole, 13 - Intake pipe, 14 - Intake port, 15 - Exhaust port, 16 - Temperature monitoring device, 2 - Furnace body, 3 - Carrying device, 4 - Heat preservation device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0035] The preferred embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Those skilled in the art should understand that these embodiments are only used to explain the technical principle of the present application and are not used to limit the protection scope of the present application. Those skilled in the art can make adjustments according to needs to adapt to specific application scenarios.

[0036] It should be noted that in the description of this application, the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "inner", "outer", etc., which indicate directions or positional relationships, are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings. This is only for the convenience of description, and does not indicate or imply that the relevant devices or components must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, it cannot be understood as a limitation on this application. In addition, the ordinal numbers "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0037] In addition, it should be noted that in the description of this application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installation" and "connection" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. For those skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0038] In the field of semiconductor integrated circuit manufacturing, the heat treatment process mainly includes oxidation, alloying, impurity diffusion and annealing for crystal defect repair. The heat treatment equipment involved includes oxidation furnaces, rapid thermal processing (RTP) equipment, etc. Among them, according to the different placement methods of the heating furnace body, furnace tubes and wafer boats carrying wafers, the oxidation furnace can be divided into horizontal oxidation furnaces and vertical oxidation furnaces. In comparison, the vertical oxidation furnace has the characteristics of good intra-wafer uniformity, high degree of automation and stable system performance, so it has been widely used.

[0039] Normal pressure vertical oxidation furnace is mainly used for thermal oxidation film formation of semiconductors. Taking wafer film formation as an example, the uniformity of temperature field and airflow field in the reaction chamber of the furnace tube will affect the uniformity of the thickness of the wafer oxide film. One of the factors affecting the uniformity of temperature field and airflow field is whether the mechanical structure design of the furnace tube is reasonable.

[0040] Existing vertical oxidation furnaces usually adopt a single-side air intake method, that is, the process gas intake pipe is only set on one side of the reaction chamber. Since the process gas is generally a room temperature gas, the single-side air intake method causes the process gas to take away the heat of the surrounding area when flowing in the intake pipe, causing the temperature of the area near the intake pipe to be lower than the temperature of other areas of the reaction chamber (including the area inside and outside the chamber), thereby affecting the uniformity of wafer film formation.

[0041] During the wafer film formation process, the required process gas is usually a mixed gas. If the single-sided gas inlet method is adopted, the design of the gas inlet pipe is generally short and the pipe diameter is thin. This design will result in a short residence time of the process gas in the gas inlet pipe, making it difficult to achieve sufficient mixing, which may lead to uneven distribution of the gas flow when it reaches the wafer surface, and ultimately result in poor uniformity of the film thickness on the wafer surface.

[0042] Therefore, the present application provides a reaction device. By improving the structure of the gas inlet pipe, it can effectively improve the uniformity of the temperature field and gas flow field in the reaction chamber, and further improve the uniformity of the oxide film on the surface of the workpiece to be processed. In the following embodiments, the workpiece to be processed is taken as a wafer for illustration.

[0043] First, please refer to Figure 1 , which is a reaction device according to an embodiment of the present application. Specifically, the reaction device includes a base 11 and a cover 12 hermetically connected to the base 11. A chamber 120 is formed inside the cover 12. This chamber 120 can also be understood as a process chamber, which can accommodate a susceptor. The susceptor is used to carry the wafer to be processed, and the process of oxide film formation mainly takes place in this chamber 120.

[0044] Furthermore, the cover 12 has a first end 121 and a second end 122 arranged oppositely. The first end 121 is the end close to the base 11. The gas inlet pipe 13 is arranged around the outside of the cover 12. The gas inlet end of the gas inlet pipe 13 is arranged close to the first end 121, and the gas inlet end is communicated with the gas inlet 14. The gas outlet end of the gas inlet pipe 13 is arranged close to the second end 122, and the gas outlet end is communicated with the chamber 120. In this way, the process gas can enter the chamber 120 from the gas inlet 14 through the gas inlet pipe 13.

[0045] Specifically, the surrounding gas inlet pipe 13 forms one or more annular bands around the outside of the cover 12, so that the gas inlet pipe 13 is arranged in a spiral shape. Compared with the single-sided gas inlet pipe 13, the spiral-shaped gas inlet pipe 13 helps to extend the total length of the gas inlet pipe 13, provides more sufficient space for the process gas flowing through it to mix, thereby improving the uniformity of the process gas mixing, and further improving the uniformity of the wafer film formation.

[0046] On the other hand, the spiral-shaped gas inlet pipe 13 can effectively slow down the speed of the process gas entering the chamber 120. This structure increases the residence time of the process gas in the pipe, thus providing more time for sufficient mixing. In this way, the spiral gas inlet pipe 13 can optimize the gas flow, enhance the gas uniformity, and contribute to improving the uniformity of the film thickness.

[0047] Furthermore, the intake pipe 13 with a spiral structure surrounds the outside of the cover 12, which helps to reduce the influence of the process gas at normal temperature on the uniformity of the airflow temperature field in the chamber 120, thereby making the temperature field distribution in the chamber 120 more uniform and reducing the influence of temperature differences on the oxidation film formation of the wafer.

[0048] In one embodiment, the intake port 14 is arranged near the first end 121 of the cover 12, communicates with the intake pipe 13, and conveys the process gas into the chamber 120 through the intake pipe 13; the exhaust port 15 is also arranged near the first end 121 of the cover 12 and communicates with the chamber 120, and is used to discharge the gas after the oxidation reaction in the chamber 120 to ensure the smooth flow of the gas in the chamber 120 and maintain the normal progress of the reaction process.

[0049] Figure 1 and 2 The direction indicated by the arrow in is the flow direction of the process gas.

[0050] Specifically, the process gas first enters the intake pipe 13 through the intake port 14 located at the first end 121 of the cover 12. Inside the intake pipe 13, the process gas will be fully mixed. The mixed process gas slowly flows into the chamber 120 from the second end 122 of the cover 12 and undergoes a thermal oxidation reaction in the chamber 120. Finally, the process gas after the thermal oxidation reaction is discharged through the exhaust port 15 located at the first end 121, so that the wafer completes process steps such as oxidation film formation in a stable airflow.

[0051] It can be seen that the process gas enters the chamber 120 from the second end 122 of the chamber 120 and is discharged through the exhaust port 15 located at the first end 121. Such a structural design prolongs the flow path of the gas and increases the residence time of the gas in the chamber 120. When processes such as high-temperature thermal oxidation are carried out in the chamber 120, the process gas can more evenly cover the surface of the entire workpiece to be processed, thereby promoting the full progress of the oxidation reaction. This helps to improve the efficiency and stability of the thermal oxidation process, thereby improving the quality of the oxidation film.

[0052] In one embodiment, the orthographic projections of the intake port 14 and the exhaust port 15 in the radial cross-section of the cover 12 do not coincide, or rather, the intake port 14 and the exhaust port 15 are arranged at a certain angle along the radius of the cover 12. As Figures 1-3 In the structure shown, the angle between the intake port 14 and the exhaust port 15 along the radius of the cover 12 is approximately 90 degrees.

[0053] In one embodiment, the central axes of the air inlet 14 and the exhaust outlet 15 are located in the same radial section of the housing 12. In other words, the heights of the air inlet 14 and the exhaust outlet 15 in the axial direction of the housing 12 are the same. This design can simplify the structure of the reaction device. By keeping the air inlet 14 and the exhaust outlet 15 at the same height, it can effectively avoid interference in the layout of the reaction device in equipment with limited space such as vertical reaction furnaces, thus facilitating its installation.

[0054] In one embodiment, a partition member 123 is provided near the second end 122 in the chamber 120. The partition member 123 divides the chamber 120 into a first chamber 1201 and a second chamber 1202. The first chamber 1201 is close to the second end 122, and the intake pipe 13 is communicated with the first chamber 1201. A through hole 1230 communicating the first chamber 1201 and the second chamber 1202 is further provided on the partition member 123.

[0055] In this way, the process gas first enters the first chamber 1201 from the outlet end of the intake pipe 13, and then enters the second chamber 1202 through the through hole 1230.

[0056] In one embodiment, a plurality of through holes 1230 are provided. The plurality of through holes 1230 are arranged in an array on the partition member 123, which helps to control the flow rate of the process gas and make the distribution of the process gas during the oxidation process more uniform, thereby improving the oxidation uniformity of the wafer surface.

[0057] In a preferred embodiment, the plurality of through holes 1230 are uniformly distributed on the partition member 123, for example, arranged in the shape of a shower head. This shower head-like arrangement enables the process gas to be ejected uniformly from the plurality of through holes 1230, thereby covering a wider area. This ensures that uniform oxidation can be achieved on the entire wafer surface, effectively improving the uniformity of the oxide film and ensuring the formation of an oxide layer with a relatively consistent thickness on the wafer surface.

[0058] In one embodiment, referring to Figure 1 and 2 , a plurality of intake pipes 13 are provided. The plurality of intake pipes 13 are arranged side by side outside the housing 12.

[0059] Specifically, the provision of the plurality of intake pipes 13 can increase the total flow rate of the process gas, thereby improving the efficiency of the process reaction. Further, the plurality of intake pipes 13 are arranged in parallel outside the housing 12, and the circumferential directions and the distances between them are kept equal. Such a parallel arrangement can make the arrangement of the intake pipes 13 more compact to be applicable to an environment with limited space.

[0060] Since the intake pipe 13 needs to be connected to the intake port 14, in a preferred embodiment, by fitting the outer walls of adjacent intake pipes 13 together, these pipes can better adapt to the size of the intake port 14, improve the stability and sealing performance of the connection between the intake pipe 13 and the intake port 14, optimize the connection effect between the two, and at the same time save space and simplify the installation process.

[0061] Figures 1-3 An example of using three intake pipes 13 is shown. Through these illustrations, it can be clearly seen how the outer walls of adjacent intake pipes 13 are closely fitted to better connect with the intake port 14.

[0062] In one embodiment, the reaction device further includes a temperature monitoring device 16, which is installed on the outer wall of the housing 12 and is used to monitor the working temperature of the reaction device in real time. To avoid interference or influence between the intake pipe 13 and the temperature monitoring device 16, when the intake pipe 13 surrounds the outer wall of the housing 12, its winding path is designed to avoid the temperature monitoring device 16.

[0063] Furthermore, to optimize the layout of the intake pipe 13 and reduce the complexity of the winding path, multiple temperature monitoring devices 16 are arranged in a row. Such a design can make the overall layout of the intake pipe 13 more compact.

[0064] As Figures 1-3 shown in the winding path of the intake pipe 13, to avoid interference or influence between the intake pipe 13 and the temperature monitoring device 16, when the intake pipe 13 surrounds the outer wall of the housing 12, its winding path bypasses the temperature monitoring device 16 and is simplified as much as possible, surrounding the outer wall of the housing 12 about 3 / 4 of a circle.

[0065] In one embodiment, the cross-section of the intake pipe 13 is circular. However, to reduce the total size of the housing 12 and the intake pipe 13 in the radial direction, make the overall structure of the reaction device more compact, and adapt to equipment with limited space, the intake pipe 13 can also adopt other shapes such as oval or flat oval.

[0066] Please refer to Figure 4 , this application also provides a semiconductor heat treatment device, which includes a furnace body 2. A furnace cavity with one end open is formed in the furnace body 2. The reaction device as described above is at least partially disposed in this furnace cavity. A heating device, such as a heating wire, is provided on the furnace body 2. The heating device is used to heat and provide heat so that the reaction device is in the temperature environment required for the process.

[0067] Furthermore, the semiconductor heat treatment device further includes a carrying device 3 for carrying the workpiece to be processed, which is disposed in the chamber 120.

[0068] The carrier device 3 can provide stable support and protection for the wafer to be processed, ensuring that the wafer to be processed is not damaged or displaced during the manufacturing process. The carrier device 3 can be a boat commonly used in existing heat treatment equipment, such as a quartz boat.

[0069] In one embodiment, a heat insulation device 4 is also accommodated in the chamber 120. One end of the heat insulation device 4 is connected to the carrier device 3, and the other end is connected to the base 11. Its functions are, first, to support the carrier device 3, and second, to ensure that the carrier device 3 can be located in the middle area of the chamber 120, ensuring that the carrier device 3 can obtain a uniform and stable heating effect.

[0070] Specifically, as Figure 4 shown, since the intake port 14 and the exhaust port 15 of the reaction device need to be connected to other components, a part of the reaction device near the intake port 14 and the exhaust port 15 is exposed outside the furnace chamber, which will cause more heat dissipation at this part of the chamber 120. Setting the heat insulation device 4 at this place can prevent the rapid heat dissipation at the furnace mouth position, which helps to improve the temperature uniformity in the area near the carrier device 3.

[0071] Generally speaking, for the semiconductor heat treatment equipment applying the reaction device provided by the embodiment of the present application, the uniformity of the temperature field and the gas flow field is improved, thereby improving the film formation uniformity and film formation quality of the semiconductor heat treatment equipment.

[0072] In addition, it should be noted that the above embodiments all illustrate the characteristics and advantages of the above reaction chamber and semiconductor heat treatment equipment by taking the thermal oxidation process as an example. However, it is not difficult for those skilled in the art to understand that by using the reaction chamber and semiconductor heat treatment equipment provided in this embodiment, due to the improvement of the uniformity of the temperature field and the gas flow field, it is also beneficial to improve the process stability of alloying, impurity diffusion, annealing, etc.

[0073] So far, the technical solutions of the present application have been described in combination with the preferred embodiments shown in the drawings. However, it is easy for those skilled in the art to understand that the protection scope of the present application is obviously not limited to these specific embodiments. Without departing from the principle of the present application, those skilled in the art can make equivalent changes or substitutions to the relevant technical features, and the technical solutions after these changes or substitutions will all fall within the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A reaction device, characterized in that, Comprising: A base; A cover body having opposite first and second ends, the first end being disposed on the base, and a chamber for accommodating a workpiece to be processed being formed between the cover body and the base; An intake pipe having an intake port communicatively connected at one end, the intake pipe being communicatively connected to the chamber and disposed around the outer side of the cover body, and process gas being capable of entering the chamber from the intake port through the intake pipe; And An exhaust port communicatively connected to the chamber for discharging the process gas in the chamber.

2. The reaction device according to claim 1, characterized in that, A plurality of the intake pipes are provided, and the plurality of intake pipes are arranged side by side on the outer side of the cover body.

3. The reaction device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cross section of the intake pipe is circular or oval.

4. The reaction device according to claim 1, characterized in that, Further comprising: A partition member disposed in the chamber, the partition member partitioning the chamber into a first chamber and a second chamber, the first chamber being close to the second end, the intake pipe being communicatively connected to the first chamber, and through holes communicating the first chamber and the second chamber being further provided on the partition member.

5. The reaction device according to claim 4, characterized in that, A plurality of the through holes are provided, and the plurality of through holes are arranged in an array on the partition member.

6. The reaction device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The reaction device further comprises: A temperature monitoring device disposed on the outer side wall of the cover body, and the intake pipe is arranged to avoid the temperature monitoring device.

7. The reaction device according to claim 1, characterized in that, Both the intake port and the exhaust port are close to the first end.

8. The reaction device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The central axes of the intake port and the exhaust port are located in the same radial cross section of the cover body; and / or, the orthographic projections of the intake port and the exhaust port in the radial cross section of the cover body do not coincide.

9. A semiconductor heat treatment apparatus, characterized in that, Comprising: The reaction device according to any one of claims 1 to 8; A furnace body disposed outside the reaction device; A loading device disposed in the chamber for loading the workpiece to be processed.

10. The semiconductor heat treatment apparatus according to claim 9, wherein, The semiconductor heat treatment equipment further comprises: A heat preservation device located in the chamber and close to the base.

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