KR20110006422A - Method for depositioning thin film - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A thin film depositing method is provided to improve the cleaning efficiency by allowing the cleaning gas to reach the bottom of a substrate supporting unit which is hard to be reached by side discharging method. CONSTITUTION: A chamber(110) forms the predetermined process space. A substrate support unit(200) is installed on the lower part in the chamber. The substrate supporting unit is seated with a substrate(G). The top of a chamber main body(111) is opened and inside is empty.

Description

Thin Film Deposition Method {METHOD FOR DEPOSITIONING THIN FILM}

The present invention relates to a thin film deposition method, and more particularly to a thin film deposition method using an exhaust method excellent in thin film uniformity and cleaning efficiency.

In general, a semiconductor device and a flat panel display are manufactured by performing a plurality of thin film deposition and etching processes. That is, by forming a thin film in a predetermined region of the substrate by performing a deposition process, by performing an etching process using an etching mask to remove a portion of the unnecessary thin film to form a desired predetermined circuit pattern (pattern) or circuit element on the substrate Is produced.

Here, since the thin film process is performed in a vacuum atmosphere lower than atmospheric pressure to improve the process efficiency or to enable the process itself, it is usually carried out by bringing the substrate into the process chamber which provides an airtight space. Since the substrate support and the gas injector are installed to face each other inside the process chamber, the raw material gas is injected into the substrate through the gas injector to form a desired thin film while the substrate loaded into the process chamber is seated and fixed. .

On the other hand, in the above-described thin film process, the internal exhaust is performed to keep the injection flow and the injection pressure of the source gas constant, and internal cleaning is performed to remove deposits formed on the substrate support and the chamber inner wall in the thin film air. Therefore, side pumping is performed by providing exhaust means on the side wall of the process chamber, or bottom pumping is performed by installing exhaust means at the bottom.

However, the lateral exhaust system has a problem of excellent deposition uniformity (Uniformity) by forming a uniform exhaust flow over the entire substrate, but cannot easily clean the deposits formed on the bottom of the substrate support. On the contrary, the downward exhaust method has a problem of excellent cleaning efficiency but low deposition uniformity by forming an exhaust flow to the bottom of the substrate support.

The present invention has been proposed to solve the above problems, and provides a thin film deposition method having excellent deposition uniformity and excellent cleaning efficiency by combining the advantages of the side exhaust and the down exhaust while maintaining the advantages of the downward exhaust.

In one aspect, a thin film deposition method includes: loading a substrate on an upper surface of a substrate support provided in a chamber; Adjusting the inside of the chamber to a first pressure through a main exhaust provided under the substrate support; Adjusting the inside of the chamber to a second pressure through a sub exhaust formed in the substrate support; And spraying a processing gas onto the substrate to perform a thin film process. It includes.

Preferably, the main exhaust unit exhausts air through an exhaust hole formed in a side wall or a bottom of the chamber.

In the thin film process, spraying the processing gas onto the upper surface of the substrate support and exhausting the processing gas through the sub-exhaust provided in the substrate support may maintain the inside of the chamber at a second pressure.

Preferably, the sub exhaust part exhausts air through an exhaust hole formed in an upper surface edge of the substrate support part.

Preferably, the second pressure is lower than or equal to the first pressure and the second pressure is an appropriate pressure for the thin film process.

Preferably, the first pressure is in the range of 7 Torr to 760 Torr, and the second pressure is in the range of 0 Torr to 7 Torr.

The present invention can shorten the process preparation time by rapidly exhausting the inside of the chamber through the downward exhaust method using the main exhaust during the preparation of the process, and uniformly on the substrate surface through the side exhaust method using the sub exhaust during the thin film process By forming a gas flow, thin film uniformity can be improved.

In addition, according to the present invention, the exhaust gas is discharged using the main exhaust unit during the cleaning process, so that the cleaning gas can reach the lower surface of the substrate support, which has been difficult to reach through the side exhaust, thereby improving the cleaning efficiency.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described an embodiment according to the present invention in more detail. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, It is provided to let you know. Like reference numerals in the drawings refer to like elements.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing apparatus used in a thin film deposition method according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a plan view of a substrate support provided in the substrate processing apparatus of FIG.

Referring to FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus includes a chamber 110 forming a predetermined processing space, and a substrate support part 200 installed below the chamber 110 and on which the substrate G is loaded. ), A gas injector 300 disposed to face the substrate support 200 and injecting a processing gas into the chamber 110, and a gas exhaust unit 410, 420; 400 for internal exhaust of the chamber 110. ).

The chamber 110 is manufactured as a separate type including a chamber body 111 having an open top and an empty inside, and a chamber lid 112 covering an upper part of the chamber body 111. Of course, the inner shape of the chamber body 111 may be changed in various ways such as a box, a cylindrical shape, a polygon, and the like in correspondence to the shape of the substrate G to be processed, that is, the semiconductor wafer or the glass substrate, and the chamber body 111 and The chamber lid 112 may be manufactured in one piece. One side wall of the chamber 110 is provided with a gate 120 to allow the substrate G to be introduced into the chamber 110, and the gate 120 has the substrate G to be processed to be inserted or processed. The substrate G is opened and closed to withdraw.

The substrate support part 200 includes a seating part 210 on which the substrate G is loaded, and a supporter 220 supporting the seating part 210. On the other hand, although not shown, it is preferable that a heating means (not shown) is provided in the body of the seating portion 210 to control the process temperature. Of course, cooling means may be provided instead of the above heating means depending on the process conditions. In addition, the seating portion 210 is preferably formed with a separate lift pin (Lift Pin) is raised and lowered for loading or unloading the substrate (G). The support 220 may be moved up and down by the driving means 230. The drive means 230 may be configured as any member for moving the support 220 up and down. That is, a cylinder using hydraulic or pneumatic pressure may be used, and an LM guide (Linear Motor Guide) may be used, and of course, a combination thereof may be used.

The gas injector 300 is coupled to the upper plate 310 and the upper plate 310 having a supply port 311 into which the processing gas is introduced to form an inner space, and sprays the processing gas introduced into the inner space. It includes a lower plate 320 is formed with a plurality of injection holes 321 and the baffle plate 330 is installed to partition the inner space up and down uniformly distribute the gas flow. In this case, a plurality of diffusion holes 331 are formed in the horizontal portion of the baffle plate 330. Therefore, the processing gas supplied from the outside of the chamber 110 diffuses while moving to the upper region through the supply port 311 of the upper plate 310, and the processing gas diffused from the upper region is a diffusion hole of the baffle plate 330. As it moves to the lower region through 331 it is further diffused. The process gas diffused by the baffle plate 330 is uniformly sprayed through the injection hole 321 of the lower plate 320 in the direction of the substrate G.

Meanwhile, a cooling passage 312 may be provided in the upper plate 310. The cooling passage 312 is connected to a cooling water supply unit (not shown). Accordingly, the cooling water provided from the cooling water supply unit circulates the cooling passage 312 to prevent damage to the body due to thermal expansion, and the path through which the processing gas moves due to thermal expansion, that is, the supply port 311, the diffusion hole 331, and the injection hole. The blockage of 321 can be prevented. In this case, the processing gas injected through the gas injection unit 300 may be a deposition gas (or a reaction gas) during the deposition process, and may be a cleaning gas during the cleaning process.

The gas exhaust unit 400 may include a main exhaust unit 420 exhausting internal gas through a main exhaust hole 421 formed under the substrate support unit 200, and a sub exhaust hole formed at an edge of the substrate support unit 200. And a sub exhaust unit 410 for exhausting the internal gas through 411 and an exhaust pump unit 430 connected to the main exhaust unit 420 and the sub exhaust unit 410 to provide exhaust pressure. . In this case, although the plurality of exhaust pump parts 430 may be independently connected to each of the main exhaust part 420 and the sub exhaust part 410, the main exhaust part 420 and the sub fold may be connected to one exhaust pump part 430. The base 410 may be connected in common to reduce costs.

The main exhaust part 420 may include a main exhaust hole 421 formed under the substrate support part 200 on which the substrate G is mounted, for example, an inner bottom of the chamber 110, and the main exhaust hole 421. And a main valve 423 installed in the middle of the main exhaust pipe 422 connected to the outside of the main exhaust pipe 422 to control the exhaust flow.

The main exhaust hole 421 is preferably formed at the inner bottom of the chamber 110, but if the main exhaust hole 421 is positioned below the substrate support 200, the formation position is not limited thereto. For example, it may be formed on the lower sidewall of the chamber 110. As a result, the process gas injected into the upper portion of the substrate G in preparation for the process is moved to the side and the lower portion of the substrate G and exhausted to the outside of the chamber 110 through the main exhaust hole 421, thereby providing an overall exhaust flow. It may be formed below the substrate (G). Meanwhile, the main exhaust pipe 422 has one end connected to the main exhaust hole 421 and the other end connected to the exhaust pump part 430 to communicate with each other between the main exhaust hole 421 and the exhaust pump part 430. Let's do it. In addition, the main valve 423 preferably uses a solenoid valve.

Although not shown, the main exhaust holes 421 may be formed in plural to form a more uniform exhaust flow. Accordingly, the main exhaust pipes 422 connect the plurality of exhaust holes 421 to each other. It may be composed of a main focusing exhaust pipe for collecting the processing gas and a main drawing exhaust pipe for guiding the processing gas collected through the main focusing exhaust pipe to the outside of the chamber 110. In this case, the plurality of main exhaust holes 421 may be formed to maintain the same intervals along the bottom circumference of the chamber 110 so that the processing gases are not concentrated in one direction and evenly exhausted in all directions. . In addition, in the present exemplary embodiment, the main exhaust hole 421 is directly formed on the inner wall or the bottom of the chamber 110. Alternatively, a liner is additionally provided inside the chamber 110, and the main exhaust hole described above may be provided in the liner. 421 may be formed.

The sub exhaust part 410 is connected to a sub exhaust hole 411 formed at an edge of the upper surface 210 of the substrate support part 200 on which the substrate G is seated, and is connected to the sub exhaust hole 411 to process gas. A sub exhaust pipe 412 leading to the outside of the chamber 110 and a sub valve 413 installed in the middle of the sub exhaust pipe 412 to regulate the exhaust flow.

As the sub-exhaust hole 411 is formed at the edge of the upper surface 210 of the substrate support part 200, the processing gas injected onto the substrate G during the thin film process flows along the upper surface of the substrate G to be guided laterally. Since it is exhausted to the outside through the sub exhaust hole 411, the entire exhaust flow may be formed to the side of the substrate (G). In addition, one end of the sub exhaust pipe 412 is connected to the sub exhaust hole 411 and the other end thereof is connected to the exhaust pump part 430 to mutually connect the sub exhaust hole 411 and the exhaust pump part 430. Communicate. In addition, the sub-valve 423 preferably uses a solenoid valve.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 2, the sub exhaust holes 411 may be formed in plural to form a uniform exhaust flow. Accordingly, the sub exhaust pipes 412 connect each of the plurality of sub exhaust holes 411. The sub concentration exhaust pipe 412a collecting the processing gas and the sub drawing exhaust pipe 412b for guiding the processing gas collected through the sub focusing exhaust pipe 412a to the outside of the chamber 110. At this time, the plurality of sub-exhaust holes 411 are equally spaced apart along the circumferential direction of the seating portion 210 of the substrate support 200 so that the processing gas is not exhausted in one direction and evenly exhausted in all directions. It is preferable to be formed to maintain.

Although not shown, the present embodiment may further include plasma means for activating the processing gas to further increase the processing efficiency. Various forms of plasma generating means can be used for this purpose. In this case, it is effective to generate the plasma through the capacitively coupled plasma method that generates the plasma using the substrate support 200 and the gas injection unit 300 as two electrodes.

Hereinafter, the thin film deposition method using the substrate processing apparatus having such a configuration will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. 3 and 4 are schematic views of a substrate processing apparatus for explaining a thin film deposition method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, the substrate G is loaded into the chamber 110, and the loaded substrate G is loaded on the upper surface of the substrate support part 200. At this time, the substrate G may be any substrate as long as it is suitable for a semiconductor thin film process such as a glass substrate, a quartz substrate, a plastic substrate, and a silicon wafer.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3, internal exhaust is performed through the main exhaust 420 to adjust the internal pressure of the chamber 110 to a first pressure. The first pressure is a pressure slightly higher than or equal to a target pressure set for a smooth thin film process, and in the present embodiment, 7 Torr to 760 Torr.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 4, the internal exhaust is performed through the sub exhaust unit 410 to adjust the internal pressure of the chamber 110 to a second pressure. At the same time or afterwards, a thin film process is performed by spraying deposition gas onto the upper surface of the substrate G through the gas injection unit 300. The second pressure is a target pressure set for a smooth thin film process, and in the present embodiment, preferably has a range of 0 Torr to 7 Torr. In this case, the second pressure is preferably lower or the same level as the first pressure, the specific range of the above-described second pressure may vary depending on the characteristics of the thin film process to be performed.

Thereafter, when the predetermined thin film process is completed, the substrate G is unloaded on the substrate support 200 to be taken out of the chamber 110. In addition, if necessary, after the substrate G is removed, the cleaning gas is injected through the gas injection unit 300 to clean the inside of the chamber 110. At the time of the cleaning process, it is preferable to exhaust the exhaust gas through the main exhaust part 420. Therefore, in the thin film process, by forming a uniform exhaust flow throughout the substrate G through the side exhaust, it is possible to improve the deposition uniformity which was difficult to achieve through the downward exhaust. In addition, during the cleaning process in the chamber 110, the cleaning gas is delivered to an area that is difficult to reach through the side exhaust through the side exhaust, for example, to the bottom of the seating portion 220 of the substrate support 200, thereby further improving the cleaning efficiency. Can be improved.

As such, when the thin film deposition method according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention is used, the process preparation time may be shortened by rapidly evacuating the inside of the chamber 110 through the main exhaust part 420 when preparing the process. In this case, the uniformity of the thin film may be improved by forming a uniform gas flow on the substrate surface through the sub exhaust part 410. In addition, during the cleaning process, the exhaust gas is exhausted through the main exhaust unit 420 to improve the cleaning efficiency.

On the other hand, the substrate support 200 is generally formed of a ceramic material, the ceramic material is good chemical stability that can withstand plasma, but the physical durability is weak. Therefore, when the rapid exhaust is performed with a large pressure difference before and after the exhaust through the sub exhaust unit 420 formed in the substrate support 200 made of ceramic material, the substrate support 200 may be damaged. However, in the case of the present invention, through the sub exhaust unit 410 while performing rapid exhaust through the main exhaust unit 420 formed on the inner wall of the rigid chamber 110, the exhaust gas is maintained at a level of maintaining the process pressure. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the substrate support 200 made of ceramic material from being damaged by excessive exhaust pressure.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated with reference to the above-mentioned Example and an accompanying drawing, this invention is not limited to this, It is limited by the following claims. Therefore, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be variously modified and modified without departing from the technical spirit of the following claims.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a substrate processing apparatus used in a thin film deposition method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a substrate support provided in the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. 1. FIG.

3 and 4 are schematic views of a substrate processing apparatus for explaining a thin film deposition method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

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

110: chamber 200: substrate support

210: seating portion 220: support

300: gas injection unit 400: gas exhaust unit

410: sub exhaust unit 420: main exhaust unit

430: exhaust pump unit

Claims (6)

Loading a substrate on an upper surface of the substrate support provided in the chamber; Adjusting the inside of the chamber to a first pressure through a main exhaust provided under the substrate support; And Adjusting the inside of the chamber to a second pressure through a sub exhaust formed in the substrate support; Spraying a processing gas onto the substrate to perform a thin film process; Thin film deposition method comprising a. The method according to claim 1, And the main exhaust portion exhausts through exhaust holes formed in sidewalls or bottoms of the chamber. The method according to claim 1, The thin film process, Injecting a processing gas onto an upper surface of the substrate support; And Exhausting the processing gas through the provided sub exhaust unit of the substrate support to maintain the inside of the chamber at a second pressure; Thin film deposition method comprising a. The method according to claim 3, And the sub exhaust part exhausts through an exhaust hole formed in an upper surface edge of the substrate support part. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, And the second pressure is lower than or equal to the first pressure and the second pressure is an appropriate pressure for a thin film process. The method according to claim 5, The first pressure has a range of 7 Torr to 760 Torr, And the second pressure ranges from 0 Torr to 7 Torr.

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