Plasma Shower Head Assembly for Coating Adhesion and Gas Uniformity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Shower heads made of monocrystalline silicon or silicon carbide are expensive, and yttrium oxide coatings on aluminum matrix shower heads have poor adhesion and easily detach during plasma etching, leading to process pollution.
Innovation Solution
A shower head design with large-diameter through holes and ceramic nozzle assemblies, where the nozzle and plug are made of ceramic materials, and a yttrium oxide coating is uniformly applied on an aluminum base, ensuring tight attachment and preventing coating detachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a shower head is manufactured by fabricating micro holes in an aluminum matrix and spray-coating an yttrium oxide coating, then the manufacturing cost is greatly reduced, but the yttrium oxide coating is difficult to completely cover the micro holes and the combination effect is very poor, causing coating particles to detach during plasma etching and pollute the process
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the traditional monolithic shower head into modular components: an aluminum matrix base and separate ceramic nozzle assemblies. Each nozzle assembly consists of a nozzle body with gas outlet holes and a plug inserted into a dimple on the nozzle bottom. This segmentation allows the ceramic nozzles to be independently manufactured and assembled, ensuring proper coating coverage while maintaining cost effectiveness through the use of aluminum matrix material.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs composite material construction by combining aluminum matrix material for the base structure with ceramic materials for the nozzle assemblies. The aluminum matrix provides cost effectiveness and structural support, while the ceramic nozzles provide the necessary chemical resistance and precise gas distribution. This composite approach resolves the contradiction between cost reduction and coating adhesion reliability.
2Reliability
If monocrystalline silicon or silicon carbide is used for the shower head, then good process performance is achieved, but the manufacturing cost is very high
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies local quality by using ceramic materials specifically for the nozzle assemblies where chemical resistance and precise gas flow control are most critical, while using cost-effective aluminum matrix material for the base structure. This localized application of high-performance materials maintains process performance in critical areas while reducing overall manufacturing costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces expensive monocrystalline silicon or silicon carbide shower heads with a more economical design using aluminum matrix and ceramic components. The modular ceramic nozzle assemblies can be manufactured at lower cost and replaced if needed, providing a cost-effective alternative to expensive monolithic shower heads while maintaining necessary process performance.
3Stability of the object's composition
If many micro holes are provided in the shower head to obtain uniform gas distribution, then gas uniformity is improved, but the yttrium oxide coating becomes even more difficult to completely cover, worsening coating detachment and process pollution
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the gas distribution function into separate ceramic nozzle assemblies, each with precisely controlled gas outlet holes. This segmentation allows for uniform gas distribution through properly designed nozzle geometries while avoiding the coating coverage problems associated with spray-coating aluminum matrix with numerous micro holes. The ceramic nozzles provide stable gas distribution without the harmful coating detachment issue.
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
The new design ensures uniform gas distribution and prevents coating detachment, maintaining process performance while reducing costs and pollution.
Implementation Method 1
a reaction gas entering the reaction chamber by means of the shower head is ionized into plasma by the radio frequency field
Implementation Method 2
a shower head is generally manufactured by fabricating micro holes in an aluminum matrix and then spray-coating an yttrium oxide coating on the aluminum matrix
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a shower head and a manufacturing method therefor, and a plasma treatment device. A shower head provided at the top of a vacuum reaction chamber of the plasma treatment device includes a shower head base and nozzle assemblies provided in large-diameter through holes in the shower head base, and the shower base is manufactured by spray-coating the surface of an aluminum material with an yttrium oxide coating. By additionally providing the nozzle assemblies, original micro-holes in the shower head base are changed into the large-diameter through holes for mounting the nozzle assemblies. After the large-diameter through holes are used, inner surfaces of the large-diameter through holes can be spray-coated with an anti-corrosion coating conveniently, and the anti-corrosion coating can be evenly distributed on the inner surfaces of the large-diameter through holes, so that the anti-corrosion coating is tightly bonded with the inner surfaces of the large-diameter through holes.