KR20040091218A - High density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber and gas nozzle therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An HDP(high density plasma) CVD(chemical vapor deposition) chamber is provided to prevent impurities from being deposited on the inside of a process gas injection nozzle by preventing plasma gas from being induced to the inside of the process gas injection nozzle. CONSTITUTION: Inductor coil(56) is wound around the outside of a chamber. A plurality of process gas injection nozzles are coupled to a plurality of gas exhaust holes(70) formed on the inner wall of the chamber. A wafer is placed on a susceptor. A remote plasma generating unit receives cleaning gas to generate plasma and remotely supplies the plasma to the chamber through a cleaning gas injection nozzle. The cleaning gas injection nozzle injects the plasma gas supplied from the remote plasma generating unit to the inside of the chamber, installed in a position different from that of the gas exhaust hole formed in the lower corner of the inside of the chamber.

Description

High Density Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition Chamber and Gas Nozzle therefor {HIGH DENSITY PLASMA CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION CHAMBER AND GAS NOZZLE THEREFOR}

The present invention relates to a High Density Plasma (HDP) Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) chamber, and more particularly, to improve the structure of the cleaning gas spray nozzle to prevent contamination of the process gas spray nozzle. A high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber capable of improving the cleaning process efficiency.

Vertical and horizontal cross-sectional views of a typical high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber (hereinafter abbreviated as HDP CVD chamber) 10 are shown in the accompanying drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown in the figure, in a typical HDP CVD chamber 10, the inductor coil 16 is wound several times on the outside of the chamber top 12, the inductor coil 16 is an RF generated from the first frequency generator 20 The signal is provided through the matching network 18 to provide plasma ionization energy into the HDP CVD chamber 10.

A plurality of process gas injection nozzles 30 are mounted to the inside of the body 14 of the HDP CVD chamber 10 at regular intervals. The gas injection nozzle 30 allows the process gas provided from the process gas source (not shown) to be evenly injected into the chamber. A gas outlet 34 is provided at one lower edge portion of the HDP CVD chamber 10. The gas outlet 34 is connected to an exhaust system (not shown).

Process gas is injected through the gas injection nozzle 30, and plasma ionization energy is supplied from the inductor coil 16 to generate plasma. In addition, the bias power generated from the second frequency generator 28 is applied to the susceptor 22 to proceed with the CVD process of the wafer 24.

In this HDP CVD process, about 6 sheets are processed and a cleaning process that takes about 20 to 30 minutes is repeatedly performed. In the cleaning process, the cleaning gas is supplied into the HDP CVD chamber 10 through the cleaning gas nozzle 32, and the bias power generated from the second frequency generator 28 is provided to the inductor coil 16. As a result, plasma ionization energy is supplied from the inductor coil 16 to generate plasma to perform a cleaning process.

However, much of the time required for the cleaning process is required to clean the process gas nozzle, which is a major cause of lowering the process yield. This is due to structural weaknesses in the process gas nozzles. 3 and 4 are cross-sectional views illustrating examples of a process gas nozzle.

As shown in FIG. 3, the process gas nozzle 30 includes a tube having a predetermined length and open at both ends, and connected to the process gas supply line 36 to protrude inwardly into the chamber 10. ) Is inserted. As another example, as shown in Figure 4, the process gas nozzle 40 is composed of a tube having a predetermined length of the front end is blocked and the rear end is open, but has an injection port 42, one side of the front end opening, 42 is mounted to the outlet 38 to face the top of the chamber 10.

In the gas injection nozzle 30 or 40 having such a shape, impurities are deposited inside the tube as the HDP CVD process proceeds. After a certain number of processes, the clogged gas injection nozzles 30 or 40 must be cleaned, and the cleaning time is a major cause of lowering the process yield.

On the other hand, the cleaning gas nozzle 32 into which the cleaning gas is injected has a circular tubular shape, and is structurally positioned directly above the gas outlet 34. The shape and position of the cleaning gas nozzle 32 are difficult to allow the sprayed cleaning gas to spread evenly inside the chamber 10, and serve as another cause of delaying the cleaning time.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an HDP CVD chamber capable of shortening the cleaning time and improving the co-operation yield, a process gas spray nozzle and a cleaning gas spray nozzle therefor.

1 is a vertical sectional view of a typical high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber;

2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the chamber of FIG. 1;

3 and 4 are cross-sectional views showing examples of process gas nozzles;

5 is a vertical sectional view of a high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

6 is a horizontal sectional view of the chamber of FIG. 5;

7A and 7B are cross-sectional and front views of the process gas nozzle of FIG. 5;

8A and 8B are cross-sectional and front views showing another embodiment of a process gas nozzle; And

9 is an enlarged perspective view of the cleaning gas nozzle of FIG. 5.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

10, 50: HDP CVD chamber 16, 56: inductor coil

30, 70: process gas outlet 32, 72: cleaning gas outlet

18, 26, 58, 66: matching network

In order to achieve this object, the high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber of the present invention comprises: an inductor coil wound around the chamber; A plurality of process gas injection nozzles coupled to a plurality of gas outlets formed in the chamber inner wall; A susceptor on which the wafer is placed; And a cleaning gas injection nozzle installed at a position different from a gas outlet formed at an inner edge of the chamber, wherein the cleaning gas injection nozzle injects the plasma gas supplied from the remote plasma generator into the chamber.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cleaning gas injection nozzle is installed at the lower inner corner of the chamber opposite the symmetry with the gas outlet.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cleaning gas injection nozzle has an elliptical tubular structure, the injection port is installed at the inner corner of the chamber to face the upper chamber.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the process gas injection nozzle has a predetermined length, both the front end and the rear end is opened and the buried rod is installed on the inside of the exterior, the buried rod by the plurality of support members to have a predetermined distance and the appearance Supported.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the embedding rod has a length shorter than the length of the appearance and the front end is embedded to match the appearance.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the rear end of the buried rod has a conical shape having a slope.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the process gas injection nozzle is composed of a tube having a predetermined length and closed at the front end, but having a plurality of through holes formed therein and the rear end being opened.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the process gas injection nozzle and the cleaning gas injection nozzle are each composed of an electrical insulator.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the electrical insulator is composed of either ceramic or alumina.

(Example)

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein and may be embodied in other forms. The embodiments introduced herein are provided to make the disclosed contents thorough and complete, and to fully convey the spirit of the present invention to those skilled in the art.

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view of the high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view of the chamber of FIG.

Referring to the drawings, in the HDP CVD chamber 50 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inductor coil 56 is wound several times outside the upper chamber 52. The inductor coil 56 receives an RF signal generated from the first frequency generator 60 through the matching network 58 to provide plasma ionization energy into the HDP CVD chamber 50.

A plurality of process gas injection nozzles 70 are mounted at regular intervals into the body 54 of the HDP CVD chamber 50. The process gas injection nozzle 70 allows the process gas provided from the process gas source (not shown) to be evenly injected into the chamber 50. A gas outlet 74 is provided at one lower edge portion of the HDP CVD chamber 50. The gas outlet 74 is connected to an exhaust system (not shown).

When the process gas is injected through the process gas injection nozzle 70, and plasma ionization energy is supplied from the inductor coil 56, plasma is generated. In addition, the bias power generated from the second frequency generator 68 is applied to the susceptor 62 to proceed with the HDP CVD process of the wafer 64.

The process gas spray nozzle 70 according to the present invention has a structure for preventing plasma from flowing in and depositing impurities while the HDP CVD process is performed. 7A and 7B are cross-sectional and front views of the process gas nozzle of FIG. 5, and FIGS. 8A and 8B are cross-sectional and front views showing another embodiment of the process gas nozzle.

7A and 7B, the process gas injection nozzle 70 has a predetermined length, and an embedded rod 70b is installed inside the exterior 70a and the exterior 70a in which both front and rear ends are opened. The buried rod 70b is supported by a plurality of support members 70c to have an appearance 70a and a predetermined distance 70e, for example, a distance of 0.2 mm to 3 mm. The embedding rod 70b has a length shorter than the length of the appearance 70a and the front end is embedded to be aligned with the appearance 70a. The rear end of the embedding rod 70b has a conical shape with an inclination 70d.

As another example, with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B, the process gas injection nozzle 80 has a front end 80b blocked by a tube 80a having a predetermined length, but a plurality of through holes 80c are formed and a rear end thereof is formed. It is open. The diameter of the through hole 80c is, for example, at intervals of 0.2 mm to 3 mm. In this embodiment, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the gas injection nozzle 70 or 80 has a cylindrical shape, but may be modified in various shapes such as square, hexagon, and triangle.

As described above, the process gas injection nozzle 70 discharges the process gas through a narrow gap, and the plasma gas is not introduced into the narrow gap to prevent impurities from being deposited into the process gas nozzle 70. .

9 is an enlarged perspective view of the cleaning gas nozzle of FIG. 5.

Referring to the figure, the cleaning gas nozzle 72 is installed at a different position from the gas outlet 74, preferably at the lower inner corner of the chamber opposite the symmetry with the gas outlet 74. The cleaning gas injection nozzle 72 has an elliptical tubular structure, and the injection hole is positioned to face the upper chamber. In this example of sealing, the shape of the cleaning gas injection nozzle 72 is an elliptical tube structure, but the structure for increasing the diffusion efficiency during the injection of plasma gas, for example, can be modified into a rectangle, a long hexagon, and the like. The technicians will be well aware.

In the HDP CVD chamber 50 of the present invention, the plasma gas is supplied from the remote plasma generator (RPG) in the cleaning process and the plasma gas is injected into the chamber 50 through the cleaning gas injection nozzle 72. Since the cleaning gas nozzle 72 has an elliptical structure, the cleaning gas nozzle 72 is evenly spread inside the chamber 50 when the plasma gas is injected.

The process gas injection nozzles 70 or 80 and the cleaning gas injection nozzles 72 are each composed of an electrical insulator and may be formed of, for example, ceramic or alumina.

Although the configuration and operation of the HDP CVD chamber according to the present invention has been shown in accordance with the above description and drawings, this is merely an example, and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Of course.

As described in detail above, the HDP CVD chamber of the present invention prevents the plasma gas from flowing into the process gas injection nozzle to prevent impurities from being deposited therein, and improves the structure of the cleaning gas injection nozzle, thereby cleaning time. And to improve the efficiency has the effect of increasing the cooperative yield.

Claims (9)

An inductor coil wound around the chamber; A plurality of process gas injection nozzles coupled to a plurality of gas outlets formed in the chamber inner wall; A susceptor on which the wafer is placed; A remote plasma generator that receives the cleaning gas and generates plasma to supply the cleaning gas to the chamber through the cleaning gas injection nozzle; A high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber installed at a position different from a gas outlet formed at an inner lower edge of the chamber and including a cleaning gas injection nozzle for injecting the plasma gas provided from the remote plasma generator into the chamber. The method of claim 1, And the cleaning gas injection nozzle is installed at a lower inner corner of the chamber opposite to the gas outlet. The method of claim 1, The cleaning gas injection nozzle has an elliptical tubular structure, the injection hole is installed in the inner corner of the chamber to face the chamber high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber. The method of claim 1, The process gas injection nozzle has a predetermined length, and both the front end and the rear end of the outer appearance and the buried rod is installed on the inner side of the high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber is supported by a plurality of support members so as to have a predetermined distance from the outer appearance. The method of claim 4, wherein The buried rod has a length shorter than the length of the appearance and the shear is buried in dense plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber is installed to match the appearance. The method of claim 5, A high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber having a conical shape with a rear end of the buried rod. The method of claim 1, The process gas injection nozzle has a predetermined length and the front end is blocked, but a high density plasma chemical vapor deposition chamber is composed of a tube having a plurality of through holes are formed and the rear end is open. The method of claim 1, Wherein said process gas injection nozzle and cleaning gas injection nozzle each comprise an electrical insulator. The method of claim 8, Wherein said electrical insulator is comprised of either ceramic or alumina.