Substrate electroplating method and device and deformable diffusion plate

Abstract

Disclosed in the present invention is a substrate electroplating method, comprising: placing a substrate in an electroplating tank, wherein the substrate has a surface to be electroplated, an electroplating solution is contained in the electroplating tank, the electroplating tank is provided with a deformable diffusion plate, the deformable diffusion plate has a first surface, and the first surface faces said surface; adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate so as to adjust a distance between said surface and the first surface from a central area to an edge area; and electroplating metal on said surface of the substrate. In the present invention, by means of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate, even if the deformable diffusion plate is not disassembled and assembled again, the distance between said surface of the substrate and the first surface from the central area to the edge area can be adjusted, thereby adjusting electric field distribution of said surface of the substrate, such that said surface of the substrate has the expected metal deposition thickness distribution.

Description

Substrate electroplating method and device and deformable diffusion plate Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and in particular to a substrate electroplating method and device and a deformable diffusion plate. Background Art

[0002] In the electroplating process, there is an edge effect. That is, due to the direct contact between the edge of the substrate and the fixture, the resistance of the edge area of ​​the substrate is smaller than that of the center area of ​​the substrate. The current tends to pass through the path with lower resistance. Therefore, the electric field strength in the edge area is greater than that in the center area, resulting in a higher metal deposition rate in the edge area than in the center area, which in turn leads to a significantly higher metal deposition thickness in the edge area of ​​the substrate. The distribution of metal deposition rate within the substrate is positively correlated with the distribution of metal deposition thickness. For different chip layers or different products, it is generally expected that the metal deposition thickness within the substrate is uniform. In some specific cases, there may be a need for the metal deposition thickness at the edge area of ​​the substrate to be different from that in the center area of ​​the substrate, such as chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) to remove excess metal deposition.

[0003] In existing devices, the deposition rate within the substrate can be controlled by providing a second anode and adjusting the current output of the second anode or replacing a different diffusion plate.

[0004] For the solution of adjusting the output current of the second anode, a multi-anode design is required for the electroplating chamber, and an independent electroplating power supply is set up to control the current output of the second anode located in the outer ring. The structure is more complicated and increases the equipment cost.

[0005] The solution for replacing diffuser plates with different shapes relies on adjusting the electric field distribution by varying the spacing between different substrate regions and the diffuser plate. Therefore, depending on product requirements, not only does the diffuser plate need to be manually replaced and repositioned, but the deposition thickness also needs to be tested and monitored after replacement, significantly impacting the equipment's operational life.

[0006] Therefore, how to provide a substrate electroplating method and apparatus that can efficiently control the deposition rate within the substrate becomes a problem that needs to be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of the above-mentioned shortcomings of the prior art, the object of the present invention is to provide a substrate electroplating method and device and a deformable diffusion plate to solve the technical problem of difficulty in efficiently controlling the deposition rate within the substrate sheet in the existing substrate electroplating process.

[0008] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose and other related purposes, the present invention proposes a substrate electroplating method, comprising the following steps: placing a substrate in a plating tank, the substrate having a surface to be electroplated, the plating tank containing a plating liquid, and provided with a deformable diffuser plate, wherein the deformable diffuser has a first surface, the first surface facing the surface to be electroplated; adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated of the substrate; and electroplating metal onto the surface to be electroplated of the substrate.

[0009] Optionally, the step of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated of the substrate includes: pre-obtaining the correspondence between the preset deposition thickness of the surface to be electroplated from the center area to the edge area and the distance, and automatically adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate according to the preset deposition thickness and the correspondence to adjust the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated, so that the actual deposition thickness of the surface to be electroplated from the center area to the edge area meets the preset deposition thickness.

[0010] The present invention also proposes a substrate electroplating device, comprising: a plating tank for containing a plating liquid; a clamp for placing the substrate in the plating tank, wherein the substrate has a surface to be electroplated; a deformable diffusion plate arranged in the plating tank, wherein the deformable diffusion plate has a first surface, the first surface faces the surface to be electroplated, and the edge of the deformable diffusion plate is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the plating tank; a deformation control device for adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated of the substrate.

[0011] Optionally, the deformable diffuser plate includes a first layer and a second layer stacked on each other, wherein the thermal expansion coefficients of the first layer and the second layer are different, and the deformation control device includes a temperature variable element, which is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffuser plate to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate.

[0012] Optionally, the temperature variable element is arranged between the first layer plate and the second layer plate.

[0013] Optionally, the deformation control device further includes a temperature controller, and the temperature variable element is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate according to a temperature control signal of the temperature controller to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate.

[0014] Optionally, the deformation control device further includes a deformation detector for detecting the deformation amount of the deformable diffusion plate and feeding back the deformation amount to the temperature controller; the temperature controller is further configured to generate the temperature control signal according to the deformation amount.

[0015] Optionally, the deformation control device further includes a temperature detector for detecting the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate and feeding back the temperature to the temperature controller; the temperature controller is further configured to generate the temperature control signal according to the temperature.

[0016] Optionally, the deformation control device includes an actuator and an actuator controller; the actuator is transmission-connected to the central area of ​​the deformable diffuser plate, and is used to drive the deformable diffuser plate according to an actuation control signal of the actuator controller to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate.

[0017] Another aspect of the present invention further provides a deformable diffuser plate for use in a substrate processing device. The deformable diffuser plate includes a first layer and a second layer stacked together, wherein the first layer and the second layer have different thermal expansion coefficients.

[0018] As described above, the present invention provides a substrate electroplating method and apparatus, which have at least the following beneficial effects:

[0019] 1) By providing a deformable diffuser plate and a deformation control device, the shape of the deformable diffuser plate can be adjusted to adjust the distance between the center area and the edge area of ​​the deformable diffuser plate and the surface to be electroplated on the substrate, thereby adjusting the electric field distribution and meeting different deposition thickness distribution requirements;

[0020] 2) The distance between the center area and the edge area of ​​the deformable diffuser and the surface to be electroplated of the substrate can be adjusted without disassembling and replacing the deformable diffuser;

[0021] 3) By utilizing the difference in thermal expansion coefficients of different materials, the deformable diffuser plate can be deformed predictably by changing the internal temperature without the need for additional mechanisms, without occupying the internal space of the electroplating tank, and without interfering with other components in the electroplating tank;

[0022] 4) By utilizing the deformable characteristics of the deformable diffuser plate, the actuator is used to drive the deformable diffuser plate to undergo predictable deformation. The shape of the deformable diffuser plate can be adjusted to adjust the distance between the deformable diffuser plate from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated of the substrate, so as to adjust the electric field distribution and thereby meet different deposition thickness distribution requirements.

[0023] Summary of the Figures

[0024] The features and performance of the present application are further described by the following examples and drawings.

[0025] FIG1 is a schematic structural diagram of a substrate electroplating device according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] FIG2 is a schematic structural diagram of a deformable diffuser plate in a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] FIG3 is a schematic top view of the structure of the deformable diffuser plate in the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] FIG4 is a schematic diagram showing the distribution of electric field lines when the deformable diffuser plate is in the first form according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] FIG5 is a schematic diagram showing the electric field line distribution when the deformable diffuser plate is in the second shape according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] FIG6 is a schematic diagram showing the distribution of electric field lines when the deformable diffuser plate is in the third state according to the first embodiment of the present invention; and

[0031] FIG7 is a schematic structural diagram of a substrate electroplating device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] Preferred embodiment of this application

[0033] The following describes the embodiments of the present invention through specific examples. Those skilled in the art will readily understand the other advantages and benefits of the present invention from the disclosure herein. The present invention may also be implemented or applied through various other specific embodiments, and the details in this specification may be modified or adjusted based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0034] It should be noted that the drawings disclosed herein only illustrate the basic concept of the present invention in a schematic manner. Although the drawings only show components related to the present invention and are not drawn according to the number, shape and size of components in actual implementation, the form, quantity and proportion of each component in actual implementation can be adjusted at will, and the component layout form may also be more complicated.

[0035] In the following description, when referring to the accompanying drawings, unless otherwise indicated, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements. The embodiments described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all embodiments consistent with the present invention. Instead, they are merely examples of devices consistent with some aspects of the present invention as detailed in the appended claims.

[0036] The terms used in this disclosure are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments only and are not intended to limit the disclosure. As used in this disclosure and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," "the," and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and / or" as used herein refers to and encompasses any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0037] In the description of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified and limited, it should be noted that the terms "install", "connect" and "connect" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection, or it can be the internal connection between two components. It can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0038] It should be understood that although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used in the present disclosure to describe various information, such information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish information of the same type from each other.

[0039] In the description of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the terms "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside" and "outside" that may be used to indicate orientations or positional relationships are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0040] Example 1

[0041] The first embodiment of the present invention provides a substrate electroplating device. Refer to FIG1 , which shows a schematic structural diagram of the substrate electroplating device in the first embodiment of the present invention. The substrate electroplating device includes: an electroplating tank 1 for containing an electroplating solution 11; a fixture 2 for arranging a substrate 3 in the electroplating tank 1, wherein the substrate 3 has a surface to be electroplated 30; a deformable diffuser 4 disposed in the electroplating tank 1, wherein the deformable diffuser 4 has a first surface 40, the first surface 40 facing the surface to be electroplated 30, and the edge area of ​​the deformable diffuser 4 is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the electroplating tank 1; and a deformation control device 5 for adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser 4 to adjust the distance between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated 30.

[0042] As shown in Figure 1, in this embodiment, the electroplating tank 1 is an upwardly opening tank. The interior of the electroplating tank 1 is configured as a space for performing electroplating on the substrate 3. The space contains an electroplating solution 11 and is also provided with an electroplating anode 6 and an ion membrane 7. The electroplating anode 6 is disposed at the bottom of the electroplating tank 1, and the ion membrane 7 is disposed above the electroplating anode 6. The deformable diffuser plate 4 is located below the substrate 3 and is positioned near the surface 30 to be electroplated of the substrate 3. In this embodiment, the substrate 3 and the deformable diffuser plate 4 are located above the ion membrane 7. In addition, the plate surface of the substrate 3 faces downward, so that the surface 30 to be electroplated of the substrate 3 is the lower surface of the substrate 3. The edge of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is mounted on the inner wall of the electroplating tank 1. The clamp 2 is located above the electroplating tank 1 and is used to clamp the substrate 3 and position the substrate 3 in the electroplating tank 1 during electroplating, so that the substrate 3 is immersed in the electroplating solution 11 in the electroplating tank 1. When performing electroplating, the substrate 3 is configured as an electroplating cathode and immersed in the electroplating solution 11 in the electroplating tank 1. The metal cations in the electroplating solution 11 pass through the ion membrane 7 and the deformable diffusion plate 4 in turn and are reduced to metal on the surface to be electroplated 30 of the substrate 3 and deposited on the surface to be electroplated 30.

[0043] During the electroplating process, the electric field strength in different areas of the substrate 3 affects the metal deposition rate, and thus the metal deposition thickness. Since the edge of the substrate 3 is in direct contact with the fixture 2, the resistance of the edge area of ​​the substrate 3 is smaller than that of the center area of ​​the substrate 3. The current tends to pass through the path with lower resistance. Therefore, the electric field strength in the edge area is greater than that in the center area, resulting in a deposition rate at the edge greater than the deposition rate at the center. This, in turn, causes the deposition thickness at the edge area of ​​the substrate 3 to be significantly higher, i.e., an edge effect. Therefore, in order to better control the metal deposition thickness in different areas of the substrate 3, it is necessary to control the electric field strength in different areas of the substrate 3.

[0044] In this embodiment, a deformable diffuser plate 4 is disposed within the electroplating tank 1. When the substrate 3 is electroplated, the surface 30 to be plated of the substrate 3 is the lower surface of the substrate 3. The deformable diffuser plate 4 is located below the substrate 3 and has a first surface 40 facing the surface 30 to be plated. The main body of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is made of an insulating material and is provided with a plurality of through-holes, allowing the electroplating solution 13 to pass through the through-holes, thereby achieving a uniform flow field and, in turn, a uniform electric field. By adjusting the spacing between the first surface 40 of the deformable diffuser plate 4 and the surface 30 to be plated from the center region to the edge region, the uniformity of the electric field distribution can be further improved.

[0045] Once a conventional diffuser plate is fixedly installed in the electroplating tank 1, it is difficult to adjust the distance between the diffuser plate and the substrate. It is especially difficult to adjust the distance between different areas of the diffuser plate and the substrate with different distance changes (i.e., changing the shape of the diffuser plate itself) for different areas of the diffuser plate (from the center area to the edge area). However, in this embodiment, a deformable diffuser plate 4 and a deformation control device 5 are included. The deformable diffuser plate 4 is made of a deformable material and has a deformable property. Therefore, even if the deformable diffuser plate 4 has been installed in the electroplating tank 1, the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 can be adjusted by the deformation control device 5, thereby adjusting the distance between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated 30, thereby achieving the adjustment of the electric field distribution between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated 30.

[0046] Refer to Figure 2, which shows a schematic structural diagram of the diffuser plate in Embodiment 1 of the present invention. Exemplarily, the deformable diffuser plate 4 includes a first layer 41 and a second layer 42 stacked on top of each other, with the first layer 41 positioned above the second layer 42. The upper surface of the first layer 41 is the first surface 40, wherein the first layer 41 and the second layer 42 have different thermal expansion coefficients. In conjunction with Figure 1, the deformation control device 5 includes a temperature-variable element 511, which is disposed between the first layer 41 and the second layer 42 and is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4.

[0047] Preferably, in this embodiment, the deformation control device 5 further includes a temperature controller 512, and the temperature variable element 511 is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate 4 according to a temperature control signal from the temperature controller 512, so as to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate 4. For example, the temperature controller 512 can be a separately provided single-chip microcomputer, PLC, computer, or other device with control functions, or it can be an existing control device of the substrate electroplating device itself.

[0048] Because the first and second layers 41, 42 have different coefficients of thermal expansion, when the temperature-variable element 511 changes temperature, the first and second layers 41, 42 deform to different degrees, causing the deformable diffuser 4 to warp along the normal direction of the substrate 3. Based on the difference in thermal expansion coefficients between the first and second layers 41, 42, the output power of the temperature-variable element 511 can be adjusted to change the temperature of the deformable diffuser 4, causing the deformable diffuser 4 to deform as desired. This adjusts the spacing between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 from the center to the edge, thereby achieving a desired electric field distribution.

[0049] Combined with Figure 3, Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the top structure of the deformable diffuser plate in Example 1 of the present invention. The temperature-variable element 511 includes a plurality of heating wires 5111, which are distributed between the first plate 41 and the second plate 42 along the diameter of the deformable diffuser plate 4. Preferably, in this embodiment, the deformation control device 5 also includes a plurality of temperature detectors 513, as shown in Figure 3. For example, in this embodiment, four temperature detectors 513 are included, which are evenly distributed on the deformable diffuser plate 4. Preferably, the temperature detector 513 is arranged between the first plate 41 and the second plate 42, and is used to transmit the detected temperature of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to the temperature controller 512 to achieve closed-loop control of the temperature-variable element 511. A plurality of through holes (not shown) are provided on the deformable diffuser plate 4, and therefore, the heating wires 5111 and the temperature detectors 513 should be arranged to avoid the through holes.

[0050] It should be understood that the number and arrangement of the heating wires 5111 and temperature detectors 513 shown in FIG3 are merely exemplary. In other possible embodiments, the heating wires 5111 may be arranged, for example, in a spiral, and the number of temperature detectors 513 may be less than or greater than four. If the temperature-dependent deformation of the first and second plates 41, 42 meets the expected deformation, the heating wires 5111 may optionally be distributed only in specific areas of the deformable diffuser plate 4, such as the edge areas. Those skilled in the art can appropriately arrange the heating wires 5111 and temperature detectors 513 based on the teachings of this disclosure.

[0051] It should be understood that in other possible embodiments, the deformation control device 5 further includes a deformation detector, such as an image sensor or a displacement sensor, for detecting the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4 and feeding the detected deformation back to the temperature controller 512; the temperature controller 512 is further configured to generate a temperature control signal based on the detected deformation. For example, if the deformation detector detects that the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is small and does not meet expectations, the detection result is fed back to the temperature controller 512, which generates a temperature control signal to increase the heating power of the heating wire 5111 to increase the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4.

[0052] 4 to 6 , schematic diagrams showing the distribution of electric field lines 8 between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 when the deformable diffuser 4 is in the first, second, and third shapes in the first embodiment of the present invention are shown.

[0053] Referring to Figure 4 , in the first configuration, the deformable diffuser plate 4 is flat and warp-free, with the first surface 40 maintaining the same spacing from the center to the edge of the surface to be plated 30. Due to the edge effect, the electric field at the edge is more concentrated than that at the center, resulting in electric field lines 8 near the edge of the substrate 3 exhibiting a curved shape that bends toward the edge of the substrate 3.

[0054] Refer to FIG5 , in which the dotted line X indicates the position of the first surface 40 in the first form. When the thermal expansion coefficient of the first layer 41 is smaller than that of the second layer 42 (please refer to the first layer 41 and the second layer 42 in FIG2 ), after the deformable diffuser 4 is heated, the deformation of the second layer 42 located below the deformable diffuser 4 is greater than that of the first layer 41 located above the deformable diffuser 4, causing the deformable diffuser 4 to warp as shown in FIG5 , and the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually decreases from the center area to the edge area. Compared with the first form, although the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 increases overall in the second form, the increase gradually decreases from the center area to the edge area, which effectively suppresses the edge effect, making the distribution of the electric field lines 8 between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 more uniform, and not concentrated in the edge area as shown in FIG4 .

[0055] Refer to FIG6 , in which the dotted line X indicates the position of the first surface 40 in the first form. When the thermal expansion coefficient of the first layer 41 is greater than that of the second layer 42 (please refer to the first layer 41 and the second layer 42 in FIG2 ), after the deformable diffuser 4 is heated, the deformation of the first layer 41 located above the deformable diffuser 4 is greater than the deformation of the second layer 42 located below the deformable diffuser 4, causing the deformable diffuser 4 to warp as shown in FIG6 , and the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually increases from the center area to the edge area. Compared with the first form, although the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 is reduced as a whole in the third form, the reduction from the center area to the edge area gradually decreases, which exacerbates the edge effect. Compared with FIG4 and FIG5 , the distribution of the electric field lines 8 between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 is more concentrated toward the edge area.

[0056] Therefore, the materials of the first and second layers 41, 42 can be appropriately selected based on actual electroplating requirements. Furthermore, the output power of the temperature-variable element 511 can be controlled based on the thermal expansion coefficients of the first and second layers 41, 42 to change the shape of the deformable diffuser 4, thereby causing the desired deformation of the deformable diffuser 4. This adjusts the spacing between the first surface 40 and the surface to be electroplated 30 from the center to the edge, thereby achieving the desired electric field distribution. For example, materials for the first and second layers 41, 42 include, but are not limited to, PET, PVDF, PFA, PTFE, PVC, PP, PEEK, HDPE, PPS, and the like.

[0057] Furthermore, in other possible embodiments, the temperature-variable element 511 may also be a cooling element, or may integrate both a cooling element and a heating element, thereby flexibly changing the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4. It should be understood that the deformation trend of the deformable diffuser plate 4 when the temperature-variable element 511 is a cooling element is opposite to the deformation trend of the deformable diffuser plate 4 when the temperature-variable element 511 is a heating element.

[0058] Optionally, the correspondence between the preset deposition thickness and the spacing from the center area to the edge area of ​​the surface 30 to be plated (i.e., the spacing between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface 30 to be plated corresponding to different areas) can be obtained in advance, and the correspondence is stored in the control device 512 of the deformation control device 5. The control device 512 can automatically adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser 4 according to the preset deposition thickness and the correspondence to adjust the spacing between the first surface 40 of the deformable diffuser 4 from the center area to the edge area and the surface 30 to be plated of the substrate 3, so that the actual deposition thickness of the surface 30 to be plated from the center area to the edge area meets the preset deposition thickness. In this way, the deformation control device 5 can automatically adjust the spacing without the operator manually inputting adjustment parameters into the deformation control device 5.

[0059] This first embodiment utilizes the differences in thermal expansion coefficients of different materials to achieve predictable deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4 by varying the temperature (heating or cooling) to adjust the spacing between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 from the center to the edge, thereby achieving a desired electric field distribution. This method eliminates the need for additional mechanisms, does not occupy the internal space of the electroplating tank 1, and does not interfere with other components within the electroplating tank 1. Adjustment of the spacing between the first surface 40 of the deformable diffuser plate 4 and the surface to be plated 30 of the substrate 3 from the center to the edge can be achieved without requiring disassembly or replacement, ensuring that the actual deposition thickness of the surface to be plated 30 from the center to the edge meets the preset deposition thickness.

[0060] Example 2

[0061] This second embodiment provides a deformable diffuser plate for use in a substrate processing apparatus. As shown in Figure 1 , the deformable diffuser plate 4 is illustratively used in a substrate electroplating apparatus. As shown in Figure 2 , the deformable diffuser plate 4 includes a first layer 41 and a second layer 42 stacked together, wherein the first layer 41 and the second layer 42 have different coefficients of thermal expansion. A detailed description of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is provided in the first embodiment and is omitted here.

[0062] Example 3

[0063] The third embodiment provides a substrate electroplating device. Referring to Figure 7 , it shows a schematic structural diagram of the substrate electroplating device in the third embodiment of the present invention. The main difference between the third embodiment and the first embodiment is that the deformation control device 5 is implemented in a different manner.

[0064] As shown in Figure 7, in this third embodiment, the deformation control device 5 includes an actuator 521 and an actuator controller 522; the end of the edge area of ​​the deformable diffusion plate 4 is fixedly connected to the inner wall of the electroplating tank 1, and the actuator 521 is connected to the central area of ​​the deformable diffusion plate 4, and is used to drive the deformable diffusion plate 4 according to the actuator control signal of the actuator controller to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate 4.

[0065] It should be understood that the actuator 521 is a component that can push or pull the deformable diffuser plate 4. For example, in this embodiment, the actuator 521 includes an actuating conductive member 5211. One end of the actuating conductive member 5211 is connected to the central area of ​​the deformable diffuser plate 4, and this end moves along the normal direction of the substrate 3 according to the actuation control signal sent by the actuation controller 522, thereby causing the deformable diffuser plate 4 to deform due to the pulling or pushing force of the actuating conductive member 5211. As shown in Figure 7, for example, the normal direction of the substrate 3 is the vertical direction, and the actuating conductive member 5211 moves downward in the vertical direction, pulling the deformable diffuser plate 4 to adjust the deformable diffuser plate 4 to the second shape. This can make the thickness of the metal deposition on the substrate 3 evenly distributed from the central area to the edge area, thereby suppressing the edge effect.

[0066] It should be understood that the movement of the actuator 521 can also be controlled based on actual electroplating requirements to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to the first or third configuration. For example, the actuator 521 can maintain the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 in the first configuration when it remains in the initial position; or the actuator 521 can push the deformable diffuser plate 4 upward to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to the third configuration.

[0067] It should be understood that in other possible embodiments, the deformation control device 5 further includes a deformation detector, such as an image sensor or a displacement sensor, for detecting the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4 and feeding the detected deformation back to the actuation controller 522; the actuation controller 522 is further configured to generate an actuation control signal based on the detected deformation. For example, if the deformation detector detects that the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is small and does not meet expectations, the detection result is fed back to the actuation controller 522, which generates an actuation control signal to increase the pulling force or pushing force of the actuation conductive member 5211 to increase the deformation of the deformable diffuser plate 4.

[0068] The third embodiment of the present invention utilizes the deformable characteristics of the deformable diffuser plate 4 and drives the deformable diffuser plate 4 to undergo predictable deformation through the actuator 521. There is no need to disassemble and replace the deformable diffuser plate 4. The shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 can be adjusted to adjust the distance between the deformable diffuser plate 4 and the substrate 3 to adjust the electric field distribution, thereby meeting different deposition thickness distribution requirements.

[0069] Example 4

[0070] The fourth embodiment provides a substrate electroplating method, comprising the following steps:

[0071] S1, placing a substrate 3 in an electroplating tank 1, wherein the substrate 3 has a surface 30 to be electroplated. The electroplating tank 1 contains an electroplating solution 11 and is provided with a deformable diffuser plate 4, wherein the deformable diffuser plate 11 has a first surface 40, and the first surface 40 faces the surface 30 to be electroplated.

[0072] S2, adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to adjust the distance between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated 30 of the substrate 3;

[0073] S3 , electroplating metal onto the surface 30 to be electroplated of the substrate 3 .

[0074] Specifically, if the process does not require suppressing edge effects, step S2 includes adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to a first configuration such that the spacing between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 remains constant from the center region to the edge region. Referring to FIG. 4 , the deformable diffuser plate 4 is flat, non-warped, and the spacing between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 remains constant from the center region to the edge region. Due to the edge effect, the electric field in the edge region is more concentrated than that in the center region, and the electric field lines 8 near the edge region of the substrate 3 exhibit a curved shape that bends toward the edge of the substrate 3.

[0075] Under the process requirement of suppressing the edge effect, step S2 includes: adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to the second form so that the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually decreases from the center area to the edge area. Referring to Figure 5, the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is adjusted so that the deformable diffuser plate 4 is warped as shown in Figure 5. The distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually decreases from the center area to the edge area. Compared with the first form, although the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 increases as a whole in the second form, the increase from the center area to the edge area gradually decreases, which effectively suppresses the edge effect, so that the distribution of the electric field lines 8 between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 is more uniform, and is not concentrated in the edge area as shown in Figure 4.

[0076] Under the process requirements of intensifying the edge effect, step S2 includes: adjusting the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 to a third form so that the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually increases from the center area to the edge area. Referring to Figure 6, the shape of the deformable diffuser plate 4 is adjusted to the third form so that the deformable diffuser plate 4 is warped as shown in Figure 6, and the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 gradually increases from the center area to the edge area. Compared with the first form, although the distance between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 is reduced as a whole in the third form, the reduction amount from the center area to the edge area gradually decreases, which intensifies the edge effect. Compared with Figures 4 and 5, the distribution of the electric field lines 8 between the first surface 40 and the surface to be plated 30 is more concentrated toward the edge area.

[0077] Optionally, step S2 also includes: pre-acquiring the correspondence between the preset deposition thickness and the spacing of the surface to be plated 30 from the center area to the edge area (i.e., the spacing between the first surface 40 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be plated 30 corresponding to different areas), and storing the correspondence in the control device 512 of the deformation control device 5. The control device 512 can automatically adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser 4 according to the preset deposition thickness distribution and the correspondence to adjust the spacing between the first surface 40 of the deformable diffuser 4 from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be plated 30 of the substrate 3, so that the actual deposition thickness of the surface to be plated 30 from the center area to the edge area meets the preset deposition thickness. In this way, the deformation control device 5 can automatically adjust the spacing without the operator manually inputting adjustment parameters into the deformation control device 5.

[0078] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and effects of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Anyone skilled in the art may modify or adjust the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent modifications or adjustments made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and technical concepts disclosed herein are intended to be covered by the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A substrate electroplating method, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Placing a substrate in an electroplating tank, wherein the substrate has a surface to be electroplated, the electroplating tank contains an electroplating solution and is provided with a deformable diffuser plate, wherein the deformable diffuser plate has a first surface facing the surface to be electroplated; Adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated; Metal is electroplated onto the surface to be plated.

2. The substrate electroplating method according to claim 1, wherein: The step of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the central area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated includes: The shape of the deformable diffusion plate is adjusted to a first form so that the distance between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated remains unchanged.

3. The substrate electroplating method according to claim 1, wherein: The step of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the central area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated includes: The shape of the deformable diffusion plate is adjusted to a second shape so that the distance between the first surface and the surface to be electroplated gradually decreases from the center area to the edge area.

4. The substrate electroplating method according to claim 1, wherein: The step of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the central area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated includes: The shape of the deformable diffusion plate is adjusted to a third shape so that the distance between the first surface and the surface to be electroplated gradually increases from the central area to the edge area.

5. The substrate electroplating method according to claim 1, wherein: The step of adjusting the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the central area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated includes: The correspondence between the preset deposition thickness of the surface to be electroplated from the center area to the edge area and the spacing is obtained in advance, and the shape of the deformable diffusion plate is automatically adjusted according to the preset deposition thickness and the correspondence to adjust the spacing between the first surface from the center area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated, so that the actual deposition thickness of the surface to be electroplated from the center area to the edge area meets the preset deposition thickness.

6. A substrate electroplating device, characterized in that: include: an electroplating tank for containing an electroplating solution; A fixture, used for placing the substrate in the electroplating tank, wherein the substrate has a surface to be electroplated; a deformable diffuser plate disposed in the electroplating tank, wherein the deformable diffuser plate has a first surface facing the surface to be electroplated, and an edge of the deformable diffuser plate is fixedly connected to an inner wall of the electroplating tank; The deformation regulating device is used to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the distance between the first surface from the central area to the edge area and the surface to be electroplated.

7. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The deformable diffusion plate includes a first layer plate and a second layer plate stacked on each other, wherein the thermal expansion coefficients of the first layer plate and the second layer plate are different; The deformation regulating device includes a temperature-changing element, and the temperature-changing element is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate.

8. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The temperature changing element is arranged between the first layer plate and the second layer plate.

9. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The deformation control device further includes a temperature controller, and the temperature variable element is used to change the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate according to a temperature control signal from the temperature controller to adjust the shape of the deformable diffusion plate.

10. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 9, characterized in that: The deformation control device further includes a deformation detector for detecting the deformation amount of the deformable diffusion plate and feeding back the deformation amount to the temperature controller; The temperature controller is further configured to generate the temperature control signal according to the deformation amount.

11. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 9, characterized in that: The deformation control device further includes a temperature detector for detecting the temperature of the deformable diffusion plate and feeding back the temperature to the temperature controller; The temperature controller is further configured to generate the temperature control signal according to the temperature.

12. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 6, wherein: The deformation control device includes an actuator and an actuation controller; The actuator is in transmission connection with the central area of ​​the deformable diffuser plate, and is used to drive the deformable diffuser plate according to an actuation control signal from the actuation controller to adjust the shape of the deformable diffuser plate.

13. The substrate electroplating device according to claim 12, wherein: The deformation control device further includes a deformation detector for detecting the deformation amount of the deformable diffusion plate and feeding back the deformation amount to the actuation controller; The actuation controller is further configured to generate the actuation control signal according to the deformation amount.

14. A deformable diffusion plate, used in a substrate processing device, characterized in that: The deformable diffusion plate includes a first layer plate and a second layer plate stacked on each other, wherein the first layer plate and the second layer plate have different thermal expansion coefficients.

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