Substrate Support Edge Seal and Cryogenic Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
In semiconductor device manufacturing, physical contact with the substrate backside during processing leads to particle contamination, causing cross-substrate contamination and yield loss, particularly in sensitive processes like lithography where backside particles can result in focusing issues and defects.
Innovation Solution
The use of substrate supports with a base ring and clamp ring configuration that provides a seal and bias force to clamp the substrate, combined with a cryogenic aerosol jet cleaning method that separates the process chamber into upper and lower volumes, minimizing contamination of the front side during backside cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If physical contact methods (robot blades, electrostatic or vacuum chucking) are used to handle substrates, then substrate handling and processing is enabled, but particle contamination is generated on the substrate backside
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful contact interaction between handling tools and substrate by introducing a particle-free transfer environment. The particle-free cover creates an isolated zone where substrates can be transferred without exposure to contaminating particles, effectively removing the contamination source from the handling process.
Solution Approach 2:
The particle-free cover acts as an intermediary barrier between the substrate and the external environment. This cover mediates the transfer process by providing a controlled, particle-free interface that allows substrate handling while preventing particle contamination during the transfer operation.
2Manufacturing precision
If conventional wet cleaning methods are used to clean substrate backside, then cleaning capability is provided, but front side contamination occurs and integration with vacuum processing tools is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the process chamber into distinct regions: a particle-free upper volume and a lower volume for cleaning operations. This spatial segmentation allows independent optimization of each zone - the upper volume remains contamination-free while the lower volume accommodates cleaning activities, preventing cross-contamination between functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The particle-free cover serves as an intermediary structure that physically separates the cleaning zone from the substrate front side. This mediator allows cleaning operations to proceed in the lower volume while the cover prevents cleaning byproducts and particles from reaching the substrate front side in the upper volume.
3Manufacturing precision
If substrate backside is exposed to cleaning materials stream, then backside cleaning effectiveness is improved, but risk of front side contamination increases
Solution Approach 1:
The process chamber is segmented into an upper particle-free volume containing the substrate front side and a lower volume where cleaning operations occur. This vertical segmentation creates physical barriers that prevent cleaning materials and generated particles from migrating to the substrate front side, enabling aggressive backside cleaning without front side contamination risk.
Solution Approach 2:
The particle-free cover acts as a protective intermediary between the cleaning zone and the substrate front side. It allows the cleaning stream to effectively process the backside while serving as a barrier that prevents cleaning byproducts, aerosols, and particles from reaching and contaminating the substrate front side.
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
Effectively prevents front side contamination during backside processing, enhances cleaning efficiency, and integrates well with vacuum processing tools, overcoming limitations of conventional wet cleaning methods.
Implementation Method 1
a base ring having an inner diameter less than the given diameter, the base ring having a support surface configured to contact a first surface of the substrate and to form a seal between the support surface and the first surface of the substrate
Implementation Method 2
the clamp ring and the base ring are further configured to provide a bias force toward each other to clamp the substrate in the substrate support
Implementation Method 3
each of the clamp ring and the base ring includes one or more magnets configured to provide an attractive force between the base ring and the clamp ring to clamp the substrate in the substrate support
Implementation Method 4
a cryogenic cleaning apparatus disposed in the lower volume and configured to provide a stream of cleaning materials toward the backside of the substrate to be cleaned
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for supporting a substrate are provided herein. In some embodiments, a substrate support to support a substrate having a given diameter includes: a base ring having an inner diameter less than the given diameter, the base ring having a support surface configured to contact a first surface of the substrate and to form a seal between the support surface and the first surface of the substrate, when disposed atop the base ring; and a clamp ring having an inner diameter less than the given diameter, wherein the clamp ring includes a contact surface proximate the inner diameter configured to contact an upper surface of the substrate, when present, and wherein the clamp ring and the base ring are further configured to provide a bias force toward each other to clamp the substrate in the substrate support.