KR101072751B1 - Apparatus for atomic layer deposition - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is an atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of providing plasma treatment treatment in the same process chamber in-situ in an atomic layer deposition apparatus and providing a uniform and high density plasma to a substrate. An atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of treating a thin film in situ in a deposition apparatus includes a process chamber provided with a plurality of substrates to provide a space in which a deposition process is performed, and a deposition gas provided on the substrate. At least one pair of parallel electrode plates provided in the gas injection unit and the gas injection unit and provided in a direction perpendicular to the substrate to form a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate, and providing plasma to the substrate. It may be configured to include a plasma processing unit. Here, the plasma processing unit may be provided such that the deposition gas is injected into the substrate through the electrode plate.

Atomic layer deposition apparatus, ALD, plasma treatment

Description

Atomic Layer Deposition Equipment {APPARATUS FOR ATOMIC LAYER DEPOSITION}

The present invention relates to an atomic layer deposition apparatus, to provide an atomic layer deposition apparatus that can increase the density and corrosion resistance of a thin film by providing a plasma.

In general, a method of depositing a thin film having a predetermined thickness on a substrate such as a semiconductor substrate or glass includes physical vapor deposition (PVD) using physical collision, such as sputtering, and chemical reaction using a chemical reaction. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and the like. Recently, as the design rules of semiconductor devices are drastically fined, thin films of fine patterns are required, and the step height of regions where thin films are formed is also very large. Due to this trend, the use of atomic layer deposition (ALD), which is capable of forming a very uniform pattern of atomic layer thickness very uniformly and has excellent step coverage, has been increasing.

ALD is similar to the general chemical vapor deposition method in that it uses chemical reactions between gas molecules. However, in contrast to conventional CVD in which multiple gas molecules are simultaneously injected into a chamber to deposit the reaction product generated on the substrate, ALD injects a gas containing one source material into the chamber to chemisorb the heated substrate. There is a difference in that a product by chemical reaction between the source materials is deposited on the substrate surface by injecting a gas containing another source material into the chamber. These ALDs are widely attracting attention because they have the advantage of being able to deposit pure thin films having excellent step coverage characteristics and low impurity contents.

Meanwhile, a semi-batch type is disclosed in which a deposition process is simultaneously performed on a plurality of substrates in order to improve throughput in an atomic layer deposition apparatus. In general, the semi-batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus has a region in which different kinds of deposition gases are injected, and the substrate is sequentially passed through each region by the high speed rotation of the gas injection unit or the susceptor. Chemical reactions occur between and the reaction products are deposited.

However, the thin film formed by the existing ALD is weak in density and corrosion resistance, it is necessary to study the ALD that can improve the density and corrosion resistance of the thin film.

Embodiments of the present invention for solving the above problems are to provide an atomic layer deposition apparatus that can improve the density and corrosion resistance of a thin film in ALD.

According to embodiments of the present invention for achieving the above object of the present invention, a thin film in situ in a semi-batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus that receives a plurality of substrates and a deposition process is performed at the same time An atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of treating the process includes: a process chamber that accommodates a plurality of substrates and provides a space in which a deposition process is performed, a gas injection unit disposed above the process chamber to inject a deposition gas onto the substrate, and And a plasma processing unit provided at a gas injection unit and including at least one pair or more parallel electrode plates provided in a direction perpendicular to the substrate to form a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate, and providing a plasma to the substrate. Can be. Here, the plasma processing unit may be provided such that the deposition gas is injected into the substrate through the electrode plate.

In an embodiment, the gas injection unit may include an injection member having a plurality of holes for injecting deposition gas, and the injection member may be provided on at least one side of the upper or lower portion of the electrode plate. In addition, the injection member may be formed of an insulator or a dielectric material to prevent damage to the electrode plate and the injection member due to the plasma.

The gas injection unit may be divided into at least one source region into which a source gas containing a source material is injected and at least one purge region into which a purge gas for purging the source gas is injected, and the plasma processing unit may include at least one It may be provided in the source region or at least one purge region. Alternatively, the plasma processing unit may be provided in the entire gas injection unit.

The plasma processing unit may include a plurality of parallel electrode plates arranged to intersect the moving direction of the substrate in a vertical direction and spaced apart from each other at predetermined intervals.

On the other hand, according to other embodiments of the present invention for achieving the above object of the present invention, a semi-batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus capable of plasma treatment in-situ, is provided in the process chamber It includes a plasma processing unit for treatment by providing a plasma to the thin film deposited on the substrate in-situ during or after the deposition process of the substrate. Here, the plasma processing unit, at least one pair or more parallel to the substrate provided in the vertical direction and provided in the vertical direction to form a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate, the plasma facing each other It may be configured to include an electrode plate.

As described above, according to embodiments of the present invention, by providing a plasma in the same chamber during the atomic layer deposition process, it is possible to improve the density and corrosion resistance of the thin film.

In addition, since plasma treatment is performed in a deposition process and an in-situ process in the same chamber, the process may be prevented from being lengthened and productivity may be improved.

In addition, since the plasma is generated by forming a horizontal electric field with respect to the substrate, it is possible to generate a uniform and high-density plasma and to increase the treatment effect of the thin film while preventing damage to the substrate and the thin film by ion bombardment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to or limited by the embodiments. In describing the present invention, a detailed description of well-known functions or constructions may be omitted for clarity of the present invention.

Hereinafter, an atomic layer deposition apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. For reference, FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating main parts of an atomic layer deposition apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are plasma processing units (see FIG. 1). It is a schematic diagram and a top view for demonstrating 104). 4 is a schematic diagram for describing the plasma processing unit 104 according to the modified embodiment of FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings, an atomic layer deposition apparatus (ALD) 100 capable of performing plasma treatment by atomic layer deposition and in-situ inside the process chamber 101 (100). ) Includes a process chamber 101, a susceptor 102, a gas injection unit 103, and a plasma processing unit 104.

In the atomic layer deposition apparatus 100, deposition is simultaneously performed on a plurality of substrates 10 in order to improve throughput, and in order to secure the quality of the thin film 11, the substrates 10 are horizontally disposed. A semi-batch type may be used in which deposition is performed. Here, since the detailed technical configuration of the atomic layer deposition apparatus 100 is not the gist of the present invention, the detailed description and illustration are omitted and only the main components will be briefly described.

In this embodiment, the substrate 10 to be deposited may be a silicon wafer. However, the object of the present invention is not limited to the silicon wafer, and the substrate 10 may be a transparent substrate including glass used for a flat panel display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a plasma display panel (PDP). . In addition, the shape and size of the substrate 10 is not limited by the drawings, and may have substantially various shapes and sizes, such as a circle and a rectangle.

The process chamber 101 accommodates a plurality of substrates 10 to provide a space and environment in which an atomic layer deposition process is performed.

The susceptor 102 is provided inside the process chamber 101 and is rotatably formed so that the substrate 10 may be seated in a horizontal direction and revolve at a predetermined speed during the deposition process. For example, the susceptor 102 may be formed such that six substrates 10 are horizontally mounted along the circumferential direction of the susceptor 102.

The gas injection unit 103 is provided on the susceptor 102 inside the process chamber 101 to inject the deposition gas onto the substrate 10.

In the present embodiment, the "deposition gas" is a gas for depositing the thin film 11, and at least one source gas including a source material constituting the thin film 11 to be deposited on the substrate 10. gas or reactant) and a purge gas for removing the remaining gas except for the chemically adsorbed reactants on the surface of the substrate 10. In the present embodiment, an example using two kinds of source gas and one kind of purge gas will be described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and it is also possible to use two or more kinds of source gases or two or more kinds of purge gases. For example, to deposit a silicon thin film (SiO ₂ ), the first source gas may be any one of silane (Silane, SiH ₄ ), disilane (Disilane, Si ₂ H ₆ ), and silicon tetrafluoride (SiF 4) including silicon. One gas may be used, and the second source gas may use oxygen (O ₂ ) or ozone (O ₃ ) gas. The purge gas may be a chemically stable gas, and may be one of argon (Ar), nitrogen (N ₂ ), helium (He), or a mixture of two or more.

Here, in the atomic layer deposition apparatus 100, the source gas and the purge gas are respectively provided so that the source gas and the purge gas may be sequentially provided to the substrate 10 as the susceptor 102 rotates. Areas to be sprayed are formed. For example, the gas injection unit 103 may include four jet regions having four fan shapes, and the first source region SA1 and the purge gas, into which the first source gas is injected, along the moving direction of the substrate 10. The first purge region PA1 is sprayed, the second source region SA2 is sprayed with the second source gas, and the second purge region PA2 is sprayed with the purge gas.

Referring to the atomic layer deposition method, while the substrate 10 seated on the susceptor 102 passes through the first source region SA1 as the susceptor 102 rotates, the first source gas is applied to the substrate 10. The excess first source gas that is chemisorbed and is not adsorbed to the substrate 10 while passing through the first purge region PA1 is removed. Next, as the second source gas provided while passing through the second source region SA2 chemically reacts with the first source gas adsorbed on the substrate 10, a reaction product is deposited to form a thin film 11 having a predetermined thickness. Is formed. Next, the second source gas remaining in the substrate 10 and the reaction product not deposited on the substrate 10 are removed by the purge gas while passing through the second purge region PA2.

Meanwhile, the plasma processor 104 may increase the density of the thin film 11 by providing a plasma to the thin film 11 deposited on the substrate 10 in the same process chamber 101 during the deposition process or after the deposition process is completed. It is provided in the gas injection unit 103 so that.

The plasma processing unit 104 forms an electric field between a pair of opposing electrode plates 141 when power is applied, and thus, the pair of parallel electrode plates arranged in parallel with each other to generate plasma in the space between the electrode plates 141. 141 and a power supply unit 142 for applying power to the electrode plate 141.

The plasma processing unit 104 includes an electrode plate 141 provided in a direction perpendicular to the substrate 10 to form a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate 10, and a pair or a plurality of pairs spaced apart at regular intervals. It may be composed of an electrode plate 141. The plasma processing unit 104 is provided with electrode plates 141 spaced apart from each other by a predetermined interval so that the deposition gas injected from the gas injection unit 103 is excited between the electrode plates 141 in a plasma state. During passage between 141, it is excited with plasma and provided to the substrate 10. That is, plasma is generated while the direction of the electric field formed in the plasma processor 104 and the injection direction of the deposition gas cross each other perpendicularly, and the generated plasma is provided to the substrate 10 provided under the influence of gravity. .

For example, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the plasma processor 104 may increase the reactivity of the first and second source gases by exciting the second source gas in a plasma state, thereby increasing the deposition rate and the deposition rate. It may be provided in the second source area SA2. 2 to 4 illustrate that the plasma processing unit 104 is provided in the second source area SA2, the present invention is not limited to the drawings and the position of the plasma processing unit 104 may be substantially varied. can be changed. For example, it is also possible to be provided with respect to the whole area of the gas injection part 103. Alternatively, the plasma processing unit 104 may be provided in the first source area SA1 or in both sides of the first and second source areas SA1 and SA2. Alternatively, the plasma processing unit 104 may be provided in any one or both purge areas PA1 and PA2 of the purge areas PA1 and PA2.

In addition, the electrode plate 141 may be disposed to substantially cross perpendicularly with respect to the moving direction of the substrate 10, that is, as shown in FIG. 3, approximately parallel to the radial direction of the substrate 10. However, the present invention is not limited by the drawings, and the electrode plate 141 may be disposed in substantially various forms capable of forming a horizontal electric field on the substrate 10.

On the other hand, in order to make the density of the deposition gas provided to the substrate 10 uniform, the gas injection unit 103 includes a plurality of injection holes 135a for densely injecting the deposition gas, such as a showerhead. The member 135 may be provided.

Here, the gas injection unit 103, as shown in Figure 4, the injection member 135 is provided on the upper portion of the electrode plate 141 along the injection direction of the deposition gas or any one of the lower side of the electrode plate 141. It may be provided in. Alternatively, the injection member 135 may be provided on both the upper and lower sides of the electrode plate 141. Here, the injection member 135 may be formed of an insulator or a dielectric material so as to protect the injection member 135 without affecting the plasma when the plasma is generated in the electrode plate 141.

In addition, in order to prevent the gas injection unit 103 from being damaged by the plasma generated from the electrode plate 141, the entire gas injection unit 103 or at least a portion contacting the electrode plate 141 is formed of a dielectric material. Alternatively, a protective member or a protective layer (not shown) made of a dielectric material may be provided between the gas injection unit 103 and the electrode plate 141.

According to the present embodiments, the plasma processing unit 104 may increase the density of the thin film 11 and improve the corrosion resistance by providing a plasma to the thin film 11. Here, depositing a silicon oxide (SiO ₂ ) layer having a predetermined thickness on the surface of the silicon substrate 10 causes hydrogen to be substituted at some oxygen sites, thereby decreasing the density of the thin film 11 and reducing corrosion resistance. However, when the plasma is provided to the thin film 11 deposited on the substrate 10, the hydrogen contained in the thin film 11 is removed to shrink the thickness of the thin film 11 while the structure of the thin film 11 is dense. And the density and the corrosion resistance are improved.

Here, when the thin film 11 having a predetermined thickness is deposited on the substrate 10 before the deposition process is completed, the plasma processing unit 104 operates to provide the plasma to thereby deposit the thin film 11. You can treat. Alternatively, the thin film 11 may be treated after the deposition process is completed. The operation of the plasma processing unit 104 may be determined based on the thickness of the thin film 11 deposited on the substrate 10 or the time at which the deposition process is performed. For example, when the thin film 11 having a predetermined thickness is deposited on the substrate 10, the plasma treatment may be performed. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the operation of the plasma processing unit 104 may be substantially variously performed according to needs and conditions.

Looking at the operation of the plasma processing unit 104, when power is applied to the plasma processing unit 104, a horizontal electric field is formed between a pair or a plurality of pairs of electrode plates 141 facing each other. In addition, the deposition gas injected from the gas injection unit 103 is excited in a plasma state by a horizontal electric field while passing through the electrode plate 141, and the plasma is provided to the substrate 10 provided on the lower susceptor 102. do.

Herein, the plasma processing unit 104 is provided with electrically neutral radicals among the plasma particles to the substrate 10, and ions, which are particles having relatively high energy, are forced between the electrode plates 141 to receive the substrate 10. It is possible to prevent the substrate 10 and the thin film 11 from being damaged by ions by disappearing before reaching or reaching the substrate 10 due to a large angle of incidence. In addition, since a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate 10 is formed, it is possible to generate a uniform and high density plasma on the substrate 10 to improve the deposition rate and the deposition rate, it is possible to improve the quality of the thin film.

As described above, the present invention has been described by specific embodiments such as specific components and the like, but the embodiments and the drawings are provided only to help a more general understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is limited to the above-described embodiments. In other words, various modifications and variations are possible to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Therefore, the spirit of the present invention should not be limited to the above-described embodiments, and all the things that are equivalent to or equivalent to the scope of the claims as well as the claims to be described later belong to the scope of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view of main parts of an atomic layer deposition apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a schematic view for explaining an example of a plasma processing unit in the atomic layer deposition apparatus of FIG.

3 is a plan view of the gas injection unit and the plasma processing unit of FIG.

4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a gas injection unit and a plasma processing unit according to the modified embodiment of FIG. 2.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10: substrate 11: thin film

100: atomic layer deposition apparatus 101: process chamber

102: susceptor 103: gas injection unit

104: plasma processing unit 135: injection member

135a: injection hole 141: electrode plate

142: power supply

Claims (8)

In a semi-batch type atomic layer deposition apparatus that accommodates a plurality of substrates and performs a deposition process at the same time, A process chamber accommodating a plurality of substrates and providing a space in which a deposition process is performed; A gas injection unit disposed above the process chamber to inject a deposition gas onto the substrate; And And a pair or a plurality of pairs of parallel electrode plates provided in the gas ejection unit and disposed in a vertical direction with the substrate to intersect in a vertical direction with respect to the moving direction of the substrate to form a horizontal electric field parallel to the substrate. And a plasma processing unit for providing plasma to the thin film deposited on the substrate during or after completion of the deposition process; And the plasma processing unit is configured to spray the deposition gas onto the substrate through the electrode plate. The method of claim 1, The gas injection unit includes an injection member having a plurality of holes for injecting deposition gas, The injection member is an atomic layer deposition apparatus provided on at least one side of the upper or lower portion of the electrode plate. The method of claim 2, The injection member is an atomic layer deposition apparatus formed of a non-conductor or dielectric material. The method of claim 1, And the gas injection unit is divided into at least one source region into which a source gas including a source material is injected and at least one purge region into which a purge gas for purging the source gas is injected. 5. The method of claim 4, And the plasma processing unit is provided in at least one source region or at least one purge region. 5. The method of claim 4, The plasma processing unit is an atomic layer deposition apparatus provided in the entire gas injection unit. delete delete

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