Selective Deposition via Incubation Delay and Etch
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current selective deposition methods in semiconductor processing face challenges such as high defect rates, including deposition in undesired areas and lack of deposition in desired areas, which are time-consuming and costly, and often result in 'mushrooming' or horizontal growth issues that interfere with later processing steps.
Innovation Solution
The method involves using an incubation delay in deposition over certain substrate surfaces to achieve selective layer deposition, where a first layer is deposited with preferential thickness on the desired surface and then partially etched, allowing for controlled growth and spatial separation of deposition and etch processes to maintain precision and throughput.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If selective deposition is used to deposit material only in desired areas, then the need for subsequent patterning steps is eliminated, but high levels of defects occur including deposition in undesired areas and absence of deposition in desired areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing an in-situ surface treatment (such as plasma treatment or chemical modification) on specific regions of the substrate before deposition. This pre-treatment modifies the surface properties of desired areas to promote nucleation and growth, while leaving other areas untreated. As a result, when deposition occurs, material preferentially deposits on the pre-treated areas, achieving high selectivity without requiring subsequent patterning steps and eliminating the defects associated with conventional selective deposition methods
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by creating spatially varying surface properties across the substrate through selective in-situ treatment. Different regions of the substrate are given different surface characteristics (such as different surface energies, roughness, or chemical composition) that control where deposition occurs. This local differentiation enables precise spatial control of material deposition, ensuring material deposits only in desired areas while eliminating the need for global patterning steps
2Manufacturing precision
If conventional selective deposition methods are used, then material can be deposited selectively, but mushrooming into adjacent features occurs that interferes with later processing steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent prevents mushrooming by performing preliminary in-situ surface treatment that creates well-defined deposition boundaries. The pre-treatment establishes clear spatial limits for where material will deposit, creating vertical sidewalls from the beginning of the deposition process. This preliminary definition of deposition zones prevents lateral overgrowth into adjacent features, maintaining precise feature geometry throughout the deposition process and eliminating interference with subsequent processing steps
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by using the in-situ surface treatment to pre-establish deposition barriers at the boundaries of desired deposition areas. Before deposition begins, the untreated regions serve as natural barriers that prevent material from spreading laterally. This preliminary prevention of lateral growth (anti-mushrooming action) maintains sharp feature boundaries and prevents interference with adjacent features throughout the deposition process
3Manufacturing precision
If a continuous film is deposited and then patterned using lithography and etch steps, then precise patterning can be achieved, but the process becomes time consuming and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the lithography and etching steps from the conventional processing sequence by using in-situ selective deposition to directly create the desired pattern. Instead of depositing a continuous film and then removing material through multiple subsequent steps, the method selectively deposits material only where needed through pre-treatment of the substrate surface. This extraction of unnecessary steps dramatically reduces processing time and cost while maintaining the precision of the final pattern
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses preliminary in-situ surface treatment to predefine the final pattern before deposition occurs. By modifying the surface properties of specific regions beforehand, the method directly establishes where material will deposit, eliminating the need for subsequent lithography and etching steps to create the pattern. This preliminary pattern definition achieves the same precision as conventional methods but in a single deposition step, significantly reducing processing time and cost
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 precise, selective deposition of films on semiconductor substrates with reduced defects, maintaining high throughput and preventing unwanted growth, thus enhancing the precision and performance of semiconductor devices.
Implementation Method 1
the deposition has an incubation delay over the second substrate surface such that the first layer of film over the first substrate surface is thicker than the first layer of film deposited over the second substrate surface
Implementation Method 2
etching the first layer of film over the first and second substrate surfaces, wherein the first layer of film over the second substrate surface is at least substantially removed, but the first layer of film over the first substrate is only partially removed
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are methods for selective deposition. Certain methods describe providing a first substrate surface; providing a second substrate surface; depositing a first layer of film over the first and second substrate surfaces, wherein the deposition has an incubation delay over the second substrate surface such that the first layer of film over the first substrate surface is thicker than the first layer of film deposited over the second substrate surface; and etching the first layer of film over the first and second substrate surfaces, wherein the first layer of film over the second substrate surface is at least substantially removed, but the first layer of film over the first substrate is only partially removed.