JP2000054145A - Surface treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a surface treating device capable of uniformly subjecting a substrate of a large area to plasma treatment at a high speed, and moreover, reducing ion damage and capable of finishing it to a product of high quality. SOLUTION: Casing (2) is partitioned into two chambers of a plasma generating chamber (3) provided with a plasma generating electrodes (5 and 5') and a substrate treating chamber (4) provided with a substrate supporting stand (7). Plural plasma blow-off ports (6) are formed on the electrode (5') composing the bulkhead between the chambers (3 and 4). Moreover, on the substrate treating chamber (4), the substrate supporting stand (7) is arranged in such a manner that a substrate (S) is supported parallel to the flows of plasma from the plasma blow-off ports (6). The substrate supporting stand (7) is movable in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the blow-off direction of the plasma in a state in which the parallel interval with the blow-off direction of the plasma is held.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a surface treatment apparatus suitable for various surface treatments on a substrate, and more particularly, to a surface treatment apparatus suitable for film formation on a substrate. Further, the present invention relates to a surface treatment apparatus capable of reducing damage caused by charged particles present in a plasma stream and finishing a high-quality product.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventional parallel plate plasma CVD (Chem)
The ical vapor deposition apparatus includes a pair of flat plate-like plasma generating electrodes provided in a casing so as to face each other in parallel. One of the plasma generating electrodes also has a function as a substrate support, and further, the device is provided with a heater to adjust the temperature of the substrate to a temperature suitable for vapor phase growth. . While placing a substrate into the one electrode, the voltage due to the high frequency power supply (power supply 13. 56MH _Z) is applied between both the plasma generating electrode, the discharge takes place between these electrodes. A plasma is generated by this discharge, and a raw material gas, for example, monosilane is decomposed by the plasma, and a silicon film is formed on the substrate surface.

[0003] Such a conventional parallel plate type plasma CVD.
The apparatus has an advantage that a large-area substrate can be formed by a single film-forming process by increasing the area of the plate-shaped plasma generating electrode on which the substrate is placed. . However, in the conventional parallel plate type plasma CVD apparatus, the source gas converted into plasma by both plasma generating electrodes is uniformly diffused into the film forming gas processing chamber, and a part thereof is placed on the electrode. It only contributes to the deposition of the substrate. For this reason, the utilization efficiency of the raw material gas is low.For example, when an amorphous silicon thin film or a crystalline silicon thin film is to be formed on a substrate, the film forming rate is equal to 0.
Despite the large input power of about 01 μm / min, the deposition rate is low. Therefore, it takes a longer time to manufacture a semiconductor device having a relatively large thickness such as a solar cell, which has been a main factor of low throughput and high cost.

In order to increase the film forming speed, it is conceivable to increase the power supplied by the high frequency power supply. However, with the increase of the high-frequency power by the high-frequency power source, a large amount of fine powder is generated in the gas phase, and the deterioration of the film quality due to the fine powder also increases dramatically.

Therefore, a conventional parallel plate type plasma CV
In the case of the D apparatus, in order to avoid the deterioration of the film quality due to such fine powder, the applied power (input power) must be suppressed and the current must be reduced. That is, there are practically upper limits of the applied power and the current, and the film forming rate cannot be increased to a certain level or more.

On the other hand, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-255
In the reactor disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 373, a casing is defined by two chambers, a plasma generation chamber and a substrate processing chamber, which are surrounded by a pair of opposed plasma generation electrodes connected to a high-frequency power supply and an insulating wall. ing. A source gas inlet is provided in the plasma generation chamber, and an opening communicating with the substrate processing chamber from the plasma generation chamber is formed at the center of one of the plasma generation electrodes. A substrate is supported at a position facing the opening in the substrate processing chamber.

In the reactor, when high-frequency power is applied to the pair of plasma generating electrodes from a high-frequency power source, plasma is generated between the two electrodes, and the raw material gas introduced into the plasma generating chamber is turned into plasma. At this time, by setting the pressure of the substrate processing chamber lower than that of the plasma generation chamber, the plasma is jetted out from the opening formed in the electrode into the processing chamber as a jet stream, and the substrate supported opposite the opening is supported. Guided above. The apparatus further applies a magnetic field parallel to the plasma flow from the opening to the substrate, so that the plasma flow is further focused and guided to the substrate.

As described above, in a reactor which is divided into two chambers, ie, a plasma generation chamber and a substrate processing chamber, and in which a plasma flow is positively blown toward a substrate, the film forming rate is increased without increasing the input power. be able to. Further, crystallization of the thin film is promoted in spite of the increase in the film forming speed, and a high-quality thin film can be formed at a film forming speed higher than before.

In order to perform a surface treatment on a large-area substrate by means of an apparatus defined in two chambers, a plasma generation chamber and a substrate processing chamber, a substrate support for mounting and supporting the substrate is provided. The table as a transfer means such as a belt conveyor,
A surface treatment is performed on the surface of the substrate while transferring the substrate. In an apparatus for generating plasma by electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) discharge disclosed in, for example, JP-A-63-4957, a large number of plasma outlets are formed in a partition wall separating a plasma generation chamber and a substrate processing chamber. ,
Plasma processing is performed with a large-area substrate placed on a substrate support.

[0010]

However, in the apparatus for performing the plasma processing while transferring the substrate by the transfer means, even if the size of the substrate can be made longer in the transfer direction, the apparatus can be made longer in the direction perpendicular to the transfer direction. The dimensions are limited to some extent. Further, in a plasma apparatus having a large number of plasma outlets in a partition wall, actually, plasma is not uniformly blown out from all holes, and it is extremely difficult to perform a uniform plasma treatment on a large-area substrate. .

The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a surface treatment apparatus capable of uniformly and rapidly performing a plasma treatment on a large-sized substrate. is there.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a plasma generator, a raw material gas inlet, and a casing provided with a substrate support.
A surface processing apparatus for generating plasma by the plasma generating means to convert a raw material gas into plasma and performing plasma processing on a surface of a substrate supported by the substrate support, wherein the casing includes the plasma generating means provided with the plasma generating means. Chamber, and a substrate processing chamber provided with the substrate support, the substrate processing chamber is communicated with the plasma generation chamber through one or more plasma outlets, the substrate processing chamber, A surface treatment apparatus, wherein one or more substrate supports are arranged such that a surface of the substrate supported by the support and a direction in which the plasma is blown out from the plasma outlet are substantially parallel to each other. Is the main configuration.

In the above apparatus, since the direction of the plasma blown out from the plasma outlet is substantially parallel to the surface of the substrate supported by the substrate support, the substrate is provided over the entire length of the plasma in the direction of the plasma blowout. Plasma works. Therefore, surface treatment can be performed in a short time even on a substrate having a large area.

The substrate can be made of glass, an organic film, or a metal such as SUS.
Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention can be applied not only to film formation processing for forming thin films such as polycrystalline silicon and amorphous silicon, but also to generation of fine particles such as porous silicon and carbon fine particles, and surface treatment such as dry etching and ashing. It is. Further, as the plasma generating means, any method such as parallel plate plasma, DC glow plasma, VHF high frequency plasma, ECR plasma, or helicon wave plasma can be adopted. In the case of employing parallel plate plasma, an arbitrary power source can be used for a pair of electrodes from DC to high frequency.

Preferably, the plasma outlet has a portion whose opening cross section gradually increases toward the blowing side, and further, the plasma blowing outlet has a portion at its inlet whose opening cross section gradually decreases toward the blowing side. It is preferred to have. With the above-described shape of the plasma outlet, the plasma in the plasma generation chamber can be actively drawn into the outlet, and the plasma can be jetted in the substrate processing chamber at a desired angle and a desired force.

In order to perform a surface treatment on a substrate having a larger area in a short time, the plasma outlet may have a slit shape extending parallel to the substrate, and the plasma may be blown out in a sheet shape. Preferably, a plurality of the plasma outlets are arranged on a straight line parallel to the substrate, and the plasma is preferably merged into a sheet after being blown out from the plasma outlet. Further, by maintaining the substrate support base in a direction parallel to the direction in which the plasma is blown out and moving the substrate support in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the plasma is blown, uniform and high-speed processing can be performed on a substrate having a larger area. Can be subjected to a surface treatment.

Further, in order to stabilize the blowing direction of the plasma, it is most preferable that the substrate processing chamber has an exhaust port at a position facing the plasma blowing port. The formation position of the exhaust port can be appropriately selected within a range that does not greatly affect the direction in which the plasma is blown out.

The source gas inlet can be opened in the peripheral wall of the plasma generating chamber or the plasma outlet, and the source gas inlet is supplied so as to be supplied in a direction orthogonal to the flow of the plasma. It is preferable to open the inside of the substrate processing chamber, and it is further preferable that the raw material gas inlet is disposed closer to the plasma outlet than the substrate. In this case, the source gas can be efficiently guided to the substrate, and the plasma generation chamber can be prevented from being contaminated by the source gas.

Further, in the surface treatment apparatus of the present invention, the number of the substrate treatment chambers is two or more, and each treatment chamber has one exhaust port, one or more plasma outlets, and one or more substrate support bases. With this arrangement, two or more substrates can be simultaneously processed by a single processing apparatus. Further, when the substrate processing chambers are vertically arranged, if the space above is large, a large number of substrates can be stored in a minimum floor area.
It is possible to install a surface treatment device capable of performing the treatment at a high degree, and it is possible to effectively use the space.

The two plasma generation chambers are arranged to face each other with one of the substrate processing chambers interposed therebetween, and at least two of the plasma outlets communicating the plasma generation chamber and the substrate processing chamber are opposed to each other. It can also be formed at a location. By combining the plasmas blown out from the two blowout ports in this way, it is possible to process a substrate having a larger area in a short time.

Further, it is preferable that a magnetic field is applied to the substrate processing chamber so that lines of magnetic force act in a direction parallel to the flow of the plasma. In this case, the magnetic field prevents the plasma from being diffused more widely than necessary in the substrate processing chamber, and by increasing the plasma density, the collision between electrons in the plasma and source gas molecules is activated. In addition, the surface treatment speed of the substrate S can be increased.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to preferred embodiments. FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the treatment apparatus 1. The surface treatment apparatus 1 is configured such that the interior of a casing 2 that is cut off from the outside air is defined as two chambers, a plasma generation chamber 3 and a substrate processing chamber 4, and the plasma generation chamber 3 and the substrate processing chamber 4 are arranged adjacent to each other in the horizontal direction. A substrate support 7 is provided on a floor surface in the substrate processing chamber 4, and a substrate S is supported on the support 7.

In the plasma generating chamber 3, a pair of plate-like plasma generating electrodes 5, 5 'connected to a high-frequency power source P are arranged. One of the pair of electrodes 5, 5 ′ is attached to the side wall 2 a of the casing 2 via an insulator 3 a, and the other electrode 5 ′ constitutes a partition wall with the substrate processing chamber 4. I have. Further, the plasma generation chamber 3 has a source gas inlet (not shown) formed on the electrode 5 attached to the side wall 2a, and a source gas such as monosilane is showered from the source gas inlet. Spouted in a shape. Alternatively, the electrode 5 is provided in the plasma generation chamber 3.
In addition, a source gas inlet (not shown) may be formed separately, and the source gas is introduced from the inlet. Further, a carrier gas for promoting generation of plasma, stabilizing plasma, and transporting the source gas to the substrate S is mixed with the source gas and introduced from the source gas inlet. Note that an inlet dedicated to the carrier gas may be separately provided.

A plasma outlet 6 is formed at the center of the electrode 5 'constituting the partition wall.
The plasma generation chamber 3 and the substrate processing chamber 4 communicate with each other via the. The plasma outlet 6 has a circular opening cross section, and as shown in FIG. 3, at the inlet side, the opening cross section has a gradually decreasing portion 6a which gradually decreases toward the blowing side, and the blowing side has an opening cross section. Is formed in a gradually increasing portion 6b that gradually increases toward the blowing side. With the outlet 6 having such a shape, the plasma in the plasma generation chamber 3 can be positively drawn in, and the plasma can be ejected in the substrate processing chamber 4 at a desired angle and a desired force.

A substrate support 7 is disposed in the substrate treatment chamber 4 so that the substrate S is supported in parallel with the flow of plasma from the plasma outlet 6. The substrate support 7 is movable in a horizontal direction (vertical direction in FIG. 2) orthogonal to the blowing direction while maintaining a parallel interval with the blowing direction of the plasma. In addition, a heater 8 is provided below the support table 7, and adjusts the temperature of the substrate S placed on the substrate support table 7 to a temperature suitable for vapor phase growth. Further, an exhaust port 9 is formed at the center of the side wall 2b of the casing facing the plasma outlet 6 of the substrate processing chamber 4, and an open / close valve (not shown) provided in the exhaust port 9;
The gas is exhausted from the exhaust port 9 by a pressure adjusting valve and a vacuum pump so that the chamber pressure of the substrate processing chamber 4 becomes 0.1 to several torr.

The exhaust port 9 is desirably provided at a position facing the plasma outlet 6 as in this embodiment so as not to disturb the direction of the plasma blown out from the plasma outlet 6. . However, in view of the installation space of the surface treatment apparatus 1 and the like, the exhaust port 9 does not necessarily need to be provided at the above-described position, and may be appropriately set within a range that does not significantly affect the plasma blowing direction.
The formation position of the exhaust port 9 can be changed.

When a high frequency power of 5 to 500 W is applied to the pair of plasma generating electrodes 5 and 5 'by the high frequency power supply P, discharge occurs between the electrodes 5 and 5', and plasma is generated in the plasma generating chamber 3. I do. The raw material gas and the carrier gas introduced into the plasma generation chamber 3 are turned into plasma by the plasma. At this time, since the chamber pressure of the substrate processing chamber 4 is adjusted to 0.1 to several torr, which is lower than that of the plasma generation chamber 3, the plasma in the plasma generation chamber 3 And jets into the substrate processing chamber 4 as a jet stream. The surface of the substrate S in the processing chamber 4 is subjected to plasma processing by the jet stream of the plasma, and a thin film is formed on the surface of the substrate 4.

At this time, since the surface of the substrate S supported by the substrate support 7 is parallel to the direction in which the plasma is blown from the plasma generation chamber 3 to the substrate processing chamber 4, as shown in FIG. The plasma acts on the substrate S over the entire length of the plasma blowing direction (the horizontal direction in the drawing). Further, since the substrate support 7 is movable in a direction perpendicular to the plasma blowing direction and in a horizontal direction (vertical direction in the drawing), the entire surface of the substrate S is subjected to plasma processing at high speed and without unevenness. .

Hereinafter, other embodiments and modifications of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same components as those in the above-described first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 20 according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of the apparatus 20. The surface treatment apparatus 20 includes a plasma outlet 10
Has a slit shape extending in parallel with the substrate S, and a nozzle body 11 is attached to the outlet 10. The nozzle body 11 has a gradually increasing portion 11a whose opening cross section gradually increases from the inlet side to the blowing side, and has a square tubular portion 11b whose opening cross section is constant toward the blowing side at the blowing side. . From the plasma outlet 10 to which the nozzle body 11 having the slit shape is attached, plasma is blown out in a sheet shape as shown in FIG.

In the surface treatment apparatus 20 of the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the substrate S is supported in parallel with the flow of the plasma, so that collision of charged particles is avoided. can do. Further, in this embodiment, since the plasma is blown out in a sheet shape, the entire surface of the substrate S can be treated at once with the sheet-like plasma without moving the substrate S as in the first embodiment. In addition, the processing speed is further improved, and the apparatus 20 is simplified because the moving means of the substrate support 7 is not required.

In order to blow out the plasma in the form of a sheet, the plasma outlet is not formed in a slit shape as described above. For example, a plurality of plasma outlets having a circular cross section are formed in parallel with the substrate S. They may be arranged on a straight line, and may be combined into a sheet after the plasma is blown out from the plasma outlet.

FIG. 6 is a schematic front view of a surface treating apparatus 30 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In the same device 30 as in the second embodiment described above, a nozzle body 11 is attached to a plasma outlet 10 having a slit shape. Further, in the apparatus 30, the source gas introduction unit 12 is disposed in the substrate processing chamber 4 without being provided in the plasma generation chamber 3, and only the carrier gas is introduced into the plasma generation chamber 3. The source gas inlet 12 is disposed above the substrate support 7 with the plasma blown out from the plasma outlet 10 interposed therebetween. Further, a plurality of source gas inlets 12a are formed on the lower surface of the source gas inlet 12 facing the substrate support 7 so that the source gas flows from the inlet 12a in a direction orthogonal to the flow of the plasma. And supplied to the substrate S.

In the apparatus 30, only the carrier gas is turned into plasma in the plasma generation chamber 3 and blown out to the substrate processing chamber 4. In the substrate processing chamber 4, a source gas is supplied toward the plasma, and the source gas is decomposed by the energy of the carrier gas that has been turned into plasma and turned into plasma.
It reaches the substrate S.

By supplying the source gas to the substrate S in this manner, the source gas converted into plasma acts on the substrate S efficiently, and the processing speed of the substrate S is further improved. Further, by introducing the source gas into the substrate processing chamber 4, the inner wall surface in the plasma generation chamber 3 can be prevented from being contaminated by the plasma. In addition, the raw material gas introduction section may be disposed so that the introduced gas is orthogonal to the plasma blown out from the blow-out port 10, and may be introduced from below the blown sheet-shaped plasma.

FIG. 7 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 30 'which is a modification of the third embodiment described above. In the modification, the raw material gas introduction unit 12 ′ is shifted more toward the plasma outlet 10 than the substrate S supported by the substrate support 7, and the upstream portion of the plasma flow from the substrate S. It is arranged in. With such an arrangement, the source gas completely plasmatized also acts on the end of the substrate S on the side of the plasma outlet 10, so that a uniform treatment can be performed on the surface of the substrate S. Done. In addition, a ring-shaped source gas inlet is disposed near the outlet 10, and the source gas is blown out from the outlet 10 through a gas inlet formed in the inner peripheral surface of the ring-shaped source gas inlet. It is also possible to introduce the plasma toward a formed sheet or rod-shaped plasma.

FIG. 8 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 40 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The device 40 is provided with the second
The surface processing apparatus 20 according to the embodiment further includes a coil-shaped electromagnet 13 for applying a magnetic field to the substrate processing chamber 4. The electromagnet 13 is provided in the substrate processing chamber 4.
Is provided so as to surround the outer periphery of the casing 2 corresponding to the above-mentioned portion, and a magnetic field is applied in which the lines of magnetic force act in a direction parallel to the flow of the plasma.

In the surface treatment apparatus 40, the sheet-like plasma blown out from the plasma outlet 10 is prevented from being diffused more than necessary in the substrate processing chamber 4 by the action of the magnetic field, and the plasma density is reduced. And the collision of electrons in the plasma with the source gas molecules is activated. As a result, the surface treatment speed of the substrate S can be increased. Instead of the electromagnet 13, it is also possible to arrange a permanent magnet or a superconducting magnet such that the lines of magnetic force act in a direction parallel to the flow of the plasma.

FIG. 9 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 50 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In the same device 50, a nozzle body 11 is attached to a slit-shaped plasma outlet 10 as in the second embodiment described above, and plasma is blown out in a sheet shape. In the apparatus 50 of the present embodiment, two substrate supports 7, 7 'are arranged vertically above and below the substrate treatment chamber 4 with the plasma interposed therebetween, and the substrate S supported by each substrate support 7, 7' is It is parallel to the flow of plasma from the plasma outlet 6. The support 7 is provided with heaters 8 and 8 ', respectively, and adjusts the temperature of the substrate S supported on the surface of each substrate support 7 to a temperature suitable for vapor phase growth.

According to the apparatus 50 of this embodiment having such a configuration, in addition to the effects of the above-described second embodiment, the plasma blown out from the plasma outlet 10 into a sheet and diffused in the substrate processing chamber 4 is , And acts on both substrates S, S supported above and below in the processing chamber 4. Therefore, the surface treatment can be performed on the two substrates S with substantially the same amount of plasma as that required for processing one substrate S and with substantially the same processing time, and the plasma is wasted. And can be used efficiently.

FIG. 10 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 60 according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. In the same device 60, the inside of the casing 2, which is cut off from the outside air, is defined as three chambers of two plasma generation chambers 3, 3 'and a substrate processing chamber 4,
The two plasma generation chambers 3 are disposed to face left and right with the substrate processing chamber 4 interposed therebetween.

In each of the plasma generating chambers 3, 3 ', a pair of plate-like plasma generating electrodes 5, 5' connected to a high-frequency power source P are arranged. One of the pair of electrodes 5, 5 'is connected to a side wall 2a of the casing 2,
2b via insulators 3a, 3a,
The other electrodes 5 ′ and 5 ′ constitute a partition wall with the substrate processing chamber 4.

A slit-shaped plasma outlet 10 is formed at the center of each of the electrodes 5 'constituting the partition, and the plasma generating chambers 3 and 3 are formed through the plasma outlet 10.
3 ′ and the substrate processing chamber 4 are communicated. The plasma outlet 10 is further provided with a nozzle body 11. Nozzle outlets 10, 10 formed in each of the plasma generation chambers 3, 3 'are open to face each other in the substrate processing chamber 4.

A substrate support 7 is provided in the substrate treatment chamber 4 so that the substrate S is supported in parallel with the flow of plasma from the plasma outlet 10. A heater 8 for adjusting the temperature of the substrate S is provided below. An exhaust port 9 is formed in the lower wall 2c of the casing 2 at a position corresponding to the processing chamber 4, and an open / close valve, a pressure regulating valve, and a vacuum pump (not shown) provided in the exhaust port 9 The gas is exhausted from the exhaust port 9 so that the chamber pressure of the substrate processing chamber 4 becomes 0.1 to several torr.

The plasma generated in the plasma generating chambers 3 and 3 'is supplied to the plasma outlets 10 and 10 respectively.
From the substrate processing chamber 4 in the form of a sheet. The sheet-like plasmas blown out from the two outlets 10 and 10 are combined in the substrate processing chamber 4 and act on the substrate S. Therefore, it is possible to perform a surface treatment on the substrate S having a larger area.

FIG. 11 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus 70 according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention. In the apparatus 70, a casing 2 which is cut off from the outside air is defined as four chambers of a plasma generation chamber 3 and three substrate processing chambers 4, 4 ', and 4 ".
The three substrate processing chambers 4, 4 ', 4 "are vertically arranged, and the plasma generation chamber 3 is arranged adjacent to all the substrate processing chambers 4, 4', 4".

In the plasma generating chamber 3, a pair of plate-like plasma generating electrodes 5, 5 'connected to a high frequency power source P are arranged. One electrode 5 of a pair of electrodes 5, 5 '
Is mounted on the side wall 2a of the casing 2 via an insulator 3a, and the other electrode 5 'constitutes a partition wall with the three substrate processing chambers 4, 4', 4 ".

Each of the electrodes 5 'constituting the partition has three slit-shaped plasma outlets 10 formed therein, and each of the plasma outlets 10 is connected to the substrate processing chamber 4, 4', respectively.
4 ". Further, a nozzle body 11 is attached to the plasma outlet 10.

In the substrate treatment chambers 4, 4 ′, and 4 ″, a substrate support table 7 is arranged so that the substrate S is supported in parallel with the flow of plasma from the plasma outlet 6. In addition, a heater 8 is provided below the support table 7 to adjust the temperature of the substrate S. Further, the side wall 4b of the casing 2 is provided at a position facing the plasma outlet 10 on each side. Exhaust ports 9 of the processing chambers 4, 4 ', 4 "are formed, and the three exhaust ports 9 are connected to one duct 9a. The duct 9a is provided with an opening / closing valve, a pressure regulating valve, and a vacuum pump (not shown), and the duct 9a is arranged so that the chamber pressure of each of the substrate processing chambers 4, 4 ', 4 "is 0.1 to several torr. The exhaust is made from.

The plasma generated in the plasma generation chamber 3 is almost uniformly blown out into the three substrate processing chambers 4, 4 ′ and 4 ″ in the form of a sheet. Although 70 can process a large number of substrates S at one time, it can be installed with a minimum floor area as long as the space above is large, and effective use of space can be achieved. .

In the above-described embodiment, the plasma generating electrodes 5 and 5 'are connected to a high-frequency power source to apply high-frequency power. However, any power from DC to high-frequency can apply any power. . As the plasma generating means, in addition to the parallel plate plasma using a pair of plasma generating electrodes as in the above-described embodiment, a microwave and a magnetic field are simultaneously applied, and electron cyclotron resonance (EC) is performed.
R) ECR plasma for generating plasma by discharging;
Any method such as DC glow plasma, VHF high frequency plasma, or helicon wave plasma can be adopted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the device.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a plasma outlet of the apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of the device.

FIG. 6 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus which is a modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic front view of a surface treatment apparatus according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 Surface treatment device 2 Casing 2a, 2b Side wall 2c Lower wall 3, 3 'Plasma generation chamber 3a Insulator 4, 4', 4 "Substrate processing chamber 5, 5 'Plasma Generation electrode 6 Plasma outlet 6a Gradual decrease 6b Gradual increase 7 Substrate support 8 Heater 9 Exhaust port 9a Duct 10 Plasma vent 11 Nozzle body 11a Increasing part 11b Cylindrical part 12 Source gas supply part 12a Source gas supply port 13 Electromagnet S Substrate P High frequency power supply

Continued on the front page F term (reference) 4K030 AA06 AA16 EA06 EA11 FA03 GA04 KA30 KA34 5F045 AA08 AA10 AB03 AB04 AB07 AC01 AE19 AE21 AF07 AF10 BB02 BB09 BB14 DP03 DP04 DQ14 EE06 EF01 EF05 EF20 EH18 E09

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A method comprising: generating plasma in a casing provided with plasma generating means, a raw material gas inlet, and a substrate support by the plasma generating means to convert the raw material gas into plasma; and supporting the substrate supported by the substrate support. A surface processing apparatus for performing plasma processing on a surface, wherein the casing is defined by a plasma generation chamber including the plasma generation unit and a substrate processing chamber including the substrate support. The plasma processing chamber communicates with the plasma generation chamber through the above-described plasma outlet, and the substrate processing chamber has one or more substrate supports, the substrate surface supported by the support and the substrate surface and the plasma outlet. A surface treatment apparatus characterized by being arranged so that a direction in which the plasma is blown out is substantially parallel. 2. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plasma outlet has a portion whose opening cross section gradually increases toward the outlet side. 3. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the plasma outlet has a portion having an opening cross-section that gradually decreases toward the outlet at the inlet. 4. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plasma outlet has a slit shape extending in parallel with the substrate, and the plasma is blown out in a sheet shape. 5. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the plasma outlets are arranged on a straight line parallel to the substrate, and the plasma is merged into a sheet after being blown out from the plasma outlet. The surface treatment device according to any one of the above. 6. The surface treatment according to claim 1, wherein the substrate support pedestal maintains a parallel interval with a direction of blowing the plasma and is movable in a direction orthogonal to the direction of blowing the plasma. apparatus. 7. The surface processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate processing chamber has an exhaust port at a position facing the plasma outlet. 8. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the source gas introduction port is opened in the substrate processing chamber so that the source gas is supplied in a direction orthogonal to the flow of the plasma. 9. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the raw material gas inlet is disposed upstream of the substrate with respect to the flow of the plasma. 10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the number of the substrate processing chambers is two or more, and each processing chamber is provided with one exhaust port, one or more plasma outlets, and one or more substrate support tables. Item 4. The surface treatment apparatus according to Item 1. 11. The surface treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a magnetic field in which lines of magnetic force act in a direction parallel to the flow of the plasma is applied to the substrate processing chamber.