Microwave Substrate Heating with Dielectric Plate
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Solution Overview
Problem
In semiconductor manufacturing, existing techniques face challenges in heating and curing polyimide films or high-k films without excessively increasing the substrate temperature, which is crucial for maintaining a low thermal budget and preventing damage to already established device characteristics.
Innovation Solution
A substrate processing apparatus using a microwave with a dielectric plate interposed between the conductive substrate support table and the substrate, allowing selective heating of the polyimide or high-k films while minimizing the substrate's temperature increase, achieved by optimizing the microwave frequency and dielectric properties to control heating efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the entire substrate is heated to high temperature for film densification, then impurities can be removed and film stability improved, but the thermal budget increases causing device characteristic variation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by concentrating microwave energy absorption in the high-k film and underlying layers through the use of a susceptor, enabling localized heating for impurity removal and film densification. This selective heating achieves the required film modification while maintaining the substrate at a lower temperature, thus preserving device characteristics established in previous processing steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the conventional thermal conduction-based heating system with a microwave-based electromagnetic heating system. This substitution enables direct volumetric heating of the film and susceptor through electromagnetic radiation, bypassing the need to heat the entire substrate through thermal conduction, thereby achieving film densification with minimal substrate temperature increase.
2Productivity
If microwave power is increased to heat the substrate faster, then processing time is reduced, but substrate temperature increases excessively
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by designing the susceptor to have specific electromagnetic and thermal properties that enable rapid local heating of the polyimide film and high-k film while limiting heat transfer to the substrate. The susceptor's material composition and geometric configuration are optimized to absorb microwave energy efficiently and convert it to heat locally, achieving fast processing without substrate overheating.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables efficient heating of polyimide or high-k films while keeping the substrate at a lower temperature, reducing thermal budget and preventing overheating, thus maintaining device stability and performance.
Implementation Method 1
supplying a microwave into the process chamber
Implementation Method 2
heating and curing a polyimide while keeping a wafer at a low temperature
Implementation Method 3
A substrate processing apparatus using a microwave with a dielectric plate interposed between the conductive substrate support table and the substrate
Data Source
AI summary
A substrate processing apparatus includes a process chamber which processes a substrate, a conductive substrate support table which is installed within the process chamber, a dielectric plate on which the substrate is mounted, the dielectric plate being placed on the substrate support table, a microwave generator which is installed outside the process chamber, and a microwave supplying unit which supplies a microwave generated by the microwave generator into the process chamber.