Class / Patent application number | Description | Number of patent applications / Date published |
438009000 | Plasma etching | 47 |
20080206900 | PULSED-PLASMA SYSTEM FOR ETCHING SEMICONDUCTOR STRUCTURES - A pulsed plasma system for etching semiconductor structures is described. In one embodiment, a portion of a sample is removed by applying a pulsed plasma process, wherein the pulsed plasma process comprises a plurality of duty cycles. The ON state of a duty cycle is of a duration sufficiently short to substantially inhibit micro-loading in a reaction region adjacent to the sample, while the OFF state of the duty cycle is of a duration sufficiently long to substantially enable removal of a set of etch by-products from the reaction region. In another embodiment, a first portion of a sample is removed by applying a continuous plasma process. The continuous plasma process is then terminated and a second portion of the sample is removed by applying a pulsed plasma process. | 08-28-2008 |
20080206901 | PULSED-PLASMA SYSTEM WITH PULSED REACTION GAS REPLENISH FOR ETCHING SEMICONDUCTOR STRUCTURES - A pulsed plasma system with pulsed reaction gas replenish for etching semiconductor structures is described. In an embodiment, a portion of a sample is removed by applying a pulsed plasma etch process. The pulsed plasma etch process comprises a plurality of duty cycles, wherein each duty cycle represents the combination of an ON state and an OFF state of a plasma. The plasma is generated from a reaction gas, wherein the reaction gas is replenished during the OFF state of the plasma, but not during the ON state. In another embodiment, a first portion of a sample is removed by applying a continuous plasma etch process. The continuous plasma etch process is then terminated and a second portion of the sample is removed by applying a pulsed plasma etch process having pulsed reaction gas replenish. | 08-28-2008 |
20080227225 | Method and apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor device - The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device wherein etching is performed on films on a wafer using a plasma treatment apparatus. In the manufacturing method according to the present invention, a change in the difference between the emission intensities of a first wavelength component and a second wavelength component in plasma is monitored during etching. If the amount of change in the difference per unit time exceeds a predetermined threshold a given number of times in a row, then the flow rate of oxygen introduced to the plasma treatment apparatus is increased or, if the amount of change exceeding the predetermined threshold has not been seen, then the oxygen flow rate is set back to the original value thereof. This series of actions is repeated all the time during a set period of time. | 09-18-2008 |
20080261335 | ENDPOINT DETECTION FOR PHOTOMASK ETCHING - Apparatus and method for endpoint detection are provided for photomask etching. The apparatus provides a plasma etch chamber with a substrate support member. The substrate support member has at least two optical components disposed therein for use in endpoint detection. Enhanced process monitoring for photomask etching are achieved by the use of various optical measurement techniques for monitoring at different locations of the photomask. | 10-23-2008 |
20080311687 | Method and Apparatus for Optimizing a Gate Channel - The invention can provide a method of processing a substrate using Gate-Optimization processing sequences and evaluation libraries that can include gate-etch procedures, COR-etch procedures, and evaluation procedures. | 12-18-2008 |
20090029489 | Endpoint Detection Device For Realizing Real-Time Control Of Plasma Reactor, Plasma Reactor With Endpoint Detection Device, And Endpoint Detection Method - An endpoint detection device, a plasma reactor with the endpoint detection device, and an endpoint detection method are provided. The endpoint detection device includes an OES data operation unit, a data selector, a product generator, an SVM, and an endpoint determiner. The OES data operation unit processes reference OES data by normalization and PCA. The data selector selects part of the linear reference loading vectors and selects part of the selected linear reference loading vectors. The product generator outputs at least one reference product value. The SVM performs regression and outputs a prediction product value. The endpoint determiner detects a process wafer etch or deposition endpoint and outputs a detection signal. | 01-29-2009 |
20090061540 | Plasma process detecting sensor - The present invention provides a plasma process detecting sensor. In the plasma process detecting sensor, a hole diameter of an insulating film is spread with almost no spread of a hole diameter of an upper electrode. Therefore, when the plasma process detecting sensor is exposed to a plasma, positive ions incident onto the bottom of a contact hole are hard to collide with an inner wall surface of a hole main body of the insulating film. As a result, the inner wall surface of the hole main body of the insulating film is hard to undergo damage, and the generation of a defect level that assists electric conduction can be suppressed. It is thus possible to suppress age deterioration of a sensor function during the measurement of a charge-up under an environment of a plasma etching condition. | 03-05-2009 |
20090068768 | QUANTIFICATION OF HYDROPHOBIC AND HYDROPHILIC PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS - A non-destructive and simple analytical method is provided which allows in situ monitoring of plasma damage during the plasma processing such as resist stripping. If a low-k film is damaged during plasma processing, one of the reaction products is water, which is remained adsorbed onto the low-k film (into pores), if the temperature is lower than 100-150 C. A plasma (e.g. He) that emits high energy EUV photons (E>20 eV) which is able to destruct water molecules forming electronically excited oxygen atoms is used to detect the adsorbed water. The excited oxygen is detected from optical emission at 777 nm. Therefore, the higher the adsorbed water concentration (higher damage), a more intensive (oxygen) signal is detected. Therefore, intensity of oxygen signal is a measure of plasma damage in the previous strip step. The proposed analytical method can be performed in-situ immediately after plasma processing and most preferred the optical emission of oxygen radicals is monitored during the de-chucking step in the plasma chamber. | 03-12-2009 |
20090081815 | Method and Apparatus for Spacer-Optimization (S-O) - The invention can provide a method of processing a substrate using S-O processing sequences and evaluation libraries that can include one or more optimized spacer creation and evaluation procedures. | 03-26-2009 |
20090162952 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING EDGE PERFORMANCE IN AN INDUCTIVELY COUPLED PLASMA CHAMBER - The present invention generally provides methods and apparatus for controlling edge performance during process. One embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus comprising a chamber body defining a process volume, a gas inlet configured to flow a process gas into the process volume, and a supporting pedestal disposed in the process volume. The supporting pedestal comprises a top plate having a substrate supporting surface configured to receive and support the substrate on a backside, and an edge surface configured to circumscribe the substrate along an outer edge of the substrate, and a height difference between a top surface of the substrate and the edge surface is used to control exposure of an edge region of the substrate to the process gas. | 06-25-2009 |
20090253222 | Etching process state judgment method and system therefor - An etching process state judgment method comprising: a spectral data obtaining step, in which an optical emission spectrum distribution is obtained by monitoring optical emission during an etching process of a plurality of wafers; a peak detection step, in which peaks are detected from the optical emission spectrum distribution at a specific time point during the etching process, to obtain peak characteristics; a common peak identifying step, in which peaks common to the wafers are identified among the peaks detected in the peak detection step; and a state detection step, in which the characteristics are compared regarding the common peaks, to detect a state of each wafer in the etching process. | 10-08-2009 |
20090280581 | Detection of arcing events in wafer plasma processing through monitoring of trace gas concentrations - A method of detecting substrate arcing in a semiconductor plasma processing apparatus is provided. A substrate is placed on a substrate support in a reaction chamber of a plasma processing apparatus. Process gas is introduced into the reaction chamber. A plasma is generated from the process gas and the substrate is processed with the plasma. Intensities of real-time spectrometry signals of selected gas species produced in the reaction chamber during plasma processing are monitored. The selected gas species are generated by a substrate arcing event. The arcing event is detected when the intensities are above a threshold value. | 11-12-2009 |
20090286333 | ETCHING METHOD AND ETCHING APPARATUS OF SEMICONDUCTOR WAFER - A method of etching a semiconductor wafer is provided. The method comprises the steps of: jetting a mixed gas including hydrogen fluoride and ozone onto a surface of a semiconductor wafer; monitoring the surface of the semiconductor wafer; analyzing the surface of the semiconductor wafer; and adjusting at least one of the hydrogen fluoride concentration and the ozone concentration in the mixed gas based on a result of the analysis. | 11-19-2009 |
20100009470 | WITHIN-SEQUENCE METROLOGY BASED PROCESS TUNING FOR ADAPTIVE SELF-ALIGNED DOUBLE PATTERNING - An apparatus for adaptive self-aligned dual patterning and method thereof. The method includes providing a substrate to a processing platform configured to perform an etch process and a deposition process and a metrology unit configured for in-vacuo critical dimension (CD) measurement. The in-vacuo CD measurement is utilized for feedforward adaptive control of the process sequence processing platform or for feedback and feedforward adaptive control of chamber process parameters. In one aspect, a first layer of a multi-layered masking stack is etched to form a template mask, an in-vacuo CD measurement of the template mask is made, and a spacer is formed, adjacent to the template mask, to a width that is dependent on the CD measurement of the template mask. | 01-14-2010 |
20100055807 | PLASMA ASHING APPARATUS AND ENDPOINT DETECTION PROCESS - A plasma ashing apparatus for removing organic matter from a substrate including a low k dielectric, comprising a first gas source; a plasma generating component in fluid communication with the first gas source; a process chamber in fluid communication with the plasma generating component; an exhaust conduit in fluid communication with the process chamber; wherein the exhaust conduit comprises an inlet for a second gas source and an afterburner assembly coupled to the exhaust conduit, wherein the inlet is disposed intermediate to the process chamber and an afterburner assembly, and wherein the afterburner assembly comprises means for generating a plasma within the exhaust conduit with or without introduction of a gas from the second gas source; and an optical emission spectroscopy device coupled to the exhaust conduit comprising collection optics focused within a plasma discharge region of the afterburner assembly. An endpoint detection process for an oxygen free and nitrogen free plasma process comprises monitoring an optical emission signal of an afterburner excited species in an exhaust conduit of the plasma asher apparatus. The process and apparatus can be used with carbon and/or hydrogen containing low k dielectric materials. | 03-04-2010 |
20100087017 | METHOD OF PRODUCING SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE - It is intended to produce a semiconductor device with a stable gate length, using an end-point detection process based on monitoring a plasma emission intensity during dry etching for setting a gate length. A semiconductor device production method of the present invention comprises the steps of forming a first dielectric or gate conductive film to allow a pillar-shaped semiconductor layer to be buried therein; flattening the first dielectric or gate conductive film while detecting an end-point using a stopper formed on top of the pillar-shaped semiconductor layer; forming a second dielectric or gate conductive film; etching the second dielectric or gate conductive film and calculating an etching rate during the etching; and detecting an end-point of etching of the first dielectric or gate conductive film, based on the etching rate of the second dielectric or gate conductive film during etching-back of the second dielectric or gate conductive film, to control an etching amount of the first dielectric or gate conductive film. | 04-08-2010 |
20110039355 | Plasma Generation Controlled by Gravity-Induced Gas-Diffusion Separation (GIGDS) Techniques - The invention can provide apparatus and methods of processing a substrate using plasma generation by gravity-induced gas-diffusion separation techniques. By adding or using gases including inert and process gases with different gravities (i.e., ratio between the molecular weight of a gaseous constituent and a reference molecular weight), a two-zone or multiple-zone plasma can be formed, in which one kind of gas can be highly constrained near a plasma generation region and another kind of gas can be largely separated from the aforementioned gas due to differential gravity induced diffusion and is constrained more closer to a wafer process region than the aforementioned gas. | 02-17-2011 |
20110143462 | ADJUSTING SUBSTRATE TEMPERATURE TO IMPROVE CD UNIFORMITY - A plasma etching system having a substrate support assembly with multiple independently controllable heater zones. The plasma etching system is configured to control etching temperature of predetermined locations so that pre-etch and/or post-etch non-uniformity of critical device parameters can be compensated for. | 06-16-2011 |
20110177625 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IDENTIFYING THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF A GAS - Embodiments of the present invention relate to the analysis of the components of one or more gases, for example a gas mixture sampled from a semiconductor manufacturing process such as plasma etching or plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). Particular embodiments provide sufficient power to a plasma of the sample, to dissociate a large number of the molecules and molecular fragments into individual atoms. With sufficient power (typically a power density of between | 07-21-2011 |
20110207245 | STAGE, SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS, PLASMA PROCESSING APPARATUS, CONTROL METHOD FOR STAGE, CONTROL METHOD FOR PLASMA PROCESSING APPARATUS, AND STORAGE MEDIA - A stage onto which is electrostatically attracted a substrate to be processed in a substrate processing apparatus, which enables the semiconductor device yield to be improved. A temperature measuring apparatus | 08-25-2011 |
20110269252 | METHOD FOR POSITIONING SPACERS FOR PITCH MULTIPLICATION - Multiple pitch-multiplied spacers are used to form mask patterns having features with exceptionally small critical dimensions. One of each pair of spacers formed around a plurality of mandrels is removed and alternating layers, formed of two mutually selectively etchable materials, are deposited around the remaining spacers. Layers formed of one of the materials are then etched, leaving behind vertically-extending layers formed of the other of the materials, which form a mask pattern. Alternatively, instead of depositing alternating layers, amorphous carbon is deposited around the remaining spacers followed by a plurality of cycles of forming pairs of spacers on the amorphous carbon, removing one of the pairs of spacers and depositing an amorphous carbon layer. The cycles can be repeated to form the desired pattern. Because the critical dimensions of some features in the pattern can be set by controlling the width of the spaces between spacers, exceptionally small mask features can be formed. | 11-03-2011 |
20120208302 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING SILICON CARBIDE SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE - There is provided a method for manufacturing a SiC semiconductor device achieving improved performance. The method for manufacturing the SiC semiconductor device includes the following steps. That is, a SiC semiconductor is prepared which has a first surface having at least a portion into which impurities are implanted. By cleaning the first surface of the SiC semiconductor, a second surface is formed. On the second surface, a Si-containing film is formed. By oxidizing the Si-containing film, an oxide film constituting the SiC semiconductor device is formed. | 08-16-2012 |
20120288969 | MANUFACTURING METHOD OF SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE AND SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING APPARATUS - An etching apparatus includes a process unit and a control unit. Emission intensity of plasma inside the process unit is obtained by an OES detector, a nonlinear regression analysis is performed by an etching control device to determine a regression formula. The nonlinear regression analysis is performed by using the emission intensity of the plasma obtained until a first time when the emission intensity of the plasma passes a peak, and a second time to be an etching end point is calculated by using the regression formula. The etching end point is calculated as a time when the emission intensity decreases for a predetermined value from the first time. The etching apparatus finishes an etching when the process reaches the etching end point. It is thereby possible to control the etching end point with high-accuracy. | 11-15-2012 |
20120322170 | PINHOLE INSPECTION METHOD OF INSULATOR LAYER - A pinhole inspection method of an insulator layer, wherein the pinhole inspection method comprises steps as following: A dry etching process is firstly performed to remove a contiguous layer adjacent to the insulator layer. Subsequently an etching endpoint is determined and the dry etching process is then stopped in accordance with a second electron energy variation triggered by the dry etching process. Afterward, a cross-sectional morphology or topography of the insulator layer is inspected. | 12-20-2012 |
20130023067 | Methods for Improving Integrated Photonic Device Uniformity - A method is described for improving the uniformity over a predetermined substrate area of a spectral response of photonic devices fabricated in a thin device layer. The method includes (i) establishing an initial device layer thickness map for the predetermined area, (ii) establishing a linewidth map for the predetermined area, and (iii) establishing an etch depth map for the predetermined area. The method further includes, based on the initial device layer thickness map, the linewidth map and the etch depth map, calculating an optimal device layer thickness map and a corresponding thickness correction map for the predetermined substrate area taking into account photonic device design data. Still further, the method includes performing a location specific corrective etch process in accordance with the thickness correction map. | 01-24-2013 |
20130052757 | METHODS FOR OPTIMIZING A PLASMA PROCESS - Methods for optimizing a plasma process are provided. The method may include obtaining a measurement spectrum from a plasma reaction in a chamber, calculating a normalized measurement standard and a normalized measurement spectrum of the measurement spectrum, comparing the normalized measurement spectrum with a normalized reference spectrum, and comparing the normalized measurement standard with a normalized reference standard to determine whether to change a process parameter of the plasma process or clean the chamber when the normalized measurement spectrum and the normalized reference spectrum are mismatched. | 02-28-2013 |
20130071955 | PLASMA ETCHING METHOD - A method for processing a substrate to form a desired pattern by an etching process after forming a mask pattern over the substrate includes the steps of: forming two layers over the substrate; measuring a width of the mask pattern or an etched pattern of one of the two layers; and adjusting a flow rate of any one of HBr and other gases, used in the etching process, based on the measured width. The two layers may include a silicon nitride layer and an organic dielectric layer. | 03-21-2013 |
20130137195 | ETCHING APPARATUS AND METHODS - A method of etching the whole width of a substrate to expose buried features is disclosed. The method includes etching a face of a substrate across its width to achieve substantially uniform removal of material; illuminating the etched face during the etch process; applying edge detection techniques to light reflected or scattered from the face to detect the appearances of buried features; and modifying the etch in response to the detection of the buried feature. An etching apparatus for etching substrate across its width to expose buried is also disclosed. | 05-30-2013 |
20130157388 | ETCH RATE DETECTION FOR ANTI-REFLECTIVE COATING LAYER AND ABSORBER LAYER ETCHING - A method and apparatus for etching a photomask substrate with enhanced process monitoring is provided. In one embodiment, a method of determining an etching endpoint includes performing an etching process on a first tantalum containing layer through a patterned mask layer, directing a radiation source having a first wavelength from about 200 nm and about 800 nm to an area uncovered by the patterned mask layer, collecting an optical signal reflected from the area covered by the patterned mask layer, analyzing a waveform obtained the reflected optical signal reflected from the substrate from a first time point to a second time point, and determining a first endpoint of the etching process when a slope of the waveform is changed about 5 percent from the first time point to the second time point. | 06-20-2013 |
20140024143 | SYSTEM FOR IN-SITU FILM STACK MEASUREMENT DURING ETCHING AND ETCH CONTROL METHOD - Disclosed is an in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) system and associated method for controlling plasma etching processes during the forming of stepped structures in semiconductor manufacturing. The in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) can be optionally configured for coupling to a surface-wave plasma source (SWP), for example a radial line slotted antenna (RLSA) plasma source. A method is described to correlate the lateral recess of the steps and the etched thickness of a photoresist layer for use with the in-situ optical monitor (ISOM) during control of plasma etching processes in the forming of stepped structures. | 01-23-2014 |
20140106476 | DIFFERENTIAL MEASUREMENTS FOR ENDPOINT SIGNAL ENHANCEMENT - A method for etching a layer is provided. A substrate is provided in a chamber. An etch plasma for etching a layer on the substrate is generated. Light from a first region of the chamber is measured to provide a first signal. Light from a second region of the chamber is measured to provide a second signal. The first signal with the second signal are compared to determine an etch endpoint. | 04-17-2014 |
20140106477 | METHOD OF ENDPOINT DETECTION OF PLASMA ETCHING PROCESS USING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS - Disclosed is a method for determining an endpoint of an etch process using optical emission spectroscopy (OES) data as an input. Optical emission spectroscopy (OES) data are acquired by a spectrometer attached to a plasma etch processing tool. The acquired time-evolving spectral data are first filtered and demeaned, and thereafter transformed into transformed spectral data, or trends, using multivariate analysis such as principal components analysis, in which previously calculated principal component weights are used to accomplish the transform. A functional form incorporating multiple trends may be used to more precisely determine the endpoint of an etch process. A method for calculating principal component weights prior to actual etching, based on OES data collected from previous etch processing, is disclosed, which method facilitates rapid calculation of trends and functional forms involving multiple trends, for efficient and accurate in-line determination of etch process endpoint. | 04-17-2014 |
20140234992 | PLASMA ETCHING METHOD AND SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD - A plasma etching method is provided for etching a substrate corresponding to an etching object within an etching apparatus that includes a supply condition adjustment unit for adjusting a supply condition for supplying etching gas to the substrate, a temperature adjustment unit for adjusting a temperature of the substrate placed on a stage along a radial direction, and a plasma generating unit for generating plasma within a space between the supply condition adjustment unit and the stage. The plasma etching method includes a control step in which the temperature adjustment unit controls the temperature of the substrate to be uniform within a substrate plane of the substrate, and an adjustment step in which the supply condition adjustment unit adjusts a concentration distribution of active species contained in the plasma generated by the plasma generation unit within the space above the substrate. | 08-21-2014 |
20140370625 | Stopping An Etch In A Planar Layer After Etching A 3D Structure - A method of etching including providing a plurality of nanostructures extending away from a support, the support comprising a dielectric layer located between the plurality of nanowires, forming a patterned mask over a first portion of the plurality of nanostructures, such that a second portion of the plurality of nanostructures are exposed and are not located under the patterned mask, etching the second portion of the plurality of nanostructures to remove at least a portion of the patterned mask and the second portion of the plurality of nanostructures, monitoring at least one gaseous byproduct of the etching of the plurality of nanostructures during the etching of the plurality of nanostructures and stopping the etching on detecting that the dielectric layer is substantially removed. | 12-18-2014 |
20150024517 | PLASMA ETCHER CHUCK BAND - A plasma etch tool includes a wafer chuck with a chuck base and at least one functional component layer attached to the chuck base. A perimeter of the functional component layer has a polymer material permanently attached to it that extends to within 2 millimeters of a top surface of the chuck. The top surface of the wafer chuck contacts a bottom surface of a semiconductor wafer during an etch process for forming an integrated circuit. The polymer material is protected from an etch ambient by a plasma etcher chuck band installed around the perimeter of the functional component layer, extending over a portion of the chuck base. An integrated circuit may be formed by installing the plasma etcher chuck band on the chuck of the plasma etch tool, and subsequently performing an etch process in the plasma etch tool on a semiconductor wafer containing the partially formed integrated circuit. | 01-22-2015 |
20150064810 | Low Contamination Chamber for Surface Activation - An embodiment low contamination chamber includes a gas inlet, an adjustable top electrode, an adjustable bottom electrode, and an outlet. The chamber is configured to adjust a distance between the adjustable top and bottom electrodes in accordance with a desired density of plasma disposed between the top electrode and the bottom electrode. | 03-05-2015 |
20150099314 | PREDICTIVE METHOD OF MATCHING TWO PLASMA REACTORS - Etch rate distribution non-uniformities are predicted for a succession of hardware tilt angles of the RF source applicator relative to the workpiece, and the behavior is modeled as a non-uniformity function for each one of at least two plasma reactors. An offset Δα in tilt angle α between the non-uniformity functions of the two plasma reactors is detected. The two reactors are then matched by performing a hardware tilt in one of them through a tilt angle equal to the offset Δα. | 04-09-2015 |
20150111315 | ETCH RATE DETECTION FOR ANTI-REFLECTIVE COATING LAYER AND ABSORBER LAYER ETCHING - A method and apparatus for etching a photomask substrate with enhanced process monitoring is provided. In one embodiment, a method of determining an etching endpoint includes performing an etching process on a first tantalum containing layer through a patterned mask layer, directing a radiation source having a first wavelength from about 200 nm and about 800 nm to an area uncovered by the patterned mask layer, collecting an optical signal reflected from the area covered by the patterned mask layer, analyzing a waveform obtained the reflected optical signal reflected from the substrate from a first time point to a second time point, and determining a first endpoint of the etching process when a slope of the waveform is changed about 5 percent from the first time point to the second time point. | 04-23-2015 |
20150311129 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETECTING ENDPOINT FOR THROUGH-SILICON VIA REVEAL APPLICATIONS - Systems and methods for processing a semiconductor wafer includes a plasma processing chamber. The plasma processing chamber includes an exterior, an interior region with a wafer receiving mechanism and a viewport disposed on a sidewall of the plasma processing chamber providing visual access from the exterior to the wafer received on the wafer receiving mechanism. A camera is mounted to the viewport of the plasma processing chamber on the exterior and coupled to an image processor. The image processor includes pattern recognition logic to match images of emerging pattern captured and transmitted by the camera, to a reference pattern and to generate signal defining an endpoint when a match is detected. A system process controller coupled to the image processor and the plasma processing chamber receives the signal from the image processor and adjusts controls of one or more resources to stop the etching operation. | 10-29-2015 |
20150318185 | METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE, ION BEAM ETCHING DEVICE, AND CONTROL DEVICE - A film thickness distribution exists in a substrate plane after CMP step. This film thickness distribution results in, for example, variation in gate threshold value voltages of metal gates, and causes variation in element characteristics. It is an object of the present invention to easily improve the film thickness distribution processed by this CMP step. | 11-05-2015 |
20160005666 | ENDPOINT BOOSTER SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR OPTICAL ENDPOINT DETECTION - An endpoint booster transports an optical signal from inside of a plasma etch chamber through a viewport to an optical cable outside of the plasma etch chamber. The optical signal is analyzed to determine an endpoint of a plasma process. The endpoint booster inhibits process byproducts from accumulating on the viewport during the plasma process, which increases the time between chamber cleanings. The reduction in chamber downtime for cleaning increases production throughput. | 01-07-2016 |
20160104648 | SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR INTERNAL SURFACE CONDITIONING IN PLASMA PROCESSING EQUIPMENT - A method of conditioning internal surfaces of a plasma source includes flowing first source gases into a plasma generation cavity of the plasma source that is enclosed at least in part by the internal surfaces. Upon transmitting power into the plasma generation cavity, the first source gases ignite to form a first plasma, producing first plasma products, portions of which adhere to the internal surfaces. The method further includes flowing the first plasma products out of the plasma generation cavity toward a process chamber where a workpiece is processed by the first plasma products, flowing second source gases into the plasma generation cavity. Upon transmitting power into the plasma generation cavity, the second source gases ignite to form a second plasma, producing second plasma products that at least partially remove the portions of the first plasma products from the internal surfaces. | 04-14-2016 |
20160135274 | ADJUSTMENT OF VUV EMISSION OF A PLASMA VIA COLLISIONAL RESONANT ENERGY TRANSFER TO AN ENERGY ABSORBER GAS - Disclosed are methods of adjusting the emission of vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation from a plasma in a semiconductor processing chamber. The methods may include generating a plasma in the processing chamber which includes a VUV-emitter gas and a collisional energy absorber gas, and adjusting the emission of VUV radiation from the plasma by altering the concentration ratio of the VUV-emitter gas to collisional energy absorber gas in the plasma. In some embodiments, the VUV-emitter gas may be helium and the collisional energy absorber gas may be neon, and in certain such embodiments, adjusting VUV emission may include flowing helium and/or neon into the processing chamber in a proportion so as to alter the concentration ratio of helium to neon in the plasma. Also disclosed are apparatuses which implement the foregoing methods. | 05-12-2016 |
20160148851 | DRY ETCHING METHOD AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE - A first etching rate of the first conductive film is calculated by acquiring correlation between an opening ratio of an etching mask and an etching rate of an etching target film, and then, performing a first dry etching to a first conductive film formed on a first wafer. Next, a second etching mask is formed on a second conductive film formed on a second wafer, and an etching time of the second conductive film is determined from the correlation between the opening ratio and the etching rate, the first etching rate, and a film thickness of the second conductive film when the second conductive film is subjected to a second dry etching in time-controlled etching. | 05-26-2016 |
20160172258 | METHOD OF ENDPOINT DETECTION OF PLASMA ETCHING PROCESS USING MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS | 06-16-2016 |
20160203989 | LOCAL DRY ETCHING APPARATUS AND LOCAL DRY ETCHING FABRICATION METHOD | 07-14-2016 |
20180025940 | METHOD FOR REMOVING BARRIER LAYER FOR MINIMIZING SIDEWALL RECESS | 01-25-2018 |