Multiple-Chamber Reactor for Void-Free Silicon Gap Filling
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Solution Overview
Problem
The miniaturization of semiconductor devices has made it challenging to fill gaps in substrates for shallow trench isolation, inter-metal, and passivation layers with high-quality, void-free material.
Innovation Solution
A multiple-chamber reactor system is used, comprising reaction chambers for depositing silicon layers into gaps on substrates, exposing these layers to vacuum ultraviolet radiation, and optionally treating them to form layers comprising silicon and oxygen with desired properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a single-chamber reactor system is used for gap filling, then the device complexity is low, but the manufacturing precision and material quality are insufficient due to contamination and voids
Solution Approach 1:
The reactor system is divided into multiple separate chambers (first reaction chamber for deposition, second reaction chamber for exposure, third reaction chamber for treatment) that can operate independently. Each chamber is optimized for its specific function, allowing precise control over the gap filling process and subsequent treatment steps without contamination from other processes.
Solution Approach 2:
A transfer chamber serves as an intermediary between the different reaction chambers, enabling substrate transport without exposing the substrate to ambient conditions. This intermediary chamber maintains the controlled environment throughout the multi-step process, preventing contamination while allowing sequential processing.
2Reliability
If multiple processing steps are performed in separate chambers, then the material quality and reduced contamination are improved, but the loss of time increases due to substrate transfer
Solution Approach 1:
The multiple reaction chambers are integrated into a single reactor system with shared infrastructure including the transfer chamber, substrate handling mechanism, and control systems. This merging allows coordinated operation of all chambers, minimizing transfer time while maintaining the benefits of separate processing zones for high material quality.
3Ease of operation
If the substrate is exposed to ambient conditions between processing steps, then the ease of operation is improved, but the object-generated harmful factors increase due to contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The reactor system maintains a controlled inert atmosphere throughout all chambers, preventing exposure of the substrate to ambient air and contaminants. The transfer chamber and reaction chambers are sealed environments that preserve the substrate integrity from deposition through final treatment, eliminating contamination while enabling operational flexibility.
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 reduces contamination, provides deposited materials with desired properties, and increases throughput by allowing for the deposition, exposure, and treatment of layers in a single process module without exposing the substrate to ambient conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a first reaction chamber configured to deposit a layer comprising silicon into a gap on a substrate
Implementation Method 2
a second reaction chamber configured to expose the deposited layer to vacuum ultraviolet radiation to form an exposed layer
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for depositing silicon using a multiple-chamber reactor are disclosed. An exemplary method includes performing one or more deposition cycles and performing a vacuum ultraviolet radiation, and an optional anneal.