CN202643920U - Gas diffusion homogenizing device and plasma process equipment by using gas diffusion homogenizing device - Google Patents
Gas diffusion homogenizing device and plasma process equipment by using gas diffusion homogenizing device Download PDFInfo
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- CN202643920U CN202643920U CN 201220236521 CN201220236521U CN202643920U CN 202643920 U CN202643920 U CN 202643920U CN 201220236521 CN201220236521 CN 201220236521 CN 201220236521 U CN201220236521 U CN 201220236521U CN 202643920 U CN202643920 U CN 202643920U
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Abstract
The utility model provides a device for improving gas diffusion homogenization in a vacuum chamber. The device comprises one or more laminated diffusion parts with a plurality of gas through holes, wherein the shapes and the sizes of the diffusion parts are matched with the corresponding sections of a space of the vacuum chamber, so that the vacuum chamber is divided into two spaces by virtue of the diffusion parts, and a gas guiding port and a vacuumizing port are respectively arranged in the two spaces. The utility model also provides plasma process equipment with the gas diffusion homogenizing device. The gas diffusion homogenizing device is arranged in the space between the inner wall in the vacuum chamber and the lower bottom surface of a lower electrode; a gas guiding device and the vacuumizing port are respectively arranged in the two spaces; and the upper end surface of the lower electrode and the gas guiding device are arranged in the same space. According to the device and the equipment, the gas diffusion homogenization in the vacuum chamber is effectively improved by a simple mode of arranging the diffusion parts, so that the homogenization of a plasma process is remarkably improved. Compared with the conventional technical method, mechanisms relative with the device and the equipment can be easily implemented, the mechanical processing and the assembling are simple and reliable, and the cost is remarkably reduced.
Description
Technical Field
The utility model relates to a gas diffusion homogenization device especially relates to the device that improves the gas diffusion homogenization in the vacuum chamber. The utility model discloses still provide the setting plasma process units of gas diffusion homogenization device.
Background
Many semiconductor integrated circuit chip, LED chip and other microelectronic chip manufacturing processes use thin film growth or etching process steps in a vacuum environment. The thin film growth process is to grow new thin film materials on the surface of a substrate, and the commonly seen process types include Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD), Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD), Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD), and the like. An etching process selectively forms a volatile reactant from a surface of a substrate to remove a material, and commonly known types of processes include an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) etching process, a Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) process, and the like.
Both film growth reactions and plasma etching reactions are generally accomplished by introducing a reactant gas (also known as a process gas) into a vacuum chamber; ionizing and decomposing the reaction gas by utilizing radio frequency or microwave energy to form plasma; in the plasma, ions, electrons and neutral atoms or molecules with extremely high chemical reaction activity are contained; when the atoms, molecules and ions with high chemical activity and high energy are contacted with the substrate, chemical and physical reactions can occur, a solid film is generated on the substrate, a film growth reaction is realized, or a reactant with volatility is generated, and the reactant is pumped out of the reaction chamber by a vacuum pump, so that an etching reaction is realized.
As shown in fig. 1, taking a process of etching a silicon material as an example, mechanical structural elements and process elements of a plasma etching apparatus are briefly described. After the upper and lower vacuum chambers 1a and 1c are closed, a sealed space is formed, and the space is vacuum-sealed by the O-ring 1 b. The gas molecules present in this space are evacuated through the evacuation port 1f by the vacuum pump, thereby forming a vacuum in this space. When the reaction gas is sulfur hexafluoride (chemical formula: SF)6) And argon (chemical formula: ar) is introduced into this space through the gas inlet 1i and the shower head 1g, and then the gas pressure in the space is brought to the process requirement by the vacuum pressure control system. At this time, the rf source (including the rf matching unit) connected to the lower electrode 1e or the rf source (including the rf matching unit) connected to the upper electrode 1h is turned on, and rf energy is transmitted to SF by energy coupling6And Ar, and a series of molecular decomposition, ionization or attachment reactions are generated, mainly comprising the following reactions:
e- + SF6 = SF5 + F + e-
e- + SF5 = SF4 + F + e-
e- + SF6 = SF5 + + F + 2e-
e- + SF6 = SF5 - + F
e- + Ar = Ar++ 2e-
when the generated fluorine atom (F) having chemical activity is brought into contact with the silicon substrate 1d placed on the surface of the lower electrode, a chemical reaction occurs: si + 4F = SiF4×) @. Argon ionization in plasmaSeed (Ar)+) The silicon substrate is accelerated to higher energy under the action of a plasma shell electric field and bombarded in a direction vertical to the surface of the silicon substrate, so that anisotropic etching reaction is promoted, and SiF is greatly enhanced4The generation speed of (c). Due to the product SiF4Has volatility at normal temperature, and SiF is subjected to vacuum pumping4The molecules diffuse to the evacuation port 1 f; the vacuum chamber is evacuated by a vacuum pump. Simultaneously pumped away by a vacuum pump and also SF not ionized6Ar, and other gas molecules. The substrate is protected by a mask plate, such as a photoresist mask plate, where no etching reaction is required, so that a selective etching process on the substrate is realized.
Chip manufacturing processes often require that etching reactions occurring everywhere on a silicon substrate have good uniformity, i.e., the etching rate should be as equal as possible everywhere on the surface of the silicon substrate, however, the actual etching reactions often do not occur uniformly. In other words, the etch rate may be greater or less in some portions of the silicon substrate than in other portions of the silicon substrate. In the examples described above, there are three physical factors that directly affect the uniformity of the silicon etch rate: (1) uniformity of diffusion of active F atoms to the surface of the silicon substrate, (2) Ar+Uniformity of flux density, (3) SiF4Uniformity of the resultant leaving the surface of the silicon substrate. If active F atom, Ar+Or the product SF4The density of molecules is not uniform, and the etching reaction rate occurring at various positions on the surface of the silicon substrate is naturally not uniform. Such non-uniformity, a fundamental problem encountered in almost all chip fabrication processes, is not only encountered in etching processes, but also frequently encountered in thin film growth processes.
The non-uniformity of the etching reaction or the film growth reaction is reflected by the non-uniformity of the plasma density in the space near the substrate surface. The most fundamental factor causing the plasma density non-uniformity is the non-uniform diffusion of the gas in the space, except for the non-uniform distribution of the rf energy in the space. As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the center of the conventional chamber is a protruded lower electrode, and after the gas is introduced from the top of the chamber and passes through the gas shower head, plasma is generated in the chamber space, and the unreacted gas and new chemical reaction product gas leave the chamber through the vacuum pumping port. The question is here! Because the vacuum-pumping port is usually only located at a certain local position of the cavity wall, the vacuum-pumping port and the spray header cannot have symmetry in space position. It is known that gas molecules, when diffused, always follow the path of least resistance. Thus, even if the gas is introduced from the showerhead into the reaction chamber in an extremely uniform manner, the uniformity is not maintained during the diffusion to the evacuation port, as shown in fig. 2. In fig. 2, it is shown that the diffusion of the gas is not uniform from left to right in the direction of the substrate surface, and it is this non-uniformity of the gas diffusion that causes non-uniformity of the density of the plasma, thereby causing non-uniformity of the etching reaction or the film growth reaction.
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems caused by the asymmetry of the vacuum ports and the gas introduction means in the spatial positions, some solutions have been proposed, and most commonly, four vacuum ports are provided at four positions of the bottom of the vacuum chamber, which are uniformly symmetrical. However, this approach still has significant drawbacks. First, it increases the difficulty and cost of machining and assembly of the vacuum chamber. Secondly, if a single vacuum pump is adopted, how to connect the four vacuumizing ports on the cavity with the single air inlet on the vacuum pump becomes another technical problem with great difficulty and cost, because the four connecting pipes must be combined together and need to be symmetrical in geometric position; if a plurality of vacuum pumps are adopted, the cost is greatly increased, and the pumping speeds of the vacuum pumps need to be matched.
SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL
An object of the utility model is to improve the not enough of prior art, provide one kind canIncrease in the vacuum chamberGas diffusion homogenizing device for gas diffusion uniformity。
Another object of the present invention is to provide a plasma processing apparatus provided with the gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus.
The purpose of the utility model is realized like this:
a kind ofHomogenization of gas diffusionThe device comprises one or more stacked diffusion pieces with a plurality of gas through holes, the shape and the size of each diffusion piece are matched with the corresponding section of a vacuum chamber space to be installed, and the diffusion pieces divide the vacuum chamber into two spaces so that a gas inlet and a vacuumizing opening are respectively arranged in the two spaces.
The diffusion member may be a diffusion plate or a diffusion ring.
The diffusion pieces with the gas through holes are stacked, the adjacent two layers of diffusion pieces are arranged at intervals, the minimum distance between the adjacent two layers of diffusion pieces is determined according to the flow rate and pressure conditions of gas and the convenience of installation, and the minimum distance between the adjacent two layers of diffusion pieces is preferably not less than 2-3 cm. If the distance between two adjacent diffusing members is too small, the efficiency of gas diffusion is seriously reduced, which causes a decrease in the vacuum pumping speed and also causes inconvenience in installation. The maximum distance between two diffusers can be determined by the actual installation space, and if the distance between two adjacent diffusers is too large, it may not be possible to install them or it may be necessary to reduce the number of diffusers.
In the diffusion pieces with the gas through holes which are stacked, the gas through holes on the same diffusion piece layer are equal in size and are uniformly distributed, and the number and the size of the gas through holes on each diffusion piece layer can be different.
In the plurality of stacked diffusion members having gas passage holes, the sum of the areas of the gas passage holes in each of the stacked diffusion members is preferably substantially equal, thereby maintaining the diffusion efficiency of the gas while passing through each diffusion member substantially constant. In addition, in the multiple stacked diffusion members with gas through holes, the total area of the gas through holes in the multiple stacked diffusion members along the gas flowing direction may be greater than or equal to the total area of the gas through holes in the diffusion ring through which the gas passes first. This is because the resistance encountered by the gas as it passes through the diffuser is inversely proportional to the total area of the gas passages, i.e., the smaller the total area of the passages in a diffuser, the greater the resistance encountered by the gas as it passes through the diffuser. Because of the sequential placement of the plurality of diffusion members, the resistances are in a "series" relationship. The main purpose of the diffuser is to increase the uniformity of gas diffusion rather than to increase the resistance to gas diffusion. It is therefore advantageous for the total area of the gas passage openings of the subsequent diffuser to be larger, depending on the gas flow direction.
When the diffusion piece is a layer, the gas in the diffusion plate or the diffusion plates passes through the diffusion piece firstly, a plurality of gas through holes on the diffusion piece are symmetrically and uniformly distributed along the vertical central axis of the diffusion piece, and a sieve plate structure is formed on the diffusion plate.
When the diffusion member is a multilayer, the gas through holes on each layer have a spatially symmetric relationship: in spatially opposite positions, the layers of said diffusion members are each spaced apart but lie along the same vertical central axis. The gas through holes on each layer of diffusion piece are symmetrically and uniformly distributed along the vertical central axis, namely the center distance of the adjacent gas through holes is equal. The gas through holes on the two adjacent layers of diffusion pieces are staggered and symmetrically arranged, namely the central axes of the gas through holes on the two layers of diffusion pieces are not overlapped, and the center of one gas through hole on one layer of diffusion piece has the same minimum distance to the two gas through holes on the adjacent layer of diffusion piece. The spatial distribution relationship can improve the uniformity of the gas flow.
Furthermore, a group of n distances is arranged from m gas through holes on the lower diffusion plate to n gas through holes on the upper diffusion plate, another group of n distances is arranged from another gas through hole on the lower diffusion plate to n gas through holes on the upper diffusion plate, and the group of m data has a one-to-one correspondence equal relationship.
The diffuser is machined from a material having sufficient mechanical strength to support and withstand a set gas pressure. The diffusion member preparation material may be a metallic material or a non-metallic material. The preparation material can be aluminum and aluminum alloy material or stainless steel material and other metal materials. Or may be a non-metallic material such as a ceramic or quartz material. In order to prevent the diffusion material from reacting with the plasma, the surface of the diffusion material may be treated in advance, and a passivation film layer may be provided so as not to easily react with the gas in the vacuum chamber.
The gas diffusion is uniformTransformingThe plasma process equipment comprises plasma process vacuum chambers, wherein each plasma process vacuum chamber is internally provided with a gas introduction device, an upper electrode, a lower electrode, a vacuumizing port and a vacuum pump, the gas introduction device is arranged on a gas inlet at the top of the vacuum chamber, the vacuumizing port is arranged at the lower part of the vacuum chamber, and the vacuum pump is connected to the vacuumizing port; the upper electrode is arranged at the top of the vacuum chamber and is adjacent to the gas leading-in device, the lower electrode is arranged at the bottom of the vacuum chamber and corresponds to the upper electrode, and the upper end surface of the lower electrode is used for processing a workpiece bearing surface, and the gas leading-in device is characterized in that: the gas is uniformly diffusedTransformingThe device comprises one or more overlapped diffusion pieces with a plurality of gas through holes, the diffusion pieces are arranged in the vacuum chamber and positioned in a space between the gas inlet and the lower bottom surface of the lower electrode, so that the vacuum chamber is divided into two spaces, the gas leading-in device and the vacuumizing port are respectively arranged in the two spaces, and the upper end surface of the lower electrode and the gas leading-in device are positioned in the same space.
In operation, plasma is generated in the vacuum chamber space between the gas introduction device and the gas diffusion uniformizing device due to the action of the upper electrode and the lower electrode.
Specifically, the lower electrode is generally convexly arranged at the bottom of the vacuum chamber, an annular space is formed between the lower electrode and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber, the diffusion piece is one or more diffusion rings which are stacked, the diffusion rings are arranged in the annular space, the geometric shapes and the sizes of the outer shapes of the diffusion rings are matched with those of the inner wall of the vacuum chamber, and the geometric shapes and the sizes of the inner holes of the diffusion rings are matched with those of the lower electrode; and/or the upper surface of the diffusion piece and the upper surface of the lower electrode, namely the workpiece bearing surface, are positioned at the same level or a little lower position. Specifically, the upper surface of the diffusion ring may be 10-20 mm lower than the upper surface of the lower electrode. Such an arrangement may result in more uniform gas flow through the workpiece.
Specifically, the diffusion piece is a diffusion ring, and the gap between the diffusion ring and the side surface of the lower electrode is less than 5-10 mm. The gap between the diffusion ring and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber is lower than 5-10 mm; or the diffusion piece is a diffusion plate, and the gap between the diffusion piece and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber is less than 5-10 mm. Leaving a gap may allow for easy installation of the diffuser.
When the diffusion piece is a layer, or a diffusion piece through which the gas in the diffusion pieces passes first, a plurality of gas through holes are formed in the diffusion piece and are uniformly distributed on the diffusion plate, so that the gas through holes are matched with gas outlets of a spray header which is arranged on the gas introducing device and used for introducing the gas, and the gas flows uniformly between the spray header and the diffusion piece under the combined action of the spray header and the diffusion plate.
The number of the gas through holes on the diffusion piece closest to the vacuum-pumping port is preferably two, and the two gas through holes and the vacuum-pumping port also have the spatially symmetrical distribution characteristic, namely the two gas through holes on the diffusion piece are equal in distance to the vacuum-pumping port. Thereby improving the uniformity of the gas flow.
The utility model provides a gas diffusion homogenization device and use device's plasma process equipment to set up the improvement of gas diffusion homogeneity in the vacuum chamber has been realized effectively to this kind of simple mode of foraminiferous diffusion piece, makes the homogeneity of plasma technology to be showing and improves. Compare traditional technical solution, the utility model relates to a mechanism easily realizes, and machining is simple reliable with the installation, and the cost is also showing and is reducing.
Drawings
Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vacuum process chamber of a plasma etching apparatus in the related art.
Fig. 2 is a schematic view of gas diffusion in a vacuum process chamber of the conventional plasma etching apparatus shown in fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of an embodiment of the gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus according to the present invention.
Fig. 4 is a schematic top view of a middle diffusion ring and an upper diffusion ring of a two-layer diffusion ring according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a schematic top view of a lower diffusion ring of the middle two diffusion rings according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 6 is a schematic top view of the two diffusion rings of fig. 4 and 5 stacked together.
FIG. 7 is a main sectional view schematically showing the structure of the plasma vacuum chamber in which the gas diffusion uniforming device is installed.
Detailed Description
As shown in fig. 3, the present invention provides an embodiment of a gas diffusion homogenizing device, which comprises three diffusion rings, from top to bottom: the first-layer diffusion ring 3a, the middle-layer diffusion ring 3b and the bottom-layer diffusion ring 3c, and the three diffusion rings are three circular ring plates in appearance. The three diffusion rings are uniformly provided with a plurality of gas through holes, namely the center distances of the adjacent gas through holes are equal, and the gas through holes on the same diffusion ring are equal in size. The number and size of the gas through holes on each diffusion ring are different. The adjacent two layers of the gas through holes on the diffusion rings are arranged in a staggered and symmetrical mode, namely the central axes of the gas through holes on the two layers of the diffusion rings are not overlapped, and the center of one gas through hole on one layer of the diffusion ring has the same minimum distance to the two gas through holes on the adjacent layer of the diffusion ring.
Furthermore, a group of n distances is reserved between the m gas through holes on the next diffusion ring and the n gas through holes on the previous diffusion plate, a group of n distances is reserved between the other gas through hole on the next diffusion plate and the n gas through holes on the previous diffusion plate, and the group of m data are in one-to-one correspondence and equal relation.
The sum of the areas of the gas through holes on each layer of the diffusion ring which is overlapped is equal, or the total area of the gas through holes on the diffusion piece through which gas passes later is larger than the total area of the gas through holes on the diffusion ring through which gas passes first along the flowing direction of the gas. Preferably, the upper diffusion ring has a greater number of gas through holes and smaller holes, and the lower diffusion ring has a lesser number of gas through holes and larger holes. Therefore, the total area of the gas through holes on the upper diffusion ring and the lower diffusion ring is basically equal. And the symmetrical relation of the gas through holes on each layer of diffusion ring can ensure that the gas flow can uniformly flow through the gas diffusion homogenizing device.
As shown in fig. 7, three diffuser rings are coaxially and separately installed in the space between the lower electrode 4e and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber in order. The diameter of the inner hole on each annular plate-shaped diffusion ring is matched with the outer diameter of the lower electrode 4e convexly arranged at the bottom of the vacuum chamber. Further, for convenience of mounting and dismounting, the inner diameter of the annular plate-shaped diffusion ring should be slightly larger than the outer diameter of the lower electrode, but should not be too large, otherwise, too large a gap is left between the diffusion ring and the surface of the lower electrode, resulting in a reduction in uniformity of gas flow. In general, the gap between the three diffusion rings and the side surface of the lower electrode 4e should be less than 5-10 mm. The outer diameter of the ring of the three diffusion rings should match the inner diameter of the vacuum chamber. For ease of installation and removal, the outer diameter of the annular plate should be slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the vacuum chamber, but not too small, which would leave too large a gap between the diffuser ring and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber, and which would also result in reduced uniformity of gas flow. In general, the gap between the diffuser ring and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber should also be less than 5-10 mm.
The bottom diffusion ring 3c is placed at the lowest position, nearest to the vacuuming port 4 i. Within this diffuser ring there are two gas through holes 3c1 and 3c2 of larger diameter. Gas molecules located above the diffusion ring diffuse through the two gas through holes to the evacuation port located on the lower side of the ring. In order to ensure the uniformity of the passage of the gas molecules through the two through-holes during the evacuation, the gas passage openings 3c1 and 3c2 are in a spatially symmetrical relationship with the evacuation opening when the diffuser ring 3c is installed, i.e. the evacuation opening 4i should be at an equal distance from the gas passage openings 3c1 and 3c 2. In other words, the vacuum port 4i can only "suck" uniformly from the two gas passing holes.
The uppermost first diffusion ring 3a, which is closest to the showerhead 4j for introducing gas, is generally installed at the same level or slightly lower than the upper surface of the lower electrode 1e, i.e., the workpiece-carrying surface. The upper surface of the diffuser ring 3a may be lower than 10-20 mm with respect to the upper surface of the lower electrode. The first diffusion ring 3a is distributed with a large number of gas through holes with small size. The gas through holes on the diffuser ring 3a are uniformly distributed on the diffuser ring and are symmetrical relative to the vertical central axis O of the diffuser plate, so that the gas through holes are matched with the gas outlets of the shower heads for introducing gas arranged on the gas introducing device, and the gas uniformly flows between the shower heads and the diffuser under the combined action of the shower heads and the diffuser plate. The middle diffusion ring 3b is provided with 4 gas through holes, namely a through hole 3b1, a through hole 3b2, a through hole 3b3 and a through hole 3b 4. In order to ensure the uniformity of the gas molecules passing through the middle diffusion ring 3b, the four gas through holes of the middle diffusion ring 3b are in a spatially symmetrical relationship with the two gas through holes of the bottom diffusion ring 3c, i.e., the gas through hole 3c1 of the bottom diffusion ring 3c is equidistant from the two nearest gas through holes 3b1 and 3b2 of the middle diffusion ring 3b, and the gas through hole of the bottom diffusion ring 3c is equidistant from the gas through holes 3b3 and 3b4 of the middle diffusion ring 3 b. The through hole 3c1 has a group of four center distances to the through hole 3b1, the through hole 3b2, the through hole 3b3 and the through hole 3b4, and the through hole 3c2 has a group of four center distances to the through hole 3b1, the through hole 3b2, the through hole 3b3 and the through hole 3b4, wherein the two groups of four center distances are correspondingly equal.
Another embodiment of the gas diffusion homogenizing apparatus is shown in fig. 4, 5 and 6 and comprises four diffusion rings, the top and bottom diffusion ring structures being the same as the diffusion rings 3a and 3c of the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and the middle two layers being shown in fig. 4 and 5. The symmetric relationship of the gas through holes on the adjacent diffusion plates, two circles of gas through holes a (n) are concentrically distributed on the upper layer of diffusion plate n corresponding to the central axis O, eight gas through holes a (n) are symmetric with the central axis and uniformly distributed around the circumference (see figure 4), one circle of gas through holes b (n-1) are distributed on the lower layer of diffusion plate (n-1) corresponding to the central axis O, four gas through holes b (n-1) are symmetric with the central axis and uniformly distributed around the circumference (see figure 5), and the gas through holes on the two layers of diffusion plates are arranged. And four gas through holes of the diffusion plate (n-1) in the next layer are spaced eight times from the eight gas through holes of the diffusion plate in the previous layer to form four groups of eight hole intervals, and the data in the four groups are correspondingly equal. That is, as shown in fig. 6, there are a set of eight distances from one gas through hole b (n-1) of the next-layer diffuser plate (n-1) to the eight gas through holes of the previous-layer diffuser plate n, and a set of eight distances from the other gas through hole of the next-layer diffuser plate (n-1) to the eight gas through holes of the previous-layer diffuser plate n.
In addition, in order to keep the pumping rate of the gas through the four diffusion rings from decreasing, the sum of the areas of the gas through holes on each diffusion ring should be equal, i.e., the sum of the areas of all the gas through holes on the diffusion ring 3a should be equal to or less than the sum of the areas of the eight gas through holes on the diffusion ring n, the sum of the areas of all the gas through holes on the diffusion ring n should be equal to or less than the sum of the areas of the four gas through holes on the diffusion ring n-1, and the sum of the areas of all the gas through holes on the diffusion ring n-1 should be equal to or less than the sum of the areas of the two. In addition, of course, the area relationship of the gas through holes on the diffusion rings of the layers can also be: from top to bottom, the area of the gas through holes on the three diffusion rings is gradually increased.
Meanwhile, in order to ensure the effect of the gas diffusion homogenizing device in improving the gas diffusion uniformity, the space distance of each diffusion ring in the vertical direction when the diffusion ring is placed is not too small. Generally, the distance between two adjacent diffusion rings should not be less than 2-3 cm.
As shown in fig. 4, a sectional view of a plasma vacuum chamber structure in which a vacuum diffusion device is installed, the vacuum chamber includes: the upper half part of the vacuum cavity 4a and the lower half part of the vacuum cavity 4c are sealed in vacuum through an O-shaped sealing ring 4b after the two parts of the vacuum cavities are closed, so as to form a vacuum cavity. A substrate 4d to be subjected to process treatment is placed on the surface of the lower electrode 4 e. The gas is introduced from the introduction hole 4l, passes through the gas shower head 4j, enters the vacuum chamber, forms plasma under the action of radio frequency energy, and chemically or physically reacts with the material on the surface of the substrate 4d placed on the object carrying surface or the object carrying surface of the lower electrode 4 e. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus shown in fig. 3 is installed in a vacuum chamber, and the gas in the chamber on the gas introduction hole side of the vacuum chamber passes through the first-layer diffusion ring 4f, the middle-layer diffusion ring 4g and the bottom-layer diffusion ring 4h in this order to reach a single evacuation port 4i located in the bottom side wall of the vacuum chamber, and is evacuated from the vacuum chamber by a vacuum pump.
The plasma vacuum system also comprises a radio frequency source and a radio frequency matcher which are connected with the lower electrode 4e, a radio frequency source and a radio frequency matcher which are connected with the upper electrode 4k, a vacuum pump which is connected with the vacuum-pumping port 4i, control components in the system and an electronic communication system which is connected with the components.
The first-layer diffusion ring 4f, the middle-layer diffusion ring 4g and the bottom-layer diffusion ring 4h shown in fig. 4 are the same as the three-layer diffusion ring structure in the gas diffusion uniforming device shown in fig. 3. Since the two gas through holes disposed on the lowermost bottom diffusion ring 4h are equidistant from the vacuum pumping port, the gas molecules must diffuse "uniformly" to the two gas through holes of the bottom diffusion ring 4 h. Since the four gas through holes on the middle diffusion ring 4g and the two gas through holes on the bottom diffusion ring 4h are also symmetrically distributed, the gas molecules must be diffused to the four gas through holes on the middle diffusion ring 4g "uniformly". Since the plurality of gas through holes disposed on the uppermost first-layer diffusion ring 4f and the four gas through holes on the diffusion ring 4g are also characterized by symmetrical distribution, gas molecules must be diffused "uniformly" to the plurality of gas through holes of smaller size on the first-layer diffusion ring 4 f. In this way, the gas molecules can be kept uniform even in the process of diffusing from the gas shower head 4j to the diffusion ring 4 f. Thus, the uniformity of gas diffusion in the vacuum chamber is significantly improved, and the uniformity of the density of the plasma is also improved, resulting in an improved uniformity of the etching reaction or the film growth reaction occurring on the surface of the substrate.
Although the gas passages in the diffuser ring shown in fig. 3 and 4-6 are circular holes, such gas passages may have other geometric shapes, such as oval, square, diamond, or other irregular shapes. Further, the diffuser ring shown in FIG. 3 has a circular profile, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that there are roughly two factors that limit the geometry of these diffuser rings: (1) the diffusion ring needs to be matched with the geometric shape of the lower electrode and the geometric shape of the inner wall of the vacuum cavity; (2) the diffuser ring is easy to install and remove. For example, if the cross-section of the inner wall of the vacuum chamber in the X-Y plane is square, the diffuser ring should also have a square shape. Further, in describing the present invention, reference is made to a gas diffusion device consisting of three diffusion rings, but one having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the number of diffusion rings may vary, less than three or more than three. For example, if only one diffusion ring with a plurality of gas through holes is used, the uniformity of gas diffusion is greatly improved as compared with the conventional vacuum chamber.
In summary, the present invention effectively achieves an improvement of the uniformity of gas diffusion in the vacuum chamber in a simple manner, resulting in a significant improvement of the uniformity of the plasma process. Compare traditional technical solution, the utility model relates to a mechanism easily realizes, and machining is simple reliable with the installation, and the cost is also showing and is reducing.
Claims (10)
1. A gas diffusion homogenizing device characterized by: the vacuum chamber comprises one or more stacked diffusion pieces with a plurality of gas through holes, wherein the shape and the size of each diffusion piece are matched with the corresponding section of a vacuum chamber space to be installed, so that the vacuum chamber is divided into two spaces through the diffusion pieces, and a gas inlet and a vacuumizing opening are respectively arranged in the two spaces.
2. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein: the diffusion piece is a diffusion plate or a diffusion ring; or,
the plurality of stacked diffusion pieces with the gas through holes are arranged with a space between two adjacent layers of the diffusion pieces; or,
the diffuser is made of a metallic material or a non-metallic material having mechanical strength sufficient to support and withstand a set gas pressure; and/or the diffusion member surface is provided with a passivation film layer to make it difficult to react with the gas in the vacuum chamber.
3. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus as recited in claim 2, wherein: the minimum distance between two adjacent layers of the diffusion pieces is not less than 2-3 cm; or,
the preparation material is aluminum and aluminum alloy material or stainless steel material; or a ceramic or quartz material.
4. A gas diffusion homogenizing device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that: in the diffusion piece with the gas through holes, which is formed by stacking a plurality of diffusion pieces, the gas through holes on the same layer are equal in size and are uniformly distributed, and the number and the size of the gas through holes on each diffusion piece are different.
5. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 4, wherein: in the multiple overlapped diffusion pieces with the gas through holes, the sum of the areas of the gas through holes on each layer of the overlapped diffusion pieces is equal; or,
in the multiple overlapped diffusion pieces with the gas through holes, along the flowing direction of the gas, the total area of the gas through holes on the diffusion pieces through which the gas passes later is larger than or equal to the total area of the gas through holes on the diffusion ring through which the gas passes first; or,
when the diffusion piece is a layer, or a diffusion piece through which the gas in a multilayer diffusion plate firstly passes, a plurality of gas through holes are formed in the diffusion piece, and the gas through holes are uniformly distributed on the diffusion plate to form a sieve plate structure.
6. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2 or 4 or 5, wherein: when the diffusion member is a multilayer, the gas through holes on each layer have a spatially symmetric relationship: in spatially opposite positions, each of said layers of said diffusion members is separated but positioned along a common vertical central axis;
the gas through holes on each layer of diffusion piece are symmetrically and uniformly distributed along the vertical central axis, namely the center distances of the adjacent gas through holes are equal; and/or the gas through holes on the two adjacent layers of diffusion pieces are staggered and symmetrically arranged, namely the central axes of the gas through holes on the two layers of diffusion pieces are not overlapped, and the center of one gas through hole on one layer of diffusion piece has the same minimum distance to the two gas through holes on the adjacent layer of diffusion piece.
7. The gas diffusion uniformizing apparatus as recited in claim 6, wherein: the distance from the m gas through holes on the lower diffusion plate to the n gas through holes on the upper diffusion plate is n, the distance from the other gas through hole on the lower diffusion plate to the n gas through holes on the upper diffusion plate is n, and the data of m groups have one-to-one correspondence equal relation.
8. A plasma process apparatus provided with the gas diffusion uniforming device as claimed in claims 1 to 7, wherein a plasma process vacuum chamber is provided therein with a gas introduction device, an upper electrode, a lower electrode, a vacuum-pumping port and a vacuum pump, the gas introduction device is provided on a gas inlet at a top of the vacuum chamber, the vacuum-pumping port is provided at a lower portion of the vacuum chamber, and the vacuum pump is connected to the vacuum-pumping port; the upper electrode is arranged at the top of the vacuum chamber and is adjacent to the gas leading-in device, the lower electrode is arranged at the bottom of the vacuum chamber and corresponds to the upper electrode, and the upper end surface of the lower electrode is used for processing a workpiece bearing surface, and the gas leading-in device is characterized in that: the gas diffusion homogenizing device comprises one or more stacked diffusion pieces with a plurality of gas through holes, the diffusion pieces are arranged in the vacuum chamber and positioned in a space between the gas inlet and the lower bottom surface of the lower electrode, so that the vacuum chamber is divided into two spaces, the gas introducing device and the vacuumizing port are respectively arranged in the two spaces, and the upper end surface of the lower electrode and the gas introducing device are positioned in the same space.
9. The plasma processing apparatus of claim 8, wherein: the lower electrode is convexly arranged at the bottom of the vacuum chamber, an annular space is formed between the lower electrode and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber, the diffusion piece is one or more diffusion rings which are overlapped, the diffusion rings are arranged in the annular space, the geometric shapes and the sizes of the outer shapes of the diffusion rings are matched with the inner wall of the vacuum chamber, and the geometric shapes and the sizes of the inner holes of the diffusion rings are matched with the geometric sizes of the lower electrode; and/or the upper surface of the diffusion piece and the upper surface of the lower electrode, namely the workpiece bearing surface, are positioned at the same horizontal plane or a slightly lower position; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,
the diffusion piece is a diffusion ring, the gap between the diffusion ring and the side surface of the lower electrode is less than 5-10mm, and the gap between the diffusion ring and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber is less than 5-10 mm; or the diffusion piece is a diffusion plate, and the gap between the diffusion piece and the inner wall of the vacuum chamber is less than 5-10 mm.
10. The plasma processing apparatus of claim 9, wherein: the number of the gas through holes on the diffusion piece closest to the vacuum pumping port of the vacuum chamber is two, and the two gas through holes and the vacuum pumping port have the characteristic of symmetrical distribution in space, namely the distance from each gas through hole to the vacuum pumping port is equal; or,
when the diffusion piece is a layer, or a diffusion piece through which the gas in a multilayer diffusion plate passes first, a plurality of gas through holes are formed in the diffusion piece and are uniformly distributed on the diffusion plate, so that the gas through holes are matched with gas outlets of a spray header which is arranged on the gas introducing device and used for introducing the gas.
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Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN107012447A (en) * | 2017-04-20 | 2017-08-04 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | A kind of disperser and deposition chambers |
| CN108987235A (en) * | 2018-07-12 | 2018-12-11 | 昆山龙腾光电有限公司 | A kind of plasma processing apparatus |
| CN116254597A (en) * | 2023-03-22 | 2023-06-13 | 通威微电子有限公司 | Plasma doped silicon carbide crystal growing furnace |
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2012
- 2012-05-24 CN CN 201220236521 patent/CN202643920U/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN107012447A (en) * | 2017-04-20 | 2017-08-04 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | A kind of disperser and deposition chambers |
| CN107012447B (en) * | 2017-04-20 | 2019-09-17 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | A kind of disperser and deposition chambers |
| CN108987235A (en) * | 2018-07-12 | 2018-12-11 | 昆山龙腾光电有限公司 | A kind of plasma processing apparatus |
| CN108987235B (en) * | 2018-07-12 | 2020-06-05 | 昆山龙腾光电股份有限公司 | Plasma processing device |
| CN116254597A (en) * | 2023-03-22 | 2023-06-13 | 通威微电子有限公司 | Plasma doped silicon carbide crystal growing furnace |
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