Substrate Surface Cleaning With Excited Species and Vapor Etchants
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Solution Overview
Problem
The fabrication of integrated circuits is hindered by unwanted materials such as native oxide layers and contaminants on substrate surfaces, which increase defects and affect electrical performance, and existing removal methods are time-consuming and negatively impact throughput.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a substrate processing system that uses excited species and etchant species, such as radicals and ions, to remove organic and non-organic residues from the substrate surface, with optional cycles and purging steps to enhance efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional methods are used to remove unwanted material from substrate surface, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but processing time increases and throughput decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the cleaning process by using vapor phase etchants and controlling temperature, pressure, and composition parameters to achieve effective material removal while maintaining fast processing speeds that preserve throughput
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical or wet chemical cleaning methods with a vapor phase chemical etching process, substituting physical contact-based removal with gas-phase chemical reactions that are faster and more controllable
2Ease of manufacture
If substrate is exposed to oxygen during fabrication process, then material layers can be formed, but native oxide layers form on substrate surface causing defects
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary cleaning action by removing native oxide layers and contaminants from the substrate surface before material layer deposition, ensuring a clean surface that prevents defect formation while allowing subsequent material formation to proceed
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses vapor phase etchants as intermediary substances that selectively react with and remove unwanted oxide layers and contaminants, acting as a mediator between the substrate and the deposition process to enable clean surface preparation
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 effectively minimizes the negative impact on throughput by efficiently removing unwanted residues, improving the quality of material layers and reducing defects in integrated circuits.
Implementation Method 1
contacting the surface of the substrate with an excited species within the chamber
Implementation Method 2
the excited species comprises a radical comprising hydrogen, argon, nitrogen, fluorine, chlorine, or oxygen
Implementation Method 3
contacting the surface of the substrate with an etchant species within the chamber
Implementation Method 4
the etchant species may be a reducing species, an oxidizing species
Implementation Method 5
the etchant species may be a reducing species, an oxidizing species
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are example, method, system and apparatus for supporting a substrate in a chamber wherein the substrate comprises a surface, contacting the surface of the substrate with an excited species within the chamber, contacting the surface of the substrate with an etchant species within the chamber and removing organic residue or non-organic residue, or a combination thereof, from the surface of the substrate responsive to executing the above steps.