Continuous plasma and heat treatment

Abstract

To provide a method and a non-transitory computer-readable medium for manufacturing a memory device that improves the quality of a selectively deposited silicon-containing dielectric layer.SOLUTION: A method includes providing a film stack into a processing chamber, selectively depositing a silicon-containing dielectric layer in recessed areas of the film stack, exposing the selectively deposited silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high density plasma annealed at a temperature higher than 800°C, and annealing the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature higher than 800°C to form a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4Å / min.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001]

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the field of electronic devices and methods and apparatus for manufacturing electronic devices. More particularly, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for forming a 3D-NAND device having a high quality silicon-containing dielectric layer. [Background technology]

[0002]

[0002] Semiconductor technology is advancing rapidly, and device dimensions are shrinking with technology advances to provide faster processing and storage per unit area. In NAND devices, the string current needs to be large enough to provide enough current to distinguish between ON and OFF cells. The string current depends on carrier mobility, which is enhanced by increasing the grain size of the silicon channel.

[0003]

[0003] Current processes employed in 3D-NAND manufacturing use high-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD) silicon nitride (SiN) followed by an additional patterning step. Selective deposition of SiN allows the patterning step to be omitted. However, selective deposition requires a relatively low deposition temperature, resulting in low-quality films.

[0004]

[0004] Therefore, there is a need in the art for 3D-NAND devices having high quality SiN films. Further, there is a need in the art for methods and apparatus for forming 3D-NAND devices. Summary of the Invention

[0005]

[0005] One or more embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a processing method. In one embodiment, the processing method includes selectively depositing a silicon-containing dielectric layer in a recessed region of a film stack, the film stack including alternating layers of a first material layer and a second material layer, and having a memory hole extending through the film stack; exposing the silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high density plasma at a temperature of 500°C or less and a pressure of less than 1 Torr; and annealing the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature of more than 800°C to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4 Å / min.

[0006]

[0006] A further embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a processing tool. In one embodiment, a non-transitory computer readable medium includes instructions that, when executed by a controller of a processing chamber, cause the processing chamber to perform the following operations: selectively deposit a silicon-containing dielectric layer in a recessed region of a film stack, the film stack including alternating layers of a first material layer and a second material layer, and having a memory hole extending through the film stack; exposing the silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high-density plasma at a temperature of 500°C or less and a pressure of less than 1 Torr; and annealing the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature of more than 800°C to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4 Å / min.

[0007]

[0007] So that the above features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more detailed description of the present disclosure briefly summarized above can be made by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the accompanying drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present disclosure and therefore should not be considered as limiting its scope. The embodiments described herein are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals denote like elements. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1]1 shows a flow process diagram of one embodiment of a method according to embodiments described herein. [Figure 2A]

[0009] 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a device according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 2B]

[0010] 2B illustrates a cross-sectional view region 103 of the substrate of FIG. 2A according to one or more embodiments. [Diagram 3]

[0011] 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a device according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 4]

[0012] 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a device according to one or more embodiments. [Diagram 5]

[0013] 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a device according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 6]

[0014] 1 illustrates a cluster tool in accordance with one or more embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009]

[0015] Before describing certain example embodiments of the present disclosure, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the details of construction or process steps set forth in the following description. The present disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways.

[0010]

[0016] One or more embodiments provide a processing method including plasma-based doping (PLAD) and annealing in an integrated processing tool that enables selective deposition of silicon-containing dielectric films, such as silicon nitride, at low temperatures on recessed polysilicon sidewalls through high aspect ratio memory holes in a 3D NAND cell film stack.

[0011]

[0017] Selective deposition of silicon-containing dielectric films, such as silicon nitride, is a low temperature process, which results in poor film quality. Without intending to be bound by theory, it is believed that if the selectively deposited low quality silicon-containing dielectric film cannot be converted to a high quality silicon-containing film, the selectively deposited silicon-containing film, particularly silicon nitride, cannot be used to form 3D NAND cell structures.

[0012]

[0018] FIG. 1 shows a flow chart of an exemplary method 10 for forming a memory device. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the method 10 can include any or all of the illustrated processes. Also, the order of each step can be partially changed. The method 10 can start with any of the listed processes without departing from the present disclosure. With reference to FIG. 1, in operation 12, a film stack is provided. As used herein, the term "provided" means that a substrate is made available for processing (e.g., placed in a processing chamber). In operation 14, a silicon-containing dielectric layer is selectively deposited in the recessed area of ​​the film stack. In operation 16, the silicon-containing dielectric layer is exposed to a high density plasma, and in operation 18, the silicon-containing dielectric layer is annealed at a temperature above 800° C. to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4 Å / min.

[0013]

[0019] 2-5 show a portion of a memory device 100 following the process flow shown for method 10 of FIG. 1. FIG. 2 shows an electronic device 100 according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the electronic device 100 shown in FIG. 2 is formed layered on a bare substrate 105, as shown. The electronic device of FIG. 2 is comprised of the substrate 105, a semiconductor layer 110, an optional sacrificial layer 120, a memory stack 130, and an optional oxide layer 140.

[0014]

[0020] The substrate 105 can be any suitable material known to those of skill in the art. As used in this specification and the appended claims, the term "substrate" refers to a surface or a portion of a surface on which a process acts. Those of skill in the art will also understand that a reference to a substrate may refer to only a portion of the substrate, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Furthermore, a reference to deposition on a substrate can refer to both a bare substrate and a substrate having one or more films or features deposited or formed thereon.

[0015]

[0021] As used herein, "substrate" refers to any substrate or material surface formed on a substrate upon which film processing is performed during a manufacturing process. For example, substrate surfaces upon which processing can be performed include materials such as silicon, silicon oxide, strained silicon, silicon on insulator (SOI), carbon doped silicon oxide, amorphous silicon, doped silicon, germanium, gallium arsenide, glass, sapphire, and any other materials such as metals, metal nitrides, metal alloys, and other conductive materials, depending on the application. Substrates include, but are not limited to, semiconductor wafers. Substrates can be exposed to pretreatment processes to polish, etch, reduce, oxidize, hydroxylate, anneal, and / or bake the substrate surface. In addition to film processing directly on the surface of the substrate itself, in this disclosure, any of the disclosed film processing steps can be performed on an underlayer formed on the substrate, as disclosed in more detail below, and the term "substrate surface" is intended to include the underlayer as the context indicates. Thus, for example, when a film / layer or partial film / layer is deposited on a substrate surface, the exposed surface of the newly deposited film / layer becomes the substrate surface.

[0016]

[0022] In one or more embodiments, the semiconductor layer 110 is on the substrate 105. In some embodiments, the semiconductor layer 110 is also referred to as a common source line. The semiconductor layer 110 may be formed by any suitable technique known to those skilled in the art and may be made from any suitable material, including but not limited to polysilicon (poly-Si). In some embodiments, the semiconductor layer 110 is a common source line made of a conductive or semiconducting material.

[0017]

[0023] In one or more embodiments, an optional sacrificial layer 120 is formed on the semiconductor layer 110 and can be made of any suitable material. The sacrificial layer 120 in some embodiments is removed and replaced in a later process. In some embodiments, the sacrificial layer 120 is not removed and is left in the memory device 100. In this case, the term "sacrificial" has an expanded meaning to include a permanent layer, and may also be referred to as a conductive layer. In one or more embodiments, the optional sacrificial layer 120 comprises a material that can be selectively removed relative to the adjacent semiconductor layer 110 and second material layer 132.

[0018]

[0024] In one or more embodiments, the memory stack 130 is formed on the optional sacrificial layer 120. The memory stack 130 in the illustrated embodiment includes a plurality of alternating second material layers 132 and first material layers 134. In one or more embodiments, the first material layers 134 include nitride layers and the second material layers 132 include oxide layers. In some embodiments, the memory stack 130 includes a non-displacement gate, such as alternating oxide and polysilicon, or oxide and metal, or oxide and sacrificial layers. The first material layers 134 include a material that is etch selective to the second material layers 132 such that the first material layers 134 can be removed without substantially affecting the second material layers 132. In one or more embodiments, the first material layers 134 include one or more of polysilicon, silicon nitride (SiN), silicon carbide (SiC), silicon oxycarbide (SiOC), germanium (Ge), and titanium nitride (TiN). In one or more embodiments, the first material layer 134 comprises silicon nitride, hi one or more embodiments, the second material layer 132 comprises silicon oxide.

[0019]

[0025] The individual alternating layers may be formed to any suitable thickness. In some embodiments, the thickness of each second layer 132 is approximately equal. In one or more embodiments, each second layer 132 has a thickness of the first second layer. In some embodiments, the thickness of each first layer 134 is approximately equal. As used in this regard, approximately equal thicknesses are within + / - 5% of each other. In some embodiments, a silicon layer (not shown) is formed between the second material layer 132 and the first material layer 134. The thickness of the silicon layer may be relatively thin compared to the layer thickness of the second material layer 132 or the first material layer 134.

[0020]

[0026] In one or more embodiments, a memory hole channel 150 is opened through the memory stack 130. In some embodiments, opening the memory hole channel 150 includes etching through the oxide layer 140, the memory stack 130, the sacrificial layer 120 and into the semiconductor layer 110. Referring to FIG. 2B, which is a close-up of region 103, the memory hole channel 150 extends through the memory stack 130 and has sidewalls that expose a surface 138 of the second material layer 132 and a surface 139 of the first material layer 134.

[0021]

[0027] In one or more embodiments, the memory hole channel 150 has a high aspect ratio. As used herein, the term "high aspect ratio" refers to features having a height:width ratio of about 10, 20, or 50 or more.

[0022]

[0028] In one or more embodiments, the optional sacrificial layer 120 has a surface 122 exposed as a sidewall of a memory hole channel 150. The memory hole channel 150 extends a distance into the semiconductor layer 110 such that a sidewall surface 112 and a bottom 114 of the memory hole channel 150 are formed within the semiconductor layer 110. The bottom 114 of the memory hole channel 150 can be formed anywhere within the thickness of the semiconductor layer 110. In some embodiments, the memory hole channel 150 extends into the semiconductor layer 110 a thickness in the range of about 10% to about 90%, or in the range of about 20% to about 80%, or in the range of about 30% to about 70%, or in the range of about 40% to about 60% of the thickness of the semiconductor layer 110. In some embodiments, the memory hole channel 150 extends into the semiconductor layer 110 a distance that is 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, or 80% or more of the thickness of the semiconductor layer 110.

[0023]

[0029] 3 shows recessing the first material layer 134 to the second material layer 132 through the memory hole channel 150. In one or more embodiments, a recessed region 142 is formed. The first material layer 134 can be recessed according to any suitable process known to those skilled in the art. In other embodiments, the memory hole channel 150 can be structurally formed, for example, a polysilicon channel material can be deposited in the memory hole of a SiN / SiO / SiN stack, after which the SiN is removed and the SiO is trimmed, leaving a SiO structure with a recess opening to the polysilicon channel. In this case, 134 is not only recessed but also completely removed, exposing the filled channel material.

[0024]

[0030] 4 illustrates operation 14 in which a silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is selectively deposited in the recessed regions 142. In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 may be deposited by any suitable means known to those of skill in the art. In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is deposited at a temperature less than 500° C., for example, by atomic layer deposition (ALD) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD). In other embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is deposited at a temperature less than 500° C., including less than 490° C., less than 450° C., less than 400° C., less than 350° C., and less than 300° C.

[0025]

[0031] The silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 may include any suitable dielectric material known to one of ordinary skill in the art. As used herein, the term "dielectric material" refers to a layer of material that is an electrical insulator that can be polarized in an electric field. In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is silicon nitride (SiN), silicon carbonitride (SiCN), silicon oxynitride (SiON), silicon oxycarbonitride (SiOCN), silicon boride (SiB), silicon boron nitride (SiBN), or the like. In certain embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 includes silicon nitride (SiN).

[0026]

[0032] In one or more embodiments, deposition of the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is selective to the first material layer 134 on the second material layer 132 such that the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is deposited in the recessed region 142.

[0027]

[0033] In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 has a thickness in the range of greater than 0 Å to 25 Å.

[0028]

[0034] Without intending to be bound by theory, it is believed that the relatively low deposition temperature (i.e., less than 490° C.) reduces the quality of the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152. Thus, a low-quality silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 has a poor wet etch rate (WER) of greater than 300 Å.

[0029]

[0035] 5 illustrates operations 16 and 18 in which the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is exposed to a high density plasma and then annealed to provide a high quality silicon-containing dielectric film 154. In some embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 can be exposed to the plasma at temperatures up to 500° C., including 500° C., 475° C., 450° C., 425° C., 400° C., 350° C., 300° C., 250° C., 200° C., 150° C., 100° C., and 50° C. In some embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 can be exposed to a plasma at a temperature in the range of 400° C. to 500° C., including 400-450, or 420-490, or 400-450, 420-490, or 420-475, or 420-490. In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 can be exposed to a plasma at a temperature in the range of 400° C. to 500° C., including 400° C., 405° C., 410° C., 415° C., 420° C., 425° C., 430° C., 435° C., 440° C., 445° C., 450° C., 455° C., 460° C., 465° C., 470° C., 475° C., 480° C., 485° C., 490° C., 495° C., and 500° C.

[0030]

[0036] In one or more embodiments, plasma doping (PLAD) is branched because the aspect ratio of the memory hole channel 150 is very high, and a conformal implant process is optionally used to implant impurities from top to bottom into the sidewalls of the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 through the very high AR memory hole, which is something only PLAD can do. Without intending to be bound by theory, it is believed that the plasma treatment effect is due to inert ion bombardment of the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152.

[0031]

[0037] In one or more embodiments, the plasma includes a noble gas. In some embodiments, the plasma includes helium (He), hydrogen (H 2 ), neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), and xenon (Xe).

[0032]

[0038] In some embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 can be exposed to the plasma at a pressure less than 1 Torr, including pressures in the range of greater than 0 mTorr to less than 1 Torr, greater than 0 mTorr to 100 mTorr, and greater than 0 mTorr to 500 mTorr.

[0033]

[0039] In one or more embodiments, the plasma treatment includes a plasma doping process in which the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is exposed to a high density plasma with a negative high voltage DC bias over water. In some embodiments, the high voltage pulse is in the range of -0.2 kV to -10 kV for a duration of 20 μs to 150 μs at 0.5 kHz to 10 kHz.

[0034]

[0040] In one or more embodiments, in operation 18, the selectively deposited silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is annealed using rapid thermal processing (RTP). In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is annealed at a temperature greater than 800° C. to provide the silicon-containing dielectric film 154. In some embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric layer 152 is annealed at a temperature greater than 1000° C. to provide the silicon-containing dielectric film 154. In one or more embodiments, after the plasma treatment and annealing, the silicon-containing dielectric film 154 is a high quality film having a wet etch rate less than 4 Å / min, including wet etch rates less than 3 Å / min, less than 2 Å / min, and less than 1 Å / min.

[0035]

[0041] In one or more embodiments, the silicon-containing dielectric film 154 has a thickness in the range of greater than 0 Å to 25 Å.

[0036]

[0042] The method of one or more embodiments is an integrated method, which may be performed in one or more processing chambers without breaking vacuum.

[0037]

[0043] A further embodiment of the present disclosure relates to a processing tool 900 for forming the memory devices and methods described, as shown in FIG.

[0038]

[0044] The cluster tool 900 includes at least one central transfer station with multiple sides 921, 931. Robots 925, 935 are disposed within the central transfer stations 921, 931 and configured to move a robot blade and a wafer to each of the multiple sides.

[0039]

[0045] The cluster tool 900 includes multiple processing chambers 902, 904, 906, 908, 910, 912, 914, 916, and 918, also referred to as process stations, connected to a central transfer station. The various processing chambers provide separate processing areas isolated from adjacent processing stations. The processing chambers can be any suitable chamber including, but not limited to, a pre-clean chamber, a buffer chamber, a transfer space, a wafer orienter / degassing chamber, a cryogenic cooling chamber, a deposition chamber, an annealing chamber, an etching chamber, a selective oxidation chamber, an oxide layer thinning chamber, or a word line deposition chamber, etc. The particular arrangement of process chambers and components can vary depending on the cluster tool and should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present disclosure.

[0040]

[0046] In some embodiments, the cluster tool 900 includes a selective deposition chamber, a plasma treatment chamber, and an annealing chamber. In some embodiments, the plasma treatment and annealing chambers are Varian VII Sta® PLAD® and Vantage® Vulcan® RTP manufactured by Applied Materials of Santa Clara, Calif.

[0041]

[0047] 6, a factory interface 950 is connected to the front of the cluster tool 900. The factory interface 950 includes a loading chamber 954 and an unload chamber 956 on the front side 951 of the factory interface 950. Although the loading chamber 954 is shown on the left and the unload chamber 956 is shown on the right, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that this is merely representative of one possible configuration.

[0042]

[0048] The size and shape of the loading chamber 954 and the unload chamber 956 can vary depending on, for example, the substrate being processed in the cluster tool 900. In the embodiment shown, the loading chamber 954 and the unload chamber 956 are sized to hold a wafer cassette with multiple wafers disposed within the cassette.

[0043]

[0049] The robot 952 is in the factory interface 950 and can move between a loading chamber 954 and an unload chamber 956. The robot 952 can transfer wafers from a cassette in the loading chamber 954 to a load lock chamber 960 through the factory interface 950. The robot 952 can also transfer wafers from a load lock chamber 962 to a cassette in an unload chamber 965 through the factory interface 950. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the factory interface 950 can have multiple robots 952. For example, the factory interface 950 can have a first robot that transfers wafers between the loading chamber 954 and the load lock chamber 960 and a second robot that transfers wafers between the load lock 962 and the unload chamber 956.

[0044]

[0050] The illustrated cluster tool 900 has a first section 920 and a second section 930. The first section 920 is connected to a factory interface 950 via load lock chambers 960, 962. The first section 920 includes a first transfer chamber 921 with at least one robot 925 disposed therein. The robot 925 is also referred to as a robotic wafer transport mechanism. The first transfer chamber 921 is centrally located relative to the load lock chambers 960, 962, the process chambers 902, 904, 916, 918, and the buffer chambers 922, 924. The robot 925 in some embodiments is a multi-arm robot capable of independently moving multiple wafers at a time. In some embodiments, the first transfer chamber 921 includes two or more robotic wafer transfer mechanisms. The robot 925 in the first transfer chamber 921 is configured to move wafers between chambers around the first transfer chamber 921. The individual wafers are carried on a wafer transport blade located at the distal end of the first robotic mechanism.

[0045]

[0051] After processing the wafer in the first section 920, the wafer can be moved through a pass-through chamber to the second section 930. For example, the chambers 922, 924 can be one-way or two-way pass-through chambers. The pass-through chambers 922, 924 can be used, for example, to cryo-cool the wafer before processing in the second section 930 or to allow for cooling or post-processing of the wafer before being returned to the first section 920.

[0046]

[0052] The system controller 990 is in communication with the first robot 925, the second robot 935, the first plurality of processing chambers 902, 904, 916, 918, and the second plurality of processing chambers 906, 908, 910, 912, 914. The system controller 990 may be any suitable component capable of controlling the processing chambers and robots. For example, the system controller 990 may be a computer including a central processing unit, memory, suitable circuitry and storage.

[0047]

[0053] The processes may generally be stored in the memory of the system controller 990 as software routines, which, when executed by the processor, cause the process chamber to perform the processes of the present disclosure. The software routines may also be stored and / or executed by a second processor (not shown) located remotely from the hardware controlled by the processor. Some or all of the methods of the present disclosure may also be performed in hardware. Thus, the processes may be implemented in software and executed in hardware, such as, for example, an application specific integrated circuit or other type of hardware implementation, using a computer system, or as a combination of software and hardware. The software routines, when executed by the processor, transform a general-purpose computer into a special-purpose computer (controller) that controls the chamber operation so that the processes are performed.

[0048]

[0054] In some embodiments, the system controller 990 is configured to control a selective deposition chamber to selectively deposit a silicon-containing dielectric layer in recessed regions of the film stack at a temperature less than 490° C. In some embodiments, the controller 990 is configured to operate a plasma treatment chamber to expose the silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high density plasma at a temperature in the range of 400° C.-500° C. and a pressure less than 1 Torr. In other embodiments, the controller 990 is configured to control an annealing chamber to anneal the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature greater than 800° C. to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate less than 4 Å / min.

[0049]

[0055] In one or more embodiments, the processing tool includes a central transfer station including a robot configured to move the wafer; a plurality of processing stations, each processing station connected to the central transfer station to provide a processing area isolated from processing areas of adjacent processing stations, the plurality of processing stations including selective deposition chambers, plasma processing chambers, and annealing chambers; and a controller connected to the central transfer station and the plurality of processing stations, the controller configured to activate the robot to move the wafer between the processing stations and to control processing performed at each processing station.

[0050]

[0056] The use of the terms "a" and "an" and "the" and similar referents in the context of describing the materials and methods discussed herein (particularly in the context of the claims that follow) should be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise stated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The recitation of ranges of values ​​herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of individually referring to each individual value falling within the range, unless otherwise stated herein, and each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually set forth herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order, unless otherwise stated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., "etc.") provided herein is intended merely to better illuminate the materials and methods, and does not impose limitations on the scope, unless otherwise specified in the claims. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any element not claimed as essential to the practice of the disclosed materials and methods.

[0051]

[0057] References throughout this specification to "one embodiment," "a particular embodiment," "one or more embodiments," or "an embodiment" mean that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure. Thus, the appearances of phrases such as "in one or more embodiments," "a particular embodiment," "in an embodiment," or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment of the disclosure. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0052]

[0058] Although the disclosure herein has been described with reference to specific embodiments, it should be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the disclosed method and apparatus without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the disclosure is intended to cover modifications and variations that come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. selectively depositing a silicon-containing dielectric layer in a recessed region of a film stack, the film stack including alternating layers of a first material and a second material, the film stack having a memory hole extending through the film stack; exposing the silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high density plasma at a temperature of less than or equal to 500° C. and a pressure of less than 1 Torr; annealing the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature greater than 800° C. to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4 Å / min. A method of processing comprising the steps of:

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second material layer comprises an oxide layer.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the recessed region is formed by recessing the first layer of material to the second layer of material through the memory hole.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first material layer comprises one or more of polysilicon, silicon nitride, silicon carbide, silicon carbonitride, germanium, and titanium nitride.

5. 10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises one or more of silicon nitride (SiN), silicon carbonitride (SiCN), silicon oxynitride, silicon oxycarbonitride, silicon boride (SiB), and silicon boron nitride (SiBN).

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises silicon nitride.

7. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein selectively depositing the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises depositing at a temperature less than 500°C.

8. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the silicon-containing dielectric film has a wet etch rate of less than 1 Å / min.

9. The high-density plasma may be composed of helium (He), hydrogen (H ２ 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the gas is selected from one or more of the following: neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), and xenon (Xe).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the silicon-containing dielectric film has a thickness in the range of greater than 0 Å to 25 Å.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method is performed in a processing chamber without breaking vacuum.

12. When executed by a controller of a process chamber, the process chamber is selectively depositing a silicon-containing dielectric layer in a recessed region of a film stack, the film stack including alternating layers of a first material and a second material, the film stack having a memory hole extending through the film stack; exposing the silicon-containing dielectric layer to a high density plasma at a temperature of 500° C. or less and a pressure of less than 1 Torr; and Annealing the silicon-containing dielectric layer at a temperature greater than 800° C. to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch rate of less than 4 Å / min. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions for performing the operations of:

13. 13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the first material layer comprises an oxide layer.

14. 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the recessed region is formed by recessing the second layer of material relative to the first layer of material through the memory hole.

15. 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the second material layer comprises one or more of polysilicon, silicon nitride, silicon carbide, silicon carbonitride, germanium, and titanium nitride.

16. 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises one or more of silicon nitride (SiN), silicon carbonitride (SiCN), silicon oxynitride, silicon oxycarbonitride, silicon boride (SiB), and silicon boron nitride (SiBN).

17. 20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises silicon nitride.

18. 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein selectively depositing the silicon-containing dielectric layer comprises depositing at a temperature less than 500°C.

19. 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the silicon-containing dielectric film has a wet etch rate of greater than 50 Å / min.

20. The high-density plasma may be composed of helium (He), hydrogen (H ２ 13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the oxygen is selected from one or more of the following: neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), and xenon (Xe).

Images