A vapor deposition apparatus

Abstract

The utility model discloses a kind of vapor deposition devices, it includes: processing cavity, liftable pedestal is equipped in it, the pedestal is used to carry substrate;Target material, it is set in the top in the processing cavity;Magnetic control component, it is set in the top outside the processing cavity, for exciting the target material;Collimator, it is set between the pedestal and the target material;The distance between the bottom of the target material to the top of the pedestal is 200~550mm.The vapor deposition device provided by the utility model not only enhances the hole filling capacity to deep hole sidewall and bottom, but also improves target material utilization while improving thin film deposition uniformity.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of semiconductor equipment, and in particular to a vapor deposition apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] Physical vapor deposition (PVD) is a common method for depositing thin films on substrate surfaces, widely used in semiconductors, optics, electronics, and photovoltaics. Magnetron sputtering in PVD is a process where, under vacuum conditions, a high-energy ion is accelerated by an electric field to bombard a target, causing the target to generate sputtered particles that are deposited on the substrate surface to form a thin film.

[0003] Because the initial motion directions of sputtered particles on the target are different, existing vapor deposition apparatuses cannot meet the uniformity requirements of thin film deposition, and also suffer from low target utilization. The statements herein provide only background information related to this invention and do not necessarily constitute prior art. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a vapor deposition apparatus to enhance the constraint on the motion of sputtered particles from the target material, increase the proportion of sputtered particles in the vertical direction, and improve the uniformity of thin film deposition while increasing the utilization rate of the target material.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides a vapor deposition apparatus, comprising: a processing chamber having a liftable base for supporting a substrate; a target material disposed at the top of the processing chamber; a magnetron assembly disposed at the top of the processing chamber for exciting the target material; and a collimator disposed between the base and the target material; wherein the distance between the bottom of the target material and the top of the base is 200–550 mm.

[0006] For example, the collimator includes a plurality of through holes spaced apart by partitions, the collimator having a central region and a peripheral region surrounding the central region; the first aspect ratio of the through holes located in the central region is the same as or different from the second aspect ratio of the through holes located in the peripheral region.

[0007] For example, the first aspect ratio of the through hole located in the central region ranges from 0.75 to 1.2.

[0008] For example, the second aspect ratio of the through hole located in the peripheral region ranges from 0.6 to 0.9.

[0009] For example, the distance between the bottom of the target and the top of the base is a first distance, and the distance between the top of the collimator and the bottom of the target is a second distance, with the ratio of the second distance to the first distance ranging from 0.4 to 0.55.

[0010] For example, the through holes are arranged in an array in the central region and the peripheral region, and the shape of the through holes in the central region is the same as or different from the shape of the through holes in the peripheral region.

[0011] For example, the shape of the through hole includes one or more of a regular polygon, a circle, or an ellipse.

[0012] For example, the vapor deposition apparatus further includes: a shielding ring disposed on the circumferential edge of the upper surface of the base; a cover ring disposed around the inner sidewall of the processing chamber and located above the shielding ring, the inner diameter of the cover ring being smaller than the outer diameter of the shielding ring; and a support ring extending inward from the sidewall of the processing chamber, the inner diameter of the support ring being larger than the diameter of the base and smaller than the outer diameter of the cover ring, for supporting the cover ring.

[0013] For example, the processing chamber is a tantalum sputtering processing chamber, and the target material is tantalum.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution of this utility model has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0015] The vapor deposition apparatus provided by this invention, by setting the distance between the bottom of the target material and the top of the base to 200-550 mm, not only enhances the collimator's constraint on the movement of sputtered particles from the target material, but also improves the vapor deposition apparatus's ability to fill deep hole sidewalls and bottoms. Furthermore, by setting the ratio of the second distance between the top of the collimator and the bottom of the target material to the first distance between the bottom of the target material and the top of the base to a range of 0.4-0.55, while enhancing the constraint capability of the collimator, it increases the proportion of vertically sputtered target particles passing through the collimator, while also reducing the proportion of target sputtered particles deposited on the collimator, thereby improving film uniformity and target utilization. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a vapor deposition apparatus provided by this utility model;

[0017] Figure 2 A top view of a collimator in a vapor deposition apparatus provided by this utility model. Detailed Implementation

[0018] The vapor deposition apparatus proposed in this utility model will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. The advantages and features of this utility model will become clearer from the following description. It should be noted that the drawings are in a very simplified form and use non-precise proportions, only for the purpose of conveniently and clearly illustrating the embodiments of this utility model. Please refer to the drawings to make the objectives, features, and advantages of this utility model more apparent and understandable. It should be understood that the structures, proportions, sizes, etc., depicted in the accompanying drawings are only for the purpose of assisting those skilled in the art in understanding and reading the content disclosed in the specification, and are not intended to limit the implementation conditions of this utility model. Therefore, they have no substantial technical significance. Any modifications to the structure, changes in proportions, or adjustments to the size, without affecting the effects and objectives achieved by this utility model, should still fall within the scope of the technical content disclosed in this utility model.

[0019] Research has found that when different materials are used as targets in vapor deposition (VCD) devices, the difference in atomic mass leads to significant differences in the angular distribution of sputtered particles. In practical applications, for example, when tantalum (Ta) is used as a target, the angular distribution of sputtered particles produced by tantalum is worse than that of copper (Cu). Specifically, the initial motion direction of the sputtered particles from tantalum is more dispersed. This is because tantalum has a larger atomic mass than copper, resulting in a smaller proportion of sputtered particles distributed in the near-vertical direction. In the deposition process of filling deep holes, a smaller proportion of sputtered particles in the near-vertical direction can lead to incomplete hole filling and reduced product yield.

[0020] Furthermore, by setting a collimator in the processing chamber of the vapor deposition apparatus to filter particles that do not move vertically, and because the angular distribution of the target sputtering particles generated by tantalum is relatively dispersed, a large number of target sputtering particles will be deposited on the collimator. As the deposition process continues, the aspect ratio of each through hole on the collimator will change rapidly, resulting in poor controllability of the deposition process, failure to meet the uniformity requirements of thin film deposition, and reduced target utilization, thus increasing production costs.

[0021] To address the aforementioned shortcomings, this utility model provides a vapor deposition apparatus 100, such as... Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the vapor deposition apparatus 100 includes: a processing chamber 101, within which a liftable base 102 is provided. The base 102 is located at the bottom of the processing chamber 101 and is used to support the substrate W. The side wall of the processing chamber 101 is also provided with a transfer port (not shown) for transferring the substrate W into or out of the processing chamber 101. A plurality of lifting pins 121 are spaced apart within the base 102. The lifting pins 121 can move up and down in the vertical direction to lift or lower the substrate W. A target 103 is disposed at the top inside the processing cavity 101 to provide target sputtering particles for deposition on the substrate W to form a thin film. A magnetron assembly 104 is disposed at the top outside the processing cavity 101 to excite the target 103 to generate the target sputtering particles. A collimator 105 is disposed between the base 102 and the target 103, and the collimator 105 includes a plurality of through holes 152 spaced apart by partitions 151. The distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is 200-550 mm, which enhances the movement constraint of the target sputtering particles by the collimator 105, increases the distribution ratio of target sputtering particles in the vertical direction, and thus enhances the filling ability of the deep hole sidewalls and bottom, realizes uniform deposition of target sputtering particles, and improves the target utilization rate. In some embodiments, the vapor deposition apparatus 100 is a physical vapor deposition apparatus, and the target material 103 may be made of titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta), tungsten (W), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), alloys of the above materials, combinations of the above materials, or similar materials; the present invention does not limit this. Preferably, the processing chamber 101 is a tantalum sputtering processing chamber, and the target material 103 is made of tantalum.

[0022] In some embodiments, when the distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is less than 200 mm, the height of the collimator 105 in the vertical direction needs to be shortened to meet the process requirements because the distance between the target 103 and the base 102 is too close. However, this will result in poor angle restriction of the collimator 105 on the sputtered particles of the target, which will not significantly improve the verticality of the sputtered particles of the target and will have limited effect on improving the uniformity of film deposition. On the other hand, the close distance between the target 103 and the base 102 will cause the through-hole shape of the collimator 105 to have a greater impact on the distribution of the film deposited on the substrate W, so that the film deposited on the substrate W will produce an image similar to the through-hole shape of the collimator 105. That is, the through-hole shape on the collimator 105 will be transferred onto the substrate W, thereby causing a decrease in the uniformity of film deposition.

[0023] In other embodiments, when the distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is greater than 550 mm, the large distance between the target 103 and the base 102 causes most of the sputtered target particles to deposit in areas other than the substrate W (such as the inner wall of the processing chamber, the shielding ring, the cover ring, etc.), resulting in a decrease in the thin film deposition rate and target utilization. Simultaneously, the inner wall of the processing chamber, the shielding ring, and other areas accumulate a large amount of byproducts, requiring timely cleaning or replacement, leading to a shorter maintenance cycle, impacting production efficiency, and hindering actual mass production.

[0024] As an optional embodiment, the distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is a first distance, and the distance between the top of the collimator 105 and the bottom of the target 103 is a second distance. The ratio of the second distance to the first distance ranges from 0.4 to 0.55. For example, when the first distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is 200 mm, if the collimator 105 is too close to the target 103 at the second distance (e.g., less than 80 mm), it will cause a large number of sputtered target particles with a relatively dispersed angular distribution to be deposited on the collimator 105, thereby wasting the target material and affecting the rapid change in the aspect ratio of the through-hole of the collimator 105, reducing the uniformity of thin film deposition. When the first distance between the bottom of the target 103 and the top of the base 102 is 550 mm, if the second distance between the collimator 105 and the target 103 is too far (e.g., greater than 300 mm), the constraint effect of the collimator 105 on the sputtered particles of the target will be reduced, and the verticality of the sputtered particles cannot be significantly improved, thus having a limited effect on improving the uniformity of film deposition. Therefore, by setting the ratio of the second distance to the first distance to be in the range of 0.4 to 0.55, the constraint capability of the collimator 105 is enhanced, while the proportion of vertically sputtered particles passing through the collimator 105 is increased, and the proportion of sputtered particles deposited on the collimator 105 is reduced, thereby improving the uniformity of the film and the utilization rate of the target.

[0025] Furthermore, such as Figure 2As shown, the collimator 105 has a central region 153 and a peripheral region 154 surrounding the central region 153. In this embodiment, the through-hole located in the central region 153 is a first through-hole 1521, and the through-hole located in the peripheral region 154 is a second through-hole 1522. The first through-hole 1521 and the second through-hole 1522 are arranged in an array within the central region 153 and the peripheral region 154, respectively, and the first through-hole 1521 and the second through-hole 1522 have the same shape. Specifically, in this embodiment, the first through-hole 1521 and the second through-hole 1522 are both hexagonal in shape, which makes the collimator 105 form a honeycomb structure, improving the directional consistency of the sputtered particles of the target material, thereby making the film deposited on the substrate W have a more consistent orientation and improving the product deposition yield.

[0026] In other embodiments, the shape of the first through-hole 1521 is different from the shape of the second through-hole 1522. A suitable shape can be designed according to the actual application to compensate for spatial differences in the incident angle of sputtered target particles and improve target utilization and deposition efficiency. Optionally, the shape of the through-hole includes one or more of regular polygons, circles, or ellipses. Specifically, in one embodiment, the first through-hole located in the central region is a regular hexagon, and the second through-hole located in the peripheral region is a circle. Since the incident angle of sputtered target particles gradually increases from the center to the edge, the first through-hole with a regular hexagon can better filter target sputtered particles in the vertical direction, ensuring high density and low defect rate of the film deposited in the central region. The second through-hole with a circle allows target sputtered particles with larger angles to pass through, compensating for insufficient deposition rate at the edges, thereby improving the uniformity of film deposition.

[0027] To further achieve regional adjustment of the sputtered particle angle distribution, the first aspect ratio of the first via 1521 and the second aspect ratio of the second via 1522 can be the same or different. By adjusting the aspect ratios of the first via 1521 and the second via 1522, edge effects in film deposition (e.g., thicker films at the edges or thinner films at the center) can be reduced, improving film deposition uniformity. In some embodiments, the first aspect ratio of the first via 1521 located in the central region 153 ranges from 0.75 to 1.2, and the second aspect ratio of the second via 1522 located in the peripheral region 154 ranges from 0.6 to 0.9. Within these aspect ratio ranges, the collimator 105 can compensate for regional differences in the incident angle distribution of sputtered particles, increasing the proportion of sputtered particles in the vertical direction, reducing the risk of via blockage, and thus improving film deposition uniformity.

[0028] Furthermore, such as Figure 1As shown, the vapor deposition apparatus 100 further includes a shielding ring 122 disposed on the circumferential edge of the upper surface of the base 102, and the inner diameter of the shielding ring 122 is larger than the outer diameter of the substrate W so that the substrate W does not contact the shielding ring 122; a cover ring 123 disposed around the inner sidewall of the processing chamber 101 and located above the shielding ring 122, and the inner diameter of the cover ring 123 is smaller than the outer diameter of the shielding ring 122; and a support ring 111 extending inward from the sidewall of the processing chamber 101, the inner diameter of the support ring 111 being larger than the diameter of the base 102 and smaller than the outer diameter of the cover ring 123, for supporting the cover ring 123. When the base 102 moves upward to the deposition process position, the shielding ring 122 abuts against the cover ring 123 to avoid the formation of deposits in non-process areas (e.g., below the base 102).

[0029] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Unless otherwise specified, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0030] In the description of this utility model, it should be understood that the terms "center," "height," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "axial," "radial," and "circumferential," etc., indicating the orientation or positional relationship, are based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings and are only for the convenience of describing this utility model and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this utility model. In the description of this utility model, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0031] In the description of this utility model, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "joining," and "fixing" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this utility model according to the specific circumstances.

[0032] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, "above" or "below" the second feature can include direct contact between the first and second features, or contact between the first and second features through another feature between them. Furthermore, "above," "over," and "on top" of the second feature includes the first feature directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a higher horizontal level than the second feature. "Below," "below," and "under" the second feature includes the first feature directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a lower horizontal level than the second feature.

[0033] Although the present invention has been described in detail through the above preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the above description should not be considered as a limitation of the present invention. Various modifications and substitutions to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the above content. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A vapor deposition apparatus, characterized in that, include: The processing chamber contains a liftable base for supporting the substrate. A target material, which is disposed at the top of the processing cavity; A magnetron assembly, disposed at the top outside the processing cavity, is used to excite the target material; A collimator is disposed between the base and the target material; The distance between the bottom of the target and the top of the base is 200-550 mm.

2. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The collimator includes a plurality of through holes spaced apart by partitions, the collimator having a central region and a peripheral region surrounding the central region; the first aspect ratio of the through holes located in the central region is the same as or different from the second aspect ratio of the through holes located in the peripheral region.

3. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The first aspect ratio of the through hole located in the central region ranges from 0.75 to 1.

2.

4. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The second aspect ratio of the through hole located in the peripheral region ranges from 0.6 to 0.

9.

5. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The distance between the bottom of the target and the top of the base is a first distance, and the distance between the top of the collimator and the bottom of the target is a second distance. The ratio of the second distance to the first distance is in the range of 0.4 to 0.

55.

6. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The through holes are arranged in an array in the central region and the peripheral region, and the shape of the through holes in the central region is the same as or different from the shape of the through holes in the peripheral region.

7. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The shape of the through hole includes one or more of the following: regular polygon, circle, or ellipse.

8. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: A shielding ring is provided on the circumferential edge of the upper surface of the base; A cover ring is disposed around the inner wall of the processing cavity and located above the shielding ring, wherein the inner diameter of the cover ring is smaller than the outer diameter of the shielding ring; A support ring extends inward from the side wall of the processing chamber. The inner diameter of the support ring is larger than the diameter of the base and smaller than the outer diameter of the cover ring, and is used to support the cover ring.

9. The vapor deposition apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, The processing chamber is a tantalum sputtering processing chamber, and the target material is tantalum.

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