Gas mixing block for dual processing chambers

Abstract

Exemplary modular gas blocks may include a dual gas block that includes a block body having an inlet, a first outlet, and a second outlet. The block body may define a fluid channel extending along a length of the block body. The inlet end of the block body may define a fluid inlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel. The first outlet of the block body may define a first fluid outlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel. The second outlet of the block body may define a second fluid outlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel.

Description

Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001GAS MIXING BLOCK FOR DUAL PROCESSING CHAMBERSCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of and priority to Indian Provisional Application No. 202441072044, filed on September 24, 2024, and titled “GAS MIXING BLOCK FOR DUAL PROCESSING CHAMBERS,” the content of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present technology relates to semiconductor processes and equipment. More specifically, the present technology relates to gas distribution systems for semiconductor substrate processing systems and components.BACKGROUND

[0003] Semiconductor processing systems often utilize cluster tools to integrate a number of process chambers together. This configuration may facilitate the performance of several sequential processing operations without removing the substrate from a controlled processing environment, or it may allow a similar process to be performed on multiple substrates at once in the varying chambers. These chambers may include, for example, degas chambers, pretreatment chambers, transfer chambers, chemical vapor deposition chambers, physical vapor deposition chambers, etch chambers, metrology chambers, and other chambers. The combination of chambers in a cluster tool, as well as the operating conditions and parameters under which these chambers are run, are selected to fabricate specific structures using particular process recipes and process flows.

[0004] Oftentimes, processing systems include gas delivery assemblies that may mix and / or otherwise deliver a number of process gases to the various chambers. The flow of these gases may be carefully controlled to ensure uniform flow of gases into each of the processing chambers. Thus, there is a need for improved systems and methods that can be used to efficiently mix and / or otherwise deliver gases to processing chambers under desired conditions. These and other needs are addressed by the present technology.SUMMARY

[0005] In some embodiments, a dual gas block may include a block body having an inlet, a first outlet, and a second outlet. The block body may define a fluid channel extending along a length of the block body. The inlet of the block body may define a fluid inlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel. The first outlet of the block body may define a first fluid outlet that is fluidlyAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 coupled with the fluid channel. The second outlet of the block body may define a second fluid outlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel.

[0006] In some embodiments, a dual gas stick assembly may include a gas stick body and a modular gas block disposed on the gas stick body. The modular gas block may include a block body having a fluid inlet, a first fluid outlet, and a second fluid outlet that are fluidly coupled together. The dual gas stick assembly may also include an isolation valve fluidly coupled with the fluid inlet, a first mass flow controller fluidly coupled with the first fluid outlet, and a second mass flow controller fluidly coupled with the second fluid outlet.

[0007] In some embodiments, a method of manufacturing a dual gas block may include providing a block body having a top surface and at least one sidewall and forming, from the top surface, a fluid inlet, a first fluid outlet, and a second fluid outlet by drilling respective vertical bores into the block body. The method may also include forming, from the at least one sidewall, a first horizontal bore intersecting the vertical bore of the fluid inlet and the vertical bore of the first fluid outlet to define a first horizontal channel and forming, from the at least one sidewall. The method may additionally include forming a second horizontal bore intersecting the vertical bore of the fluid inlet and the vertical bore of the second fluid outlet to define a second horizontal channel. The method may further include inserting a plug into an end of at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore to close the end and seal a corresponding one of the first horizontal channel or the second horizontal channel.

[0008] In any embodiments, any and / or all of the following features may be implemented in any combination and without limitation. The fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet may each open at a top surface of the block body, and the block body may define a recess around each of the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet configured to receive a fitting, where each recess may include threads configured to couple to one of a valve or a mass flow controller. The block body may define a first vertical channel extending downward from the fluid inlet, a second vertical channel extending downward from the first fluid outlet, and a third vertical channel extending downward from the second fluid outlet. The block body may also define a first horizontal channel fluidly coupling the first vertical channel and the second vertical channel and a second horizontal channel fluidly coupling the first vertical channel and the third vertical channel The first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel may have substantially equal lengths such that fluid delivered at the fluid inlet is split into substantially equal flows exiting the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet. The block body may include a protrusion extending outward from a sidewall of the block body along a length of the block bodyAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 and an indentation positioned beneath the protrusion. The block body may further define a secondary inlet located on an underside of the protrusion and configured to receive an interconnect weldment. The block body may have a rectangular prism shape and a length along an x-axis between approximately 4 inches and approximately 6 inches. The fluid channel may include a plurality of angled channels oriented at approximately forty-five degrees that fluidly couple the fluid inlet with the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet. The isolation valve may be positioned upstream of a fluid split in the modular gas block such that a single actuation of the isolation valve simultaneously isolates both the first mass flow controller and the second mass flow controller from an upstream gas source. The dual gas stick assembly may further include a first outlet port fluidly coupled downstream of the first mass flow controller and a second outlet port fluidly coupled downstream of the second mass flow controller. The first outlet port may be configured to couple to a first processing chamber and the second outlet port being configured to couple to a second processing chamber. The dual gas stick assembly may further include a shared stick fluidly coupled upstream of the isolation valve. The shared stick may include a hybrid valve, a purge valve, a regulator, and a filter configured to supply conditioned gas to the modular gas block. The shared stick may be common to a plurality of dual gas stick assemblies. The dual gas stick assembly may be configured such that actuation of a purge valve located upstream of the isolation valve may cause purge gas to flow through both a first branch including the first mass flow controller and a second branch including the second mass flow controller without exposing other flow paths of a gas delivery system. The dual gas stick assembly may be configured to be mounted side-by-side with an adjacent dual gas stick assembly along a width of a gas delivery assembly. When the first mass flow controller and the second mass flow controller are operated to provide equal flow setpoints, the dual gas stick assembly may be configured to deliver substantially equal mass flow rates at two respective outlet ports. The dual gas stick assembly may further include a first downstream isolation valve fluidly coupled downstream of the first mass flow controller and a second downstream isolation valve fluidly coupled downstream of the second mass flow controller. The first downstream isolation valve and the second downstream isolation valve may be independently operable to selectively shut off flow in respective branches. The dual gas stick assembly may be configured to couple to output weldments that pass through a feedthrough plate and deliver gas to a gas splitter assembly seated on a lid plate of a semiconductor processing system. At least a portion of the output weldments may be disposed within heater jackets. Prior to forming at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore, a larger guide hole may be drilled from the at least one sidewall of the block body, and at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore may be formed by drilling a smaller hole guided by the larger guide hole. Forming the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, andAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 the second fluid outlet may include forming recesses around the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet on the top surface of the block body; and forming threads in at least one of the recesses to couple to one of a valve or a mass flow controller. Forming the first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel may include forming the first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel to have substantially equal lengths so that fluid delivered at the fluid inlet is split into substantially equal flows exiting the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet. At least one angled channel oriented at approximately forty-five degrees may be formed to fluidly couple at least one of the vertical bores with at least one of the first horizontal channel or the second horizontal channel.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] A further understanding of the nature and advantages of various embodiments may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification and the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used throughout the several drawings to refer to similar components. In some instances, a sub-label is associated with a reference numeral to denote one of multiple similar components. When reference is made to a reference numeral without specification to an existing sub-label, it is intended to refer to all such multiple similar components.

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates a top plan view of one embodiment of a processing system of deposition, etching, baking, and curing chambers according to some embodiments.

[0011] FIG. 2 shows a schematic partial isometric view of chamber system according to some embodiments.

[0012] FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate a schematic isometric view and a top plan view, respectively, of a modular gas block, according to some embodiments.

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates one of many possible alternative embodiments using fluid channels that are not exclusively horizontal and / or vertical.

[0014] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a gas block that is configured to deliver gas to a single mass flow controller to a single chamber, according to some embodiments.

[0015] FIG. 6A illustrates a dual gas stick that may be used in a gas delivery system to replace two of the gas sticks from FIG. 5.

[0016] FIG. 6B illustrates a front view of the dual gas stick, according to some embodiments.

[0017] FIG. 7 illustrates a gas delivery system using dual gas sticks, according to some embodiments.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001

[0018] FIG. 8 shows a schematic top plan view of one embodiment of a semiconductor processing system according to some embodiments of the present technology.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] Semiconductor processing systems rely on complex gas delivery assemblies that are slow to design and modify, consume space, and pose service risks, especially for gas sticks. This technology described herein uses modular gas blocks with internal channels that enable lateral (z-direction) inter-stick delivery and mixing. A dual gas block receives a single upstream flow and splits it into two outlets feeding respective mass flow controllers via substantially equal-length internal channels to provide balanced delivery. Upstream components (hybrid valve, purge valve, regulator, filter) are consolidated on a shared stick, while block fabrication uses minimal drilling and a single plug to form internal channels. This architecture shortens reduces component count simplifies the overall design.

[0020] Processing systems may include gas delivery assemblies to deliver various gases to the processing chambers. To eliminate the need to have a different output delivery lumen for each type of gas being flowed to a given chamber or set of chambers, gas delivery assemblies are often designed to mix and co-flow compatible gases to the chambers. Conventional gas delivery assemblies deliver gases to an output weldment along a length (or x-axis) of the assembly. To facilitate mixing of the various gases, conventional systems utilize an array of different weldments that are typically provided beneath gas blocks on which valves, mass flow controllers, and / or other shut off and / or flow throttling components may be mounted. The network of weldments may be complex, which may lead to issues in designing and fabricating a new gas delivery assembly, altering an existing gas delivery assembly, and / or servicing an existing gas delivery assembly.

[0021] To design new gas delivery assemblies using conventional components requires engineers to design and / or weldments of a correct shape and size to properly connect various ports of a gas assembly, while ensuring that the weldments positioned beneath the gas blocks do not run into one another. The fabrication may be tedious and may involve the use of significant numbers of different weldments to achieve a functional assembly. Additionally, due to the complexity of the weldment configurations, engineers cannot design base assembly designs that may be easily altered to accommodate new assembly designs. Therefore, engineers must design each assembly from scratch. These issues may cause the design and fabrication of new assemblies to be slow (up to 15 weeks) and very expensive.

[0022] During altering (such as adding or subtracting a new gas source / gas stick) and / or servicing of existing gas delivery assemblies, technicians must remove all upper components (suchAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 as valves, mass flow controllers, gas blocks, and the like) to access the weldments. Oftentimes, a majority or entirety of the gas assembly may need to be disassembled to add or remove a gas stick. The network of weldments beneath the gas blocks may need to be completely redesigned and / or replaced to accommodate mixing of newly added gas sticks. Oftentimes, any weldments from a previous iteration of a gas delivery assembly must be scrapped, leading to considerable waste. Additionally, if modification and / or service of a gas assembly impacts a toxic gas stick, the entire toxic gas stick may need to be replaced to prevent any toxic gases from leaking into the environment. These issues may cause the modification or repair of existing assemblies to be slow (up to 18 weeks) and very expensive.

[0023] The present technology overcomes these issues by utilizing modular gas blocks that include lumens that facilitate gas mixing between adjacent gas sticks in the z-direction. Such lumens may eliminate the need for the network of weldments at the bottom of the gas delivery assembly and may significantly simplify the design and fabrication of the gas delivery assembly. All or most of the modular gas blocks may have an identical geometry, with the possibility that a small subset of the modular gas blocks have slightly different geometries that are compatible with the geometries of the other modular gas blocks. The use of such modular gas blocks may enable alteration of the gas delivery assembly to be as simple as connecting or removing a gas stick to or from an existing gas delivery assembly, without the need to expose other flow paths. This may eliminate the risk of exposing toxic gas sticks and may help reduce waste during alteration operations. Additionally, a purge gas stick may be provided that may be used to flush any toxic gas flow paths to further mitigate any risk of toxic gases during servicing of the gas delivery assembly. Such features may significantly shorten the time (oftentimes to less than 4-5 weeks) and cost associated with designing, fabricating, and / or otherwise altering a gas delivery assembly.

[0024] Although the remaining disclosure will routinely identify specific structures, such as four-position chamber systems, for which the present structures and methods may be employed, it will be readily understood that the systems and methods are equally applicable to any number of structures and devices that may benefit from the structural capabilities explained. Accordingly, the technology should not be considered to be so limited as for use with any particular structures alone. Moreover, although an exemplary tool system will be described to provide foundation for the present technology, it is to be understood that the present technology can be incorporated with any number of semiconductor processing chambers and tools that may benefit from some or all of the operations and systems to be described.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001

[0025] FIG. 1 shows a top plan view of one embodiment of a substrate processing tool or processing system 100 of deposition, etching, baking, and curing chambers according to some embodiments of the present technology. In the figure, a set of front-opening unified pods 102 supply substrates of a variety of sizes that are received within a factory interface 103 by robotic arms 104a and 104b and placed into a load lock or low pressure holding area 106 before being delivered to one of the substrate processing regions 108, positioned in chamber systems or quad sections 109a-c, which may each be a substrate processing system having a transfer region fluidly coupled with a plurality of processing regions 108. Although a quad system is illustrated, it is to be understood that platforms incorporating standalone chambers, twin chambers, and other multiple chamber systems are equally encompassed by the present technology. A second robotic arm 110 housed in a transfer chamber 112 may be used to transport the substrate wafers from the holding area 106 to the quad sections 109 and back, and second robotic arm 110 may be housed in a transfer chamber with which each of the quad sections or processing systems may be connected. Each substrate processing region 108 can be outfitted to perform a number of substrate processing operations including any number of deposition processes including cyclical layer deposition, atomic layer deposition, chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition, as well as etch, preclean, anneal, plasma processing, degas, orientation, and other substrate processes.

[0026] Each quad section 109 may include a transfer region that may receive substrates from, and deliver substrates to, second robotic arm 110. The transfer region of the chamber system may be aligned with the transfer chamber having the second robotic arm 110. In some embodiments the transfer region may be laterally accessible to the robot. In subsequent operations, components of the transfer sections may vertically translate the substrates into the overlying processing regions 108. Similarly, the transfer regions may also be operable to rotate substrates between positions within each transfer region. The substrate processing regions 108 may include any number of system components for depositing, annealing, curing and / or etching a material film on the substrate or wafer. In one configuration, two sets of the processing regions, such as the processing regions in quad section 109a and 109b, may be used to deposit material on the substrate, and the third set of processing chambers, such as the processing chambers or regions in quad section 109c, may be used to cure, anneal, or treat the deposited films. In another configuration, all three sets of chambers, such as all twelve chambers illustrated, may be configured to both deposit and / or cure a film on the substrate.

[0027] As illustrated in the figure, second robotic arm 110 may include two arms for delivering and / or retrieving multiple substrates simultaneously. For example, each quad section 109 may include two accesses 107 along a surface of a housing of the transfer region, which may beAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 laterally aligned with the second robotic arm. The accesses may be defined along a surface adjacent the transfer chamber 112. In some embodiments, such as illustrated, the first access may be aligned with a first substrate support of the plurality of substrate supports of a quad section. Additionally, the second access may be aligned with a second substrate support of the plurality of substrate supports of the quad section. The first substrate support may be adjacent to the second substrate support, and the two substrate supports may define a first row of substrate supports in some embodiments. As shown in the illustrated configuration, a second row of substrate supports may be positioned behind the first row of substrate supports laterally outward from the transfer chamber 112. The two arms of the second robotic arm 110 may be spaced to allow the two arms to simultaneously enter a quad section or chamber system to deliver or retrieve one or two substrates to substrate supports within the transfer region.

[0028] Any one or more of the transfer regions described may be incorporated with additional chambers separated from the fabrication system shown in different embodiments. It will be appreciated that additional configurations of deposition, etching, annealing, and curing chambers for material films are contemplated by processing system 100. Additionally, any number of other processing systems may be utilized with the present technology, which may incorporate transfer systems for performing any of the specific operations, such as the substrate movement. In some embodiments, processing systems that may provide access to multiple processing chamber regions while maintaining a vacuum environment in various sections, such as the noted holding and transfer areas, may allow operations to be performed in multiple chambers while maintaining a particular vacuum environment between discrete processes.

[0029] FIG. 2 shows a schematic partial isometric view of chamber system 200 according to some embodiments. The figure may illustrate a partial cross-section through two processing regions and a portion of a transfer region of the chamber system. For example, chamber system 200 may be a quad section of processing system 100 described previously, and may include any of the components of any of the previously described components or systems.

[0030] Chamber system 200, as developed through the figure, may include a chamber body 205 defining a transfer region 202 including substrate supports 210a and 210b, which may extend into the chamber body 205 and be vertically translatable as previously described. First lid plate 203 may be seated overlying the chamber body 205, and may define apertures 207 producing access for processing region 204 to be formed with additional chamber system components. Seated about or at least partially within each aperture may be a lid stack 209, and chamber system 200 may include a plurality of lid stacks 209, including a number of lid stacks equal to a number ofAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 apertures 207 of the plurality of apertures. Each lid stack 209 may be seated on the first lid plate 203, and may be seated on a shelf produced by recessed ledges through the second surface of the first lid plate. The lid stacks 209 may at least partially define processing regions 204 of the chamber system 200.

[0031] As illustrated, processing regions 204 may be vertically offset from the transfer region 202, but may be fluidly coupled with the transfer region. Additionally, the processing regions may be separated from the other processing regions. Although the processing regions may be fluidly coupled with other processing regions through the transfer region from below, the processing regions may be fluidly isolated, from above, from each of the other processing regions. Each lid stack 209 may also be aligned with a substrate support in some embodiments. For example, as illustrated, lid stack 209a may be aligned over substrate support 210a, and lid stack 209b may be aligned over substrate support 210b. When raised to operational positions, such as a second position, the substrates may deliver substrates for individual processing within the separate processing regions. When in this position, as will be described further below, each processing region 204 may be at least partially defined from below by an associated substrate support in the second position.

[0032] FIG. 2 also illustrates embodiments in which a second lid plate 211 may be included for the chamber system. Second lid plate 211 may be coupled with each of the lid stacks, which may be positioned between the first lid plate 203 and the second lid plate 211 in some embodiments. As will be explained below, the second lid plate 211 may facilitate accessing components of the lid stacks 209. Second lid plate 211 may define a plurality of apertures 212 through the second lid plate. Each aperture of the plurality of apertures may be defined to provide fluid access to a specific lid stack 209 or processing region 204. A remote plasma unit 215 may optionally be included in chamber system 200 in some embodiments, and may be supported on second lid plate 211. In some embodiments, remote plasma unit 215 may be fluidly coupled with each aperture 212 of the plurality of apertures through second lid plate 211. Isolation valves 220 may be included along each fluid line to provide fluid control to each individual processing region 204. For example, as illustrated, aperture 212a may provide fluid access to lid stack 209a. Aperture 212a may also be axially aligned with any of the lid stack components, as well as with substrate support 210a in some embodiments, which may produce an axial alignment for each of the components associated with individual processing regions, such as along a central axis through the substrate support or any of the components associated with a particular processing region 204. Similarly, aperture 212b may provide fluid access to lid stack 209b, and may be aligned, includingAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 axially aligned with components of the lid stack as well as substrate support 210b in some embodiments.

[0033] FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate a schematic isometric view and a top plan view, respectively, of a modular gas block 300, according to some embodiments. The modular gas block 300 may form a portion of a gas stick that may be used as part of a gas delivery assembly for mixing and / or delivering one or more gases to a semiconductor processing system for performing one or more processing operations, such as deposition, etching, annealing, cleaning, and / or curing. As will be discussed in greater detail below, a number of instances of the modular gas block 300 may be assembled to generate a fluid channel that extends along both a length and a width (or both an x- axis and a z-axis) of a gas delivery assembly, which enables a number of gases to be mixed and / or otherwise delivered to one or more processing systems.

[0034] The gas block 300 may include a block body 305. As illustrated, the block body 305 may have a generally rectangular prism shape, although other shapes may be utilized in other embodiments. As discussed below, the block body 305 may also include various protrusions and / or indentations in different locations. The block body 305 may have a length that extends along an x-axis as depicted in FIG. 3 A. The width of the block body 305 may extend along a y- axis, and the height of the block body 305 may extend along a z-axis. The overall length of the block body 305 may be between approximately 4 inches and approximately 6 inches.

[0035] The block body 305 may include an inlet 306 and a plurality of outlets 308. In this example, the block body 305 may include two outlets: a first outlet 308-1 and a second outlet 308- 2. The inlet 306 and the plurality of outlets 308 may provide entry / exit pathways for fluids through the block body 305 through a top surface of the block body 305. As illustrated in FIG. 3B, the inlet 306 and the plurality of outlets 308 may generally have a round shape forming a hollow cylinder that extends from the top surface of the block body 305 downwards along the z- axis into the block body 305. In some embodiments, the inlet 306 and / or the plurality of outlets 308 may include a bevel, chamfer, other recess on the top surface of the block body 305. This recess may facilitate a connection with a valve, a mass flow controller, and / or other component in the gas delivery system. The recess may be slightly larger than the inlet 306 and / or the plurality of outlets 308. For example, the recess may be configured to receive a fitting on a valve or mass flow controller. The recess may also include a connecting means for these other components, such as screw threads or the like.

[0036] As depicted in FIG. 3B, the inlet 306 and the plurality of outlets 308 may be connected internally within the block body 305. Horizontal fluid channels 310 may be formed within theAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 block body 305 and positioned to connect vertical fluid channels 312 that are exposed by the inlet 306 and the plurality of outlets 308. For example, vertical fluid channel 312-2 exposed by the inlet 306 may intersect with horizontal fluid channel 310-1 and horizontal fluid channel 310-2. Horizontal fluid channel 310-1 may connect vertical fluid channel 312-1 and a vertical fluid channel 312-2. Similarly, horizontal fluid channel 310-2 may connect vertical fluid channel 312-2 and vertical fluid channel 312-3. Functionally, fluid provided to the inlet 306 may enter the block body 305 and be split equally between the different fluid paths between the two horizontal fluid channels 310. Thus, a single inlet can be used to provide a fluid flow to two different outlets that may be individually coupled to different mass flow controllers as described in detail below.

[0037] Although the horizontal fluid channels 310 are depicted as being straight, cylindrical, horizontal cavities, not all embodiments are so limited. FIG. 4 illustrates one of many possible alternative embodiments using fluid channels that are not exclusively horizontal and / or vertical. For example, the inlet 406 and the plurality of outlets 408 of the block body 405 may be connected together using a combination of angled, horizontal, and / or vertical channels. As depicted in FIG.4, vertical channels 420 may be angled at approximately 45° and used to connect the vertical channels extending down from the inlet 406 in the plurality of outlets 408 with horizontal fluid channels 410. Note that this is only one alternative example configuration, and other embodiments may use different combinations of angled, horizontal, and / or vertical channels to connect to the inlet 406 to the plurality of outlets 408.

[0038] Turning back to FIGS. 3 A-3B, the inlet 306 and the plurality of outlets 308 may be formed by vertically drilling holes into the block body 305 downward in the direction of the z-axis. These holes may be drilled to the depth of the horizontal fluid channels 310. In order to form the horizontal fluid channels, a single whole may be drilled through one of the vertical sides of the block body 305. For example, FIG. 3B illustrates how the hole that forms the horizontal fluid channel 310 may be drilled through a vertical sidewall on the right side of the block body 305. In some embodiments, a larger hole 314 may first be drilled to act as a guide for the drill. After drilling a smaller hole to form the horizontal fluid channel 310, a plug 316 may be formed at the end of the horizontal fluid channel 310-2 in order to seal the horizontal fluid channels 310 from the larger hole 314 and / or the outside of the block body 305. This forms a series of internal fluid channels that cause fluid passing through the inlet 306 to be split equally between the plurality of outlets 308. This embodiment includes the advantage of only requiring a single plug 316. This embodiment also minimizes the number of connections between vertical, angled, and / or horizontal sections of the fluid channels within the block body 305.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001

[0039] As illustrated in FIG. 3A, the block body 305 may include a rectangular protrusion 309 extending outward from one of the vertical sidewalls along the length of the block body 305. Beneath the rectangular protrusion 309, a rectangle indentation 311 may be formed as illustrated. The rectangular indentation 311 may be wider, narrower, deeper, or shallower than the rectangular protrusion 309. Although illustrated as rectangles, both the rectangular protrusion 309 and / or the rectangular indentation 311 may include rounded or chamfered edges. Other embodiments may use nonregular shapes, such as triangular, semicircular, diamond, and / or other shaped protrusions / indentations.

[0040] Although not shown explicitly in FIG. 3 A, another inlet may be present on the bottom side of the rectangular protrusion 309. This inlet may be configured to receive a fluid line from an interconnect weldment that delivers fluid from a shared stick that includes a purge valve, filter, and / or other components that may be shared on the fluid line. For example, the underside of the rectangular protrusion 309 may include an inlet that is threaded or otherwise configured to receive the interconnect weldment. The inlet may be located vertically beneath another outlet 307 as depicted on the top of the block body 305 in FIG. 3A. The outlet 307 and the inlet 306 may be coupled together by an isolation valve as depicted in the figures below.

[0041] The modular gas block 300 may provide distinct technical advantages over previous designs. First, the horizontal fluid channels 310 may be precisely machined to be equal in length. This may guarantee an equal pressure and gas delivery amount between the two different chambers. Additionally, the simplified design requires only three drill holes in one plug, which significantly minimizes machining error and complexity when manufacturing the modular gas block 300.

[0042] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a gas block 532 that is configured to deliver gas to a single mass flow controller to a single chamber, according to some embodiments. FIG. 5 includes a schematic 500 illustrating the various components used to deliver gas from the facility inlet 502 to a first chamber 540 and a second chamber 542. In this embodiment, two separate and distinct gas sticks 522 are used, one for each of the first chamber 540 and the second chamber 542, respectively. FIG. 5 also illustrates an isometric view of a gas stick 522-1 with at least some of the functional components mounted on the gas stick 522-1.

[0043] The gas sticks 522 may each include a hybrid valve 504 that isolates the gas sticks 522 from the facility inlet 502. The gas sticks 522 may also include purge valves 506, regulators 508, filters 510, and isolation valves 512 for the mass flow controllers. Fluid connections between these components may be formed within the gas block 532 that is mounted on a gas stick bodyAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001530. The gas block 532 may also facilitate a connection between the isolation valve 512-1 and the mass flow controller 514-1. A view of the mass flow controller 514-1 is not shown explicitly in the isometric view of the gas stick 522-1 in FIG. 5 for the sake of clarity. Additionally, the gas sticks 522 may provide fluid connections between the mass flow controllers 514 and isolation valves 516. The isolation valves 516 may then provide fluid to mixing volumes 520 through optional isolation valves 518. Fluid may then be delivered to the first chamber 540 and the second chamber 542 as depicted.

[0044] FIG. 6A illustrates a dual gas stick 630 that may be used in a gas delivery system to replace two of the gas sticks 522 from FIG. 5. FIG. 6A also illustrates a schematic 600 illustrating the various components used to deliver fluid from the facility inlet 602 to a first chamber 640 and a second chamber 642. FIG. 6B illustrates a front view of the dual gas stick 630, according to some embodiments. The dual gas stick 630 may be configured to use the modular gas block 300 described above in FIGS. 3 A-3B. Therefore, the dual gas stick 630 may receive gas at the inlet and split the gas between two mass flow controllers for two different chambers. This reduces the number of gas sticks in the gas delivery system by one half. This also allows both chambers to share some of the duplicated components on each of the gas sticks 522 described above.

[0045] For example, instead of mounting a hybrid valve 604, a purge valve 606, a regulator 608, and a filter 610 on the gas stick 630, these components may be mounted on a shared stick 631 and mounted elsewhere in the gas delivery system. This shared stick 631 may receive the fluid from the factory inlet 602 and deliver the fluid to the gas stick 630. Therefore, the shared stick allows the two chambers to share these components in the gas delivery system. This reduces the number of each of these components (e.g., the hybrid valve 604, the purge valve 606, the regulator 608, and the filter 610) by one half. The gas delivered by the shared stick 631 may be delivered through a weldment connecting an output of the shared stick 631 to the inlet of the modular gas block 300 described above.

[0046] The dual gas stick 630 may include an isolation valve 612 at the inlet, and gas received to the isolation valve 612 may be split in the modular gas block 300 between the two chambers as described above. The dual outlets of the modular gas block 400 may each feed into mass flow controllers 614, which may then pass through additional isolation valves 616. As described above, the design of the modular gas block 400 may ensure an equal gas delivery flow to each of the mass flow controllers 614. Any additional isolation valves 618 and / or mixing volumes 620 may be located upstream of the dual gas stick 630 in the gas delivery system as described below.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001

[0047] FIG. 6B illustrate how the length of the modular gas block 300 may be sized to accommodate connectors 615 on the mass flow controllers 614. In some embodiments, the length of the modular gas block 300 may be increased to be greater than 4 inches long, greater than 5 inches long, greater than 6 inches long, and so forth, in order to accommodate connectors 615 on the mass flow controllers 614. By lengthening the modular gas block 300, the connectors 615 may be utilized without interfering with the single isolation valve 612.

[0048] FIG. 7 illustrates a gas delivery system using dual gas sticks, according to some embodiments. Oftentimes, a number of different gases may be supplied to a processing chamber. Some of the gases may be mixed prior to being introduced to the processing chamber, which may help to reduce the complexity of conduits extending between gas sources and the processing chambers. The use of modular gas blocks may enable the design and assembly of an easily customizable gas delivery assembly that may enable gases from one or more gas sources to be flowed to one or more processing chambers and / or mixed prior to delivery of the gases to the one or more processing chambers. FIG. 11 illustrates a gas delivery system 700 that incorporates a number of dual gas sticks 630 that each include one or more modular gas blocks arranged along a width of the respective gas delivery system 700 to facilitate delivery and / or mixing of a number of gases between adjacent gas sticks 630. The modular gas blocks may be similar to the modular gas blocks 300 described herein, and may include any feature described in accordance therewith. For example, the dual gas sticks 630 may be coupled side-by-side along a width (or z-axis) of the gas delivery system 700 to form a fluid path that extends along a width of the gas delivery system 700. It will be appreciated that each gas delivery system 700 may include any number of dual gas sticks 630 in various embodiments. Additionally, one or more dual gas sticks 630 may be added to or removed from the gas delivery system 700 to add or remove different gas sources.

[0049] As illustrated in FIG. 7, a plurality of shared sticks may be present along the bottom side of the gas delivery system, including shared stick 631. Each of the shared sticks 631 may deliver gas from one or more gas sources to one or more of the dual gas sticks, including dual gas stick 630 at the inlet of the dual gas blocks as described above. Each of the dual gas sticks may control two distinct fluid flow paths through two mass flow controllers mounted on dual gas sticks as described above. These two fluid should paths may be sent to the first chamber 641 and the second chamber 640 as described above.

[0050] As noted above, each gas delivery assembly may include an outlet that delivers a mixture of one or more gases to one or more processing chambers and / or manifolds. For example, the gas delivery assembly may be remotely located from the processing chambers (such as below theAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 processing chamber). The outlets may be coupled with fluid lines, such as weldments, that direct the gases from the gas delivery assembly to the processing chambers and / or manifolds. FIG. 8 shows a schematic top plan view of one embodiment of a semiconductor processing system 800 according to some embodiments of the present technology. The figure may include components of any of the systems illustrated and described previously, and may also show further aspects of any of the previously described systems. It is to be understood that the illustration may also show exemplary components as would be seen on any quad section 109 described above.

[0051] Semiconductor processing system 800 may include a lid plate 805, which may be similar to second lid plate previously described. For example, the lid plate 805 may define a number of apertures that provide access to a number of processing chambers positioned beneath the lid plate 805. Each aperture of the plurality of apertures may be defined to provide fluid access to a specific lid stack, processing chamber, and / or processing region.

[0052] A gas splitter assembly 810 may be seated on a top surface of the lid plate 805. For example, the gas splitter assembly 810 may be centered between the apertures of the lid plate 805. The gas splitter assembly 810 may be fluidly coupled with a number of input weldments 815 that are each coupled with a respective outlet of a gas delivery assembly, such as gas delivery assembly 700. Input weldments 815 may deliver gases, such as precursors, plasma effluents, and / or purge gases from a number of gas sources to the gas splitter assembly 810. For example, each of the input weldments 815 may extend vertically from gas delivery assemblies positioned below the lid plate 805 and pass through a feedthrough plate 820. A portion of the input weldments 815 above the feedthrough plate 820 may be bent horizontally and may direct the gases toward the gas splitter assembly 810. In some embodiments, some or all of the input weldments 815 may be disposed within heater jackets 819 that help prevent heat loss along the length of the input weldments 815.

[0053] The gas splitter assembly 810 may receive gases from the input weldments 815 and may recursively split the gas flows into a greater number of gas outputs that are each interfaced with one or more valves 827 that help control flow of gases through the valve block 825. For example, actuation of the valves 827 may control whether purge and / or process gases are flowed to a respective processing chamber or are diverted away from the processing chamber to another location of the system 800. For example, outlets of gas splitter assembly 810 may each be fluidly coupled with an output weldment 830, which may deliver the purge gas and / or process gas to an output manifold 835 associated with a particular processing chamber. For example, an output manifold 835 may be positioned over each aperture formed within the lid plate 805 and may beAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 fluidly coupled with the lid stack components to deliver one or more gases to a processing region of a respective processing chamber.

[0054] In the preceding description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous details have been set forth in order to provide an understanding of various embodiments of the present technology. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art, however, that certain embodiments may be practiced without some of these details, or with additional details.

[0055] Having disclosed several embodiments, it will be recognized by those of skill in the art that various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departing from the spirit of the embodiments. Additionally, a number of well-known processes and elements have not been described in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present technology. Accordingly, the above description should not be taken as limiting the scope of the technology.

[0056] Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly or conventionally understood. As used herein, the articles “a” and “an” refer to one or to more than one (i.e., to at least one) of the grammatical object of the article. By way of example, “an element” means one element or more than one element. “About” and / or “approximately” as used herein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, a temporal duration, and the like, encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%, ±5%, or ±0.1% from the specified value, as such variations are appropriate to in the context of the systems, devices, circuits, methods, and other implementations described herein. “Substantially” as used herein when referring to a measurable value such as an amount, a temporal duration, a physical attribute (such as frequency), and the like, also encompasses variations of ±20% or ±10%, ±5%, or ±0.1% from the specified value, as such variations are appropriate to in the context of the systems, devices, circuits, methods, and other implementations described herein.

[0057] Where a range of values is provided, it is understood that each intervening value, to the smallest fraction of the unit of the lower limit, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, between the upper and lower limits of that range is also specifically disclosed. Any narrower range between any stated values or unstated intervening values in a stated range and any other stated or intervening value in that stated range is encompassed. The upper and lower limits of those smaller ranges may independently be included or excluded in the range, and each range where either, neither, or both limits are included in the smaller ranges is also encompassed within the technology, subject to any specifically excluded limit in the stated range. Where the statedAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 range includes one or both of the limits, ranges excluding either or both of those included limits are also included.

[0058] As used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a heater” includes a plurality of such heaters, and reference to “the protrusion” includes reference to one or more protrusions and equivalents thereof known to those skilled in the art, and so forth.

[0059] Also, the words “comprise(s)”, “comprising”, “contain(s)”, “containing”, “include(s)”, and “including”, when used in this specification and in the following claims, are intended to specify the presence of stated features, integers, components, or operations, but they do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, components, operations, acts, or groups.

Claims

1. Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A dual gas block, comprising: a block body having an inlet, a first outlet, and a second outlet, the block body defining a fluid channel extending along a length of the block body, wherein: the inlet of the block body defines a fluid inlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel; the first outlet of the block body defines a first fluid outlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel; and the second outlet of the block body defines a second fluid outlet that is fluidly coupled with the fluid channel.

2. The dual gas block of claim 1, wherein the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet each open at a top surface of the block body, and wherein the block body defines a recess around each of the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet configured to receive a fitting, and wherein each recess comprises threads configured to couple to one of a valve or a mass flow controller.

3. The dual gas block of claim 1, wherein: the block body defines a first vertical channel extending downward from the fluid inlet, a second vertical channel extending downward from the first fluid outlet, and a third vertical channel extending downward from the second fluid outlet; the block body further defines a first horizontal channel fluidly coupling the first vertical channel and the second vertical channel and a second horizontal channel fluidly coupling the first vertical channel and the third vertical channel; and the first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel have substantially equal lengths such that fluid delivered at the fluid inlet is split into substantially equal flows exiting the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet.

4. The dual gas block of claim 1, wherein: the block body comprises a protrusion extending outward from a sidewall of the block body along a length of the block body and an indentation positioned beneath the protrusion; and the block body further defines a secondary inlet located on an underside of the protrusion and configured to receive an interconnect weldment.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W0015. The dual gas block of claim 1, wherein the block body has a rectangular prism shape and a length along an x-axis between approximately 4 inches and approximately 6 inches.

6. The dual gas block of claim 1, wherein the fluid channel comprises a plurality of angled channels oriented at approximately forty-five degrees that fluidly couple the fluid inlet with the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet.

7. A dual gas stick assembly, comprising: a gas stick body; a modular gas block disposed on the gas stick body, the modular gas block comprising a block body having a fluid inlet, a first fluid outlet, and a second fluid outlet that are fluidly coupled together; an isolation valve fluidly coupled with the fluid inlet; a first mass flow controller fluidly coupled with the first fluid outlet; and a second mass flow controller fluidly coupled with the second fluid outlet.

8. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, wherein the isolation valve is positioned upstream of a fluid split in the modular gas block such that a single actuation of the isolation valve simultaneously isolates both the first mass flow controller and the second mass flow controller from an upstream gas source.

9. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, further comprising a first outlet port fluidly coupled downstream of the first mass flow controller and a second outlet port fluidly coupled downstream of the second mass flow controller, the first outlet port being configured to couple to a first processing chamber and the second outlet port being configured to couple to a second processing chamber.

10. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, further comprising a shared stick fluidly coupled upstream of the isolation valve, the shared stick comprising a hybrid valve, a purge valve, a regulator, and a filter configured to supply conditioned gas to the modular gas block, the shared stick being common to a plurality of dual gas stick assemblies.

11. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, wherein the dual gas stick assembly is configured such that actuation of a purge valve located upstream of the isolation valve causes purge gas to flow through both a first branch including the first mass flow controller and a secondAttorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W001 branch including the second mass flow controller without exposing other flow paths of a gas delivery system.

12. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, wherein the dual gas stick assembly is configured to be mounted side-by-side with an adjacent dual gas stick assembly along a width of a gas delivery assembly.

13. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, wherein, when the first mass flow controller and the second mass flow controller are operated to provide equal flow setpoints, the dual gas stick assembly is configured to deliver substantially equal mass flow rates at two respective outlet ports.

14. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, further comprising a first downstream isolation valve fluidly coupled downstream of the first mass flow controller and a second downstream isolation valve fluidly coupled downstream of the second mass flow controller, the first downstream isolation valve and the second downstream isolation valve being independently operable to selectively shut off flow in respective branches.

15. The dual gas stick assembly of claim 7, wherein the dual gas stick assembly is configured to couple to output weldments that pass through a feedthrough plate and deliver gas to a gas splitter assembly seated on a lid plate of a semiconductor processing system, at least a portion of the output weldments being disposed within heater jackets.

16. A method of manufacturing a dual gas block, the method comprising: providing a block body having a top surface and at least one sidewall; forming, from the top surface, a fluid inlet, a first fluid outlet, and a second fluid outlet by drilling respective vertical bores into the block body; forming, from the at least one sidewall, a first horizontal bore intersecting the vertical bore of the fluid inlet and the vertical bore of the first fluid outlet to define a first horizontal channel and forming, from the at least one sidewall, a second horizontal bore intersecting the vertical bore of the fluid inlet and the vertical bore of the second fluid outlet to define a second horizontal channel; and inserting a plug into an end of at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore to close the end and seal a corresponding one of the first horizontal channel or the second horizontal channel.Attorney Docket No. 080042-1469617-44025267W00117. The method of claim 16, further comprising drilling, prior to forming at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore, a larger guide hole from the at least one sidewall of the block body, and wherein forming at least one of the first horizontal bore or the second horizontal bore comprises drilling a smaller hole guided by the larger guide hole.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein forming the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet comprises: forming recesses around the fluid inlet, the first fluid outlet, and the second fluid outlet on the top surface of the block body; and forming threads in at least one of the recesses to couple to one of a valve or a mass flow controller.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein forming the first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel comprises forming the first horizontal channel and the second horizontal channel to have substantially equal lengths so that fluid delivered at the fluid inlet is split into substantially equal flows exiting the first fluid outlet and the second fluid outlet.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising forming at least one angled channel oriented at approximately forty -five degrees to fluidly couple at least one of the vertical bores with at least one of the first horizontal channel or the second horizontal channel.

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