Automated showerhead tilt adjustment

Abstract

SOLUTION: In some examples, an automated tilting system is provided for adjusting an orientation of a component in a substrate processing chamber. The automated tilting system comprises at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with the component and be connected to a portion of the component by a coupling. The coupling is configured such that automated rotational motion by the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts corresponding axial movement, relative to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, to the connected portion of the component to adjust the orientation of the component in the processing chamber.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] [Claim of Priority] This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 042,980, filed on Jun. 23, 2020, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to systems, apparatuses, and methods for automatically tilting showerhead components in a substrate processing system.

Background Art

[0003] Conventional showerhead and cold plate assemblies in a substrate processing system generally include a series of threaded rods or screws that can be manually adjusted to tilt the showerhead cold plate in a desired direction. A particular direction may be desired, for example, after scheduled maintenance or when replacing the showerhead. The directional operation generally includes some form of measurement for manual gap checking of the substrate support assembly each time an initial adjustment of the direction is made, and then for verifying the "fine adjustment" of the tilting operation until it matches the desired direction. This manual adjustment usually requires a properly qualified expert to be on-site and generally takes several hours for cooling and heating of the showerhead components. The machine operator cannot quickly change the tilting direction, and an incomplete or abrupt tilt results in the generation of unwanted wafer debris. Further, the cold plate components are often in a brazed form, and the extra complexity and inspection of these components can increase the manufacturing time and cost.

[0004] The background description provided herein is for the purpose of generally presenting the content of the present disclosure. Note that the information described in this section is presented to provide some content of the subject matter of the following present disclosure to those skilled in the art and should not be considered as approved prior art. More specifically, within the scope described in this background art section, aspects of the description that cannot be separately regarded as prior art at the time of the research and application by the inventors named at present, whether explicitly or implicitly, are not recognized as prior art against the present disclosure.

Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present disclosure generally relates to systems, apparatuses, and methods for automatically adjusting the tilt of showerhead components in a substrate processing system.

[0006] In some examples, an automatic tilting system for adjusting the orientation of components of a substrate processing chamber is provided. An exemplary automatic tilting system includes at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with the component, and the at least one tilt adjustment motor is directly or indirectly coupled to the connection portion of the component by a coupling, and the coupling is configured such that the automatic rotational movement by the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the connection portion of the component with respect to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of the component of the processing chamber.

[0007] In some examples, the component is a showerhead component or a cooling plate component. In some examples, the coupling includes an interface between an axial plunger coupler and a screw. In some examples, the interface between the axial plunger coupler and the screw relieves an axial load from an associated tilt adjustment motor. In some examples, the interface between the axial plunger coupler and the screw includes a ball end screw housed in a spherical cup. In some examples, the automatic tilting system further includes a bellows disposed between the component and the processing chamber. In some examples, the bellows provides at least a partial vacuum seal between the component and the processing chamber. In some examples, the automatic tilting system further includes one or more load compensation devices. In some examples, the component is a friction stir welding component or includes a friction stir welding component.

[0008] In some examples, a substrate processing system includes an automatic tilting system for adjusting the orientation of a component of a substrate processing chamber, the automatic tilting system including at least one tilt adjustment motor disposed to cooperate with the component, the at least one tilt adjustment motor being directly or indirectly coupled to a connection portion of the component by a coupling, the coupling configured such that an automatic rotational movement by the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the connection portion of the component relative to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of the component of the processing chamber. In some examples, the automatic tilt adjustment system of the substrate processing system includes any one or more of the elements summarized above.

[0009] In some examples, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium is provided. An exemplary computer-readable storage medium, when executed by a controller, causes the controller to communicate with at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with components of a substrate processing chamber, where the at least one tilt adjustment motor is directly or indirectly coupled by a coupling to a connection portion of the component, and the coupling is configured such that an autorotational movement by the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the connection portion of the component with respect to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a data structure; and further selectively engages the at least one tilt adjustment motor to adjust the orientation of the component.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010] Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example in the figures of the accompanying drawings, which are not limiting.

[0011]

Figure 1

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Figure 2

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Figure 3

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Figure 4

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Figure 5

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0016] The following description includes systems, arrangements, methods, techniques, and computing machine program products that embody exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the exemplary embodiments. It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, however, that the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details.

[0017] Part of the disclosure of this patent document may contain material subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner reserves all copyrights except that, as long as the patent document or patent disclosure appears in the patent package or records of the Patent and Trademark Office, the copyright owner does not object to the patent document or patent disclosure being reproduced by anyone. The following notice applies to all data that is subsequently described or illustrated and that forms part of this document: Copyright Lam Research Corporation, 2020, All Rights Reserved.

[0018] Referring now to FIG. 1, an exemplary arrangement 100 of a plasma-based processing chamber is shown. While the present subject matter can be used in various semiconductor manufacturing and wafer processing operations, in the illustrated example, the plasma-based processing chamber is described in the context of plasma-excited or radical-excited chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or atomic layer deposition (ALD) operations. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other types of ALD processing techniques are known (e.g., thermal-based ALD operations), and that non-plasma-based processing chambers can also be incorporated. An ALD tool is a special type of CVD processing system in which an ALD reaction occurs between two or more chemical species. The two or more chemical species are referred to as precursor gases and are used to form a thin film deposition of material on a substrate, such as a silicon wafer, as used in the semiconductor industry. The precursor gases are sequentially introduced into the ALD processing chamber and react with the substrate surface to form a deposition layer. Typically, the substrate interacts repeatedly with the precursor to deposit one or more incrementally thicker layers of material film on the substrate. In certain applications, multiple precursor gases may be used in the substrate manufacturing process to form one or more films of various types. The gases may be highly chemical or extremely corrosive.

[0019] FIG. 1 is shown to include a plasma-based processing chamber 102 in which a showerhead 104 and a substrate support assembly 108 or pedestal are disposed. The showerhead 104 may include components such as, for example, a showerhead electrode or a chandelier-type showerhead. The showerhead 104 may include components such as a cooling plate 120, which will be further described below. Other showerhead components are possible. Some examples include systems, devices, and methods for automatic tilt adjustment of showerhead components in a substrate processing system, and more specifically, for automatic fine adjustment of these components.

[0020] Typically, the substrate support assembly 108 is designed to provide a surface at a substantially constant temperature and can serve both as a heating element for the substrate and a heat sink. As described above, the substrate support assembly 108 includes an electrostatic chuck (ESC) that includes a heating element to assist in the processing of the substrate 106. The substrate 106 may include, for example, a wafer containing an elemental semiconductor material (e.g., silicon (Si) or germanium (Ge)) or a compound semiconductor material (e.g., silicon germanium (SiGe) or gallium arsenide (GaAs)). Further, for example, as other substances, it may include a dielectric material such as quartz, sapphire, semi-crystalline polymer, or other non-metallic and non-semiconductor materials.

[0021] During operation, the substrate 106 is placed on the substrate support assembly 108 through the load port 110. The gas line 114 can supply one or more process gases (e.g., precursor gases) to the showerhead 104. Next, the showerhead 104 feeds one or more process gases into the processing chamber 102. A gas source 112 (e.g., one or more gas ampules) for supplying one or more process gases is connected to the gas line 114. In some examples, an RF (radio frequency) power supply 116 is connected to the showerhead 104. In other examples, a power supply is connected to the substrate support assembly 108 or the ESC.

[0022] Before the showerhead 104 and the gas line 114 flow into the downstream, the inflow of one or more process gases into the processing chamber 102 is controlled by a combination of a point of use (POU) and a manifold (not shown). In the case of the processing chamber 102 used for depositing a thin film in a plasma-excited ALD operation, the precursor gases may be mixed within the showerhead 104.

[0023] During operation, the processing chamber 102 is evacuated by a vacuum pump 118. RF power is capacitively coupled between the showerhead 104 and a lower power supply (not explicitly shown) housed within or on the substrate support assembly 108. In some examples, the RF power may be inductively or transformer coupled. Typically, two or more RF frequencies are supplied to the substrate support assembly 108. For example, in various embodiments, the RF frequencies can be optionally selected from at least one of about 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 13.56 MHz, 27 MHz, 60 MHz, and other frequencies. Coils designed to block or partially block specific RF frequencies may be designed as needed. Thus, the specific frequencies considered herein are provided merely to simplify understanding. The RF power is used to energize one or more process gases and generate a plasma in the space between the substrate 106 and the showerhead 104. The plasma can facilitate the deposition of various layers (not shown) on the substrate 106. In other applications, the plasma can be used to etch device features into various layers on the substrate 106. The RF power is coupled through at least the substrate support assembly 108. The substrate support assembly 108 may have a heater incorporated therein (not shown in FIG. 1). The detailed design of the processing chamber 102 can vary.

[0024] In some examples, friction stir welding (FSW) is used to manufacture or join pedestal or showerhead components such as faceplates, cooling plates, and pedestal stems. The manufacture or joining of other components is also possible. The manufacturing methods and articles described herein may exhibit improved thermal and mechanical properties compared to articles made using conventional techniques such as vacuum brazing and electron beam welding. Friction stir welded components may also be easier to manufacture in terms of time, cost, and particularly reduced complexity in delicate substrate components for substrate processing tools.

[0025] FSW addresses some of the limitations of conventional techniques. Such limitations include welding cracks and voids, which reduce heat conduction within the pedestal or showerhead component, and thereby may reduce the efficiency of the processing chamber in which such pedestal or showerhead is installed.

[0026] Referring to FIG. 2, a friction stir welding arrangement 200 is provided. A first component 202 of the showerhead 104 or the cooling plate 120 may be joined to a second component 204 in the manner shown. The first component 202 shown may include, for example, an edge of the cooling plate 120 disposed within the processing chamber 102 (see FIG. 3 below). The second component 204 shown may include an edge of another component of the showerhead 104, such as a platen disposed in the same zone as the first component 202. As shown, a downward force is applied to the first component 202 and the second component 204 and they are joined together by a rotating FSW tool 206. The FSW tool 206 advances in a joining direction 208 between the edges of the first component 202 and the second component 204. The FSW tool 206 includes a shoulder 210 and a pin 212 and forms an FSW region 214 as the FSW tool 206 advances through the joining of the materials of the first component 202 and the second component 204. The FSW region 214 thus formed includes a nugget 216 that joins the first component 202 and the second component 204 together. The nugget 216 has a forward side 218 and a rearward side 220 corresponding to the rotational direction 222 of the FSW tool 206.

[0027] FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating an automatic tilting system 300 for adjusting the orientation of showerhead components, such as showerhead 104 and cooling plate 120, within processing chamber 102, for example. The orientation can include a planar orientation. In the illustrated example, cooling plate 120 is coupled to showerhead 104, although other arrangements are possible. In some examples, cooling plate 120 is a friction stir welded cooling plate 120 or includes friction stir welded components. Cooling plate 120 may include components joined together or may be manufactured at least in part by FSW tool 206 as described above with reference to FIG. 2. Cooling plate 120 may include one or more channels 306 or tubes for passing coolant or gas.

[0028] As described more fully below, automatic tilting system 300 operates to automatically adjust the planar orientation (or tilt) of cooling plate 120 and thus showerhead 104 coupled thereto relative to processing chamber 102 and substrate 106 supported within the processing chamber in an automated manner. To this end, automatic tilting system 300 includes the placement of tilt adjustment motors 302. In the illustrated example, three tilt adjustment motors 302 are placed. Only one motor 302 is fully visible in FIG. 3, a second motor 302 is shown in cross-section, and a third motor is not visible due to cross-hatching. Other numbers and / or configurations of tilt adjustment motors 302 are possible. Automatic tilting system 300 including three adjustment motors 302 is thought to provide an acceptable level of tilt fine tuning performance.

[0029] Each tilt adjustment motor 302 includes a mounting plate 303 coupled to a motor base 308. Each motor base 308 is fixed to the cooling plate 120 by one or more fasteners 310. Each tilt adjustment motor 302 includes a motor shaft 314. Each motor shaft 314 is coupled and fixed within a coupling 318. The coupling may include several components described in more detail below. In some examples, the motor shaft 314 is splined and fixed to a complementary recess within the upper portion 320 of the coupling 318. The spline transmits torque applied by the tilt adjustment motor 302 to the upper portion 320 of the coupling 318. The torque is transmitted to the lower portion 322 of the coupling 318 by an internal key or connector 324.

[0030] The lower portion 322 of the coupling 318 interacts with a screw 326 to provide an interface between a so-called axial plunger coupler and the screw. In the illustrated example, the upper end 328 of the screw 326 has a box-shaped cross-section such that the upper end 328 can receive torque from the lower portion 322 of the coupling 318. Further embodiments may include hexagonal or other cross-sections, internal or external coupling arrangements, splines, and tripod joints. The lower portion 322 of the coupling 318 includes a complementary box-shaped cross-section recess 330. The box-shaped cross-section recess 330 is deeper than the length of the upper end 328 of the screw 326, thereby providing a free "plunging space". For this reason, the screw 326 can receive torque from the tilt adjustment motor 302 but axially moves (i.e., plunges) within the box-shaped cross-section recess 330 of the lower portion 322 of the coupling 318. Due to the axial direction, the tilt adjustment motor 302 is separated from the cooling plate 120 and the shower head 104. Therefore, the tilt adjustment motor 302 has no axial load.

[0031] The actuating lower end of the screw 326 includes a ball 332. The ball 332 cooperates with a socket clamp 334. The ball and socket arrangement gives the automatic tilting system 300 freedom to assume orientations that are not necessarily horizontal, or are “tilted” or misaligned with respect to the processing chamber 102 or other datums, such that the cooling plate 120 and showerhead 104 assemblies can be oriented in non-horizontal planes. Other coupling arrangements are possible for this purpose, including spherical or other types of bearing types or assemblies such as needle tips or jewel bearings. Datums can include, for example, an external base or support component. Other datums are possible.

[0032] The socket clamp 334 is fixed to the processing chamber 102 and the screw 326 is threaded into the threaded portion 338 of the showerhead 104. As a result, a selective rotational movement of the screw 326 by the tilt adjustment motor 302 moves the screw 326 axially or vertically up and down with respect to the tilt adjustment motor 302 and the showerhead 104, pulling the connecting portion of the processing chamber 102 closer to or farther from the showerhead 104. The term “vertical” here is not necessarily intended to be limited to exact “geometrically vertical” values (although those values are within the range), and is intended to include examples that are generally vertical or upright.

[0033] The surface orientations of the showerhead 104 and the cooling plate 120 can be adjusted by the controlled operation of the tilt adjustment motors 302 acting together. The precise degree of control imparted by the rotary encoder 304 enables the automatic tilting system 300 to adjust the orientation of the showerhead 104 and the cooling plate 120 in a “fine-tuned” manner. In an exemplary arrangement including three tilt adjustment motors 302, the automatic tilting system 300 provides automatic three-axis tilting capabilities. Other arrangements with fewer or more automatic tilt adjustment motors 302 are possible.

[0034] The processing chamber 102 includes bellows 312. The bellows 312 defines a stretchable and compressible vacuum seal or zone between the processing chamber 102 and the showerhead 104 and can accommodate movement between the processing chamber 102 and the showerhead 104. The bellows 312 enables the showerhead 102 to move without breaking the vacuum seal. In some examples, other sealing means may be provided, such as an arrangement including one or more O-rings, for example.

[0035] In some examples, the processing chamber 102 is attached to an external base or support component by fasteners 316. In these examples, the processing chamber 102 can be said to be fixed (datum structure), in which case the adjusted showerhead 104 or cooling plate 120 moves relative to the processing chamber 102. In other examples, the reverse situation occurs. In the illustrated example, the load from the weight of the showerhead 104 and the differential pressure (i.e., external atmosphere vs. internal "vacuum" load) is supported by three ball and socket clamps (i.e., balls 332 and socket clamps 334) and is at least partially offset by one or more load compensating springs 336. Other compensation mechanisms or arrangements (e.g., gas springs) are also possible. The degree of load compensation can be selected taking into account any vacuum suction force within the bellows 312.

[0036] The rotary encoder 304 may include one or more controllers 400 or may be controlled by one or more controllers 400. In some examples, the controller 400 provides intelligent or "smart" control capabilities. Intelligent control may include, for example, tilting between substrate processing steps and more concise and user-friendly tilt adjustments. As some examples, predictive control of tilt may reduce the impact of component wear on the processing result. In some examples, it enables tracking of how much tilt has been used over time for any tool, set of tools, design, etc. In some examples, the previous showerhead tilt settings can be saved, and when the next showerhead is installed, any offset for identifying the tool can be applied to "predict" the exact tilt and increase the probability of first-time success.

[0037] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an exemplary controller 400 that may implement or control one or more systems or methods described herein. In alternative embodiments, the controller 400 may operate as a stand-alone device or may be connected (e.g., network-connected) to other machines. In a network deployment, the controller 400 may operate in the performance of a server machine, a client machine, or both in a server-client network environment. In one example, the controller 400 may operate as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (P2P) (or other distributed) network environment. Further, although only a single controller 400 is shown, the term "machine" (controller) should also be interpreted to include any set (or sets) of machines (controllers) that individually or jointly execute a set (or sets) of instructions for implementing any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, such as via cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), or other computer cluster configurations. In some examples, referring to FIG. 4, the non-transitory machine-readable medium includes instructions 424 that, when read by the controller 400, cause the controller to control its operation in a method that includes at least the non-limiting exemplary operations described herein.

[0038] The examples described in this specification may include or be operated by logic, some components, or mechanisms. A circuit set is a set of circuits implemented in a tangible entity that includes hardware (e.g., simple circuits, gates, logic, etc.). The membership of a circuit set can flexibly accommodate the passage of time and the variability of the underlying hardware. A circuit set includes members that can perform certain operations during operation, either alone or in combination. In one example, the hardware of a circuit set may be fixedly designed to perform a specific operation (e.g., hardwired). In one example, the hardware of a circuit set may include physically modifiable (e.g., by magnetic, electrical, movable placement of immutable mass particles, etc.) computer-readable media for encoding instructions for a specific operation, and variably connected physical components (e.g., execution units, transistors, simple circuits, etc.). When connecting physical components, the underlying electrical characteristics of the hardware components are changed (e.g., from insulator to conductor, or vice versa). Instructions enable an embedded hardware (e.g., an execution unit or a loading mechanism) to create members of a circuit set within the hardware via variable connections and execute part of a specific operation during operation. Thus, the computer-readable media are communicatively coupled to other components of the circuit set when the device is operating. In one example, any of the physical components may be used by multiple members of multiple circuit sets. For example, during operation, an execution unit may be used by a first circuit of a first circuit set at one point in time and reused by a second circuit within the first circuit set or by a third circuit within a second circuit set at another point in time.

[0039] A machine (e.g., a computer system) controller 400 can include a hardware processor 402 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), a GPU 432 (graphics processing unit), a main memory 404, and a static memory 406, some or all of which can communicate with each other via an interconnect 408 (e.g., a bus). The controller 400 can further include a display device 410, an alphanumeric input device 412 (e.g., a keyboard), and a UI navigation device 414 (e.g., a mouse or other interface). In one example, the display device 410, the alphanumeric input device 812, and the UI navigation device 414 can be a touch screen display. The controller 400 can further include a mass storage device 416 (e.g., a drive unit), a signal generation device 418 (e.g., a speaker), a network interface device 420, and one or more sensors 430 (such as a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, a compass, an accelerometer, or another sensor). The controller 400 can include an output controller 428, such as a serial (e.g., universal serial bus (USB)), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near field communication (NFC), etc.) connection, to communicate with or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a printer, a card reader, etc.).

[0040] The large-capacity memory device 416 may include a machine-readable medium 422. One or more sets of data structures or instructions 424 (e.g., software) that embody one or more of the techniques or functions described herein, or that are utilized by one or more of the techniques or functions described herein, are stored in the machine-readable medium 422. Also as shown, the instructions 424 may be present, in whole or at least in part, within the main memory 404, within the static memory 406, within the hardware processor 402, or within the GPU 432 during execution by the controller 400. In one example, any one of the hardware processor 402, GPU 432, main memory 404, static memory 406, or large-capacity memory device 416, or any combination thereof, may constitute the machine-readable medium 422.

[0041] Although the machine-readable medium 422 is shown as a single medium, the term "machine-readable medium" may include a single medium configured to store one or more instructions 824, or multiple media (e.g., centralized or distributed databases, and / or associated caches and servers).

[0042] The term "machine-readable medium" can include any medium that can store, encode, or carry instructions 424 for execution by controller 400 and cause controller 400 to implement any one or more of the techniques of this disclosure, or any medium that can store, encode, or carry a data structure used by such instructions 424 or a data structure related to such instructions 424. Non-limiting examples of machine-readable media can include solid state memories, optical media, and magnetic media. In one example, a bulk machine-readable medium includes a machine-readable medium 422 having a plurality of particles with invariant (e.g., stationary) mass. Thus, a bulk machine-readable medium is not a temporarily propagating signal. Specific examples of bulk machine-readable media can include non-volatile memories such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM)), and flash memory devices, magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical disks, and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. Further, instructions 424 can be transmitted or received using a transmission medium through communication network 426 via network interface device 420.

[0043] Some examples herein include methods. Referring to FIG. 5, a method 500 for adjusting the orientation of components in a substrate processing chamber is provided. Method 500, in operation 502, positions at least one tilt adjustment motor to cooperate with the component. In operation 504, each tilt adjustment motor is directly or indirectly coupled to a coupling portion of the component by a coupling. The coupling is configured such that an automatic rotational movement by at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the coupling portion of the component with respect to at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of the component in the processing chamber. Then, in operation 506, at least one tilt adjustment motor is selectively engaged to adjust the orientation of the component.

[0044] Examples have been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments or methods, but it will be apparent that various modifications and changes can be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader scope of the present embodiments. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be considered in an illustrative rather than a limiting sense. The accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, illustrate, by way of example and not limitation, specific embodiments in which the subject matter may be practiced. The illustrated embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the teachings disclosed herein. Other embodiments may be utilized and other embodiments may be derived from the teachings disclosed herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, this detailed description is not to be construed in a limiting sense, and the scope of the various embodiments is defined only by the appended claims and all ranges of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

[0045] Such embodiments of the subject matter of the present invention may be referred to herein individually and / or collectively by the term "invention", which is merely a matter of convenience and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application to any single invention or inventive concept (if more than one is actually disclosed). Accordingly, while specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be understood that any configuration calculated to achieve the same purpose may be an alternative to the specific embodiments shown. The present disclosure is intended to cover all adaptations or variations of the various embodiments. Combinations of the above embodiments with other embodiments not specifically described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the above description.

Claims

1. An automatic tilting system for adjusting the orientation of a component in a substrate processing chamber, comprising: at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with said component; said at least one tilt adjustment motor being directly or indirectly connected to a connection portion of said component by a coupling, said coupling being configured such that an automatic rotational movement by said at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to said connection portion of said component with respect to said at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of said component in said processing chamber. An automatic tilting system.

2. The automatic tilting system according to claim 1, wherein said component is a shower head component or a cooling plate component. An automatic tilting system.

3. The automatic tilting system according to claim 1, wherein said coupling includes an interface between an axial plunger coupler and a screw. An automatic tilting system.

4. The automatic tilting system according to claim 3, wherein the interface between said axial plunger coupler and said screw relieves an axial load from the associated tilt adjustment motor. An automatic tilting system.

5. The automatic tilting system according to claim 3, wherein the interface between said axial plunger coupler and said screw includes a ball end screw housed in a spherical cup. An automatic tilting system.

6. The automatic tilting system according to claim 1, further comprising a bellows disposed between said component and said processing chamber. An automatic tilting system.

7. The automatic tilting system according to claim 6, wherein said bellows provides at least a partial vacuum seal between said component and said processing chamber. An automatic tilting system.

8. The automatic tilting system according to claim 1, further comprising one or more load compensation devices. An automatic tilting system.

9. The automatic tilting system according to claim 1, wherein said component is a friction stir welding component or includes a friction stir welding component. An automatic tilting system.

10. A substrate processing system, comprising: An automatic tilting system for adjusting the orientation of components of a substrate processing chamber, said automatic tilting system comprising at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with said component, said at least one tilt adjustment motor being directly or indirectly coupled by a coupling to a connection portion of said component, said coupling being configured such that an automatic rotational movement by said at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to said connection portion of said component relative to said at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of said component of said processing chamber, a substrate processing system. **Claim 11** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said component is a showerhead component or a cooling plate component. **Claim 12** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said coupling comprises an interface of an axial plunger coupler and a screw. **Claim 13** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein the interface of the axial plunger coupler and the screw relieves an axial load from the associated tilt adjustment motor. **Claim 14** The substrate processing system according to claim 12, wherein the interface of the axial plunger coupler and the screw comprises a ball end screw received in a spherical cup. **Claim 15** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said automatic tilting system further comprises a bellows disposed between said component and said processing chamber. **Claim 16** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said bellows provides at least a partial vacuum seal between said component and said processing chamber. **Claim 17** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said automatic tilting system further comprises one or more load compensation devices. **Claim 18** The substrate processing system according to claim 10, wherein said component is a friction stir welding component or comprises a friction stir welding component.

19. A method for adjusting the orientation of components in a substrate processing chamber, comprising: placing at least one tilt adjustment motor to cooperate with the component; coupling each tilt adjustment motor directly or indirectly to a connection portion of the component by a coupling, the coupling being configured such that an automatic rotational movement of the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the connection portion of the component with respect to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure, thereby adjusting the orientation of the component in the processing chamber; selectively engaging the at least one tilt adjustment motor to adjust the orientation of the component and a method comprising the steps of:

20. A tangible computer-readable storage medium that, when executed by a computer, communicates with at least one tilt adjustment motor arranged to cooperate with a component of a substrate processing chamber, the at least one tilt adjustment motor being directly or indirectly coupled to a connection portion of the component by a coupling, the coupling being configured such that an automatic rotational movement of the at least one tilt adjustment motor imparts a corresponding axial movement to the connection portion of the component with respect to the at least one tilt adjustment motor or a datum structure; selectively engaging the at least one tilt adjustment motor to adjust the orientation of the component and causes the computer to perform operations including instructions. A computer-readable storage medium.

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