Process Chamber Zone Heating for Uniform Semiconductor Cleaning

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Solution Overview

Problem

In semiconductor device manufacturing, the film-forming process often results in uneven processing on substrates due to deposits adhering to the process chamber, leading to inefficiencies and inconsistencies in film thickness.

Innovation Solution

The process chamber is divided into three or more zones in the gas flow direction, with controlled heating to create a temperature difference between zones, and a cleaning gas is supplied to remove deposits while maintaining the heated temperature state, ensuring uniform cleaning and reducing film thickness variations.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Quantity of substance

If cleaning gas is supplied uniformly throughout the process chamber, then cleaning coverage is improved, but temperature uniformity deteriorates due to heat loss from deposits

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecleaning gas distributionVSAvoidtemperature uniformity

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSTemperature

Solution Approach 1:

The process chamber is divided into multiple heating zones with independent temperature control along the gas flow direction. Each zone can be heated to different temperatures to compensate for heat loss caused by deposits, maintaining overall temperature uniformity while allowing uniform cleaning gas supply throughout the chamber.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different sections of the process chamber are assigned different heating characteristics based on their specific conditions. Zones with heavier deposits receive higher localized heating to compensate for heat loss, while zones with lighter deposits receive proportionally less heating, achieving temperature uniformity despite non-uniform deposit distribution.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

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 enhances processing uniformity across substrates by controlling the cleaning rate and reducing fluorine residue, thereby stabilizing film thickness and suppressing the film thickness drop phenomenon, ensuring consistent film formation post-cleaning.

Implementation Method 1

heating the inside of the process chamber such that, in the process chamber, a temperature difference between a zone positioned on an upstream side in the gas flow direction and a zone adjacent to the zone positioned on the upstream side is greater than a temperature difference between a zone positioned on a downstream side in the gas flow direction and a zone adjacent to the zone positioned on the downstream side

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectTemperature gradient: Temperature Gradient

Data Source

PatentUS20240003005A1Cleaning method, method of manufacturing semiconductor device, substrate processing apparatus, and recording medium

Publication Date: 2024.01.04 KOKUSAI DENKI KK

AI summary

There is provided a technique, which includes: dividing an inside of a process chamber, into which a cleaning gas is to be supplied, into three or more zones in a gas flow direction and heating the inside of the process chamber such that, in the process chamber, a temperature difference between a zone positioned on an upstream side in the gas flow direction and a zone adjacent to the zone positioned on the upstream side is greater than a temperature difference between a zone positioned on a downstream side in the gas flow direction and a zone adjacent to the zone positioned on the downstream side; and supplying the cleaning gas into the process chamber after the act of heating.