KR20110080731A - Apparatus for processing a substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A substrate processing device is provided to drastically reduce accumulation of by-products in edge parts of a lower panel and drastically increase process uniformity. CONSTITUTION: A heater(120) is arranged in a processing chamber(110) and supports and heats at least one substrate. A gas supply unit(130) supplies a processing gas for processing the substrate or a cleaning gas for cleaning the inner surfaces of the processing chamber into the processing chamber. The gas supply unit is connected to a gas source which provides a processing gas or a cleaning gas. A coolant flowing path(134) is formed in an upper panel(132).

Description

Substrate processing unit {Apparatus for processing a substrate}

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a substrate processing apparatus. More specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus for processing a substrate using a gas supply of a shower head structure.

In general, various films may be formed on a substrate in a microtreatment process for manufacturing a semiconductor device, a display device, a solar cell, and the like, and the films may be patterned into a desired shape.

For example, various films may be formed on a substrate by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), or the like, which may be patterned by dry or wet etching. Can be. In particular, the deposition methods and the dry etching method may be generally performed in a vacuum state, and a deposition or etching method using plasma may be used according to the characteristics of the desired film or pattern. For example, plasma enhanced CVD (PECVD), high density plasma CVD (HDP CVD), reactive ion etching (RIE), high density plasma etching (HDP etching), and the like. The same microtreatment process can be selected depending on the properties of the desired film or pattern.

For example, a capacitively coupled plasma (CCP) source is mainly used in the PECVD and RIE processes, and inductively coupled in the case of the HDP CVD and HDP etching. Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) sources can be used.

In the case of the CCP source, a heater that supports a substrate and heats the substrate to a process temperature may be used as the lower electrode, and a gas supply unit supplying a process gas onto the substrate may be used as the upper electrode.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining a conventional gas supply unit.

Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional gas supply unit 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 may have a shower head structure and includes a lower panel 30 having an upper panel 20 connected to a gas source and a plurality of through holes 32. It may include.

The upper panel 20 may be provided with a flow path 22 through which coolant is circulated for temperature control, and may be generally controlled to a temperature of about 100 ° C. or less. The lower panel 30 may have a plate shape including a shower plate 34 in which the through holes 32 are formed. In general, the lower panel 30 may be attached to the upper panel 20 by a plurality of fastening members 40. Can be combined. In particular, a ring-shaped flange 36 is provided on an upper sidewall of the lower panel 30, and the fastening members 40 may be coupled to the upper panel 20 through the flange 36. .

In the case of the lower panel 30, since the lower panel 30 is disposed adjacent to the heater 60 which is in contact with the plasma formed in the process chamber 50 and maintained at a high temperature, the lower panel 30 may be maintained at a temperature of about 400 to 600 ° C. However, the edge portion of the lower panel 30, that is, the portion adjacent to the flange 36, may have a lower temperature than the central portion due to heat transfer to the upper panel 20, and thus, during the deposition process. A large amount of process byproducts may accumulate at an edge portion of the lower panel 30.

In addition, the inner space of the gas supply unit 10 may be reduced in order to provide the flange 36 on the upper sidewall of the lower panel 30, and thus disposed inside the gas supply unit 10 to process The size of the baffle plate 70 for uniformly dispersing the gas may be limited. In addition, there is a limitation in expanding an area in which the through holes 32 of the lower panel 30 are formed. Therefore, there is a significant limitation in improving the process uniformity in the substrate processing process of forming a film on the substrate 2 or etching the film on the substrate 2.

Embodiments of the present invention for solving the above problems are to provide a substrate processing apparatus that can improve the process uniformity while reducing the accumulation of process by-products.

According to embodiments of the present invention, a process chamber, a heater disposed in the process chamber for supporting and heating at least one substrate, a process gas for processing the substrate, or cleaning inner surfaces of the process chamber In the substrate processing apparatus comprising a gas supply for supplying a cleaning gas for the inside of the process chamber, the gas supply is connected to the gas source for providing the process gas or cleaning gas, the cooling for circulating coolant for temperature control An upper panel having a flow path formed therein, a shower plate having a plurality of through holes for supplying the process gas or the cleaning gas into the process chamber, and extending from the edge of the shower plate in a vertical direction and coupled to the upper panel; It may include a lower panel consisting of side walls.

According to embodiments of the present invention, a liner may be disposed on an inner surface of the process chamber, and an upper portion of the liner may be configured to surround a lower side of the lower panel.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the inner surface of the process chamber may be provided with a ring-shaped vacuum channel for discharging the cleaning gas, the vacuum channel is the inner surface of the process chamber, the top of the liner and It may be in communication with the interior space of the process chamber through the gap between the lower side of the lower panel.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the inner surface of the process chamber may be provided with a ring-shaped vacuum channel for discharging the cleaning gas, the liner connecting the vacuum channel and the internal space of the process chamber It may have a plurality of vacuum holes.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the lower panel has a plurality of fastening members penetrated downwardly through the upper panel and coupled to the sidewall of the lower panel or upwardly coupled to the upper panel through the sidewall of the lower panel. It can be coupled to the upper panel by.

According to the embodiments of the present invention as described above, since the ring-shaped flange is not used in the coupling between the upper panel and the lower panel, heat transfer from the lower panel to the upper panel can be reduced as compared with the prior art. In addition, the area of the through holes formed in the lower panel may be relatively increased. Therefore, accumulation of process by-products at the edges of the lower panel may be greatly reduced, and process uniformity may be greatly improved.

In addition, in an in-situ cleaning process for cleaning the inner surfaces of the process chamber, the cleaning gas or cleaning gas plasma may be partially discharged through a vacuum channel provided on the inner side of the process chamber, thereby forming the cleaning gas or cleaning. The cleaning efficiency of the lower panel may be greatly improved by the flow of the gas plasma.

1 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining a conventional gas supply unit.
2 is a schematic cross-sectional view for describing a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for explaining an edge portion of the gas supply unit shown in FIG. 2.
4 to 6 are schematic partial enlarged cross-sectional views for describing other examples of the gas supply unit.
7 is a schematic cross-sectional view for describing a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for explaining an edge portion of the gas supply unit illustrated in FIG. 7.
FIG. 9 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for describing another example of a method of communicating the inside of the process chamber with the vacuum channel shown in FIG. 8.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described below, but may be embodied in various other forms.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view for describing a substrate processing apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for explaining an edge portion of the gas supply unit illustrated in FIG. 2.

2 and 3, a substrate processing apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a semiconductor wafer for manufacturing a semiconductor device, a glass substrate for manufacturing a flat panel display device, and a silicon substrate for manufacturing a solar cell. It can be used to perform a predetermined treatment process on the various kinds of substrates 2 and the like. In particular, a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process or a plasma etching process for forming a thin film may be preferably performed.

The substrate processing apparatus 100 may include a process chamber 110 that provides a closed space in which the processing process is performed, and supports the substrate 2 in the process chamber 110 and heats the substrate 2. And a gas supply unit 130 supplying a heater 120, a process gas for processing the substrate 2, or a cleaning gas for cleaning inner surfaces defining an inner space of the process chamber 110. have.

The substrate processing apparatus 100 is connected to the process chamber 110 to be connected to the pressure control unit 102 and the gas supply unit 130 to adjust the internal pressure of the process chamber 110 and the process gas and The gas source 104 may further include a cleaning gas. In general, since the treatment process is performed in a vacuum state, the pressure regulating unit 102 may include a vacuum pump, a pressure sensor, a plurality of valves, and the like.

The gas source 104 may include vessels in which the process gas and the cleaning gas are stored, a flow sensor, a flow control valve, and the like. For example, the process gas may include source gases for forming the thin film, reactive gases for etching the thin film, carrier gas for transporting the source gases or reaction gases, and the process chamber 110. A plasma ignition gas for igniting the plasma, an inert gas for performing a pressure control and purge function in the process chamber 110, and the like.

Meanwhile, process by-products generated during the treatment process in the process chamber 110 may accumulate on surfaces defining an internal space of the process chamber 110, and the process by-products may be periodically cleaned. Can be removed through the process. The gas source 104 may supply a cleaning gas to the process chamber 110 through the gas supply unit 130 to remove the accumulated process byproducts.

The process chamber 110 may have an open upper structure, and the gas supply unit 130 may have a form covering the open upper portion. Although not shown in detail, the sidewall of the process chamber 110 includes a slit-shaped opening 112 for loading and unloading the substrate 2 and a slit valve for opening and closing the opening 112. A liner 114 may be disposed on an inner side surface to prevent damage by a process gas in a plasma state while the treatment process is performed. In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 100 may include a driving unit (not shown) for moving the heater 120 in a vertical direction between a position where the processing process is performed and a position where the loading and unloading of the substrate 2 is performed. And a plurality of lift pins (not shown) disposed in the vertical direction through the heater 120 for loading and unloading the substrate 2.

The heater 120 may support one or a plurality of substrates 2, and may have a circular or square shape according to the shape of the substrate 2. In addition, the heater 120 may be configured to hold the substrate 2 using a vacuum pressure or an electrostatic force as necessary. In addition, a heating member (not shown) such as an electric resistance heating wire may be embedded in the heater 120 to adjust the temperature of the substrate 2.

The gas supply unit 130 and the heater 120 may be used as upper and lower electrodes, respectively, to form a CCP type plasma source. For example, as illustrated, the gas supply unit 130 may be connected to a radio frequency (RF) source 106. In the heater 120, a ground electrode 122 having a plate or mesh shape may be formed. It can be built in. Unlike the above, the gas supply unit 130 may be grounded and RF power may be applied to the heater 120, and RF powers having different frequencies may be applied to the gas supply unit 130 and the heater 120, respectively. .

The gas supply unit 130 may include an upper panel 132 and a lower panel 140, and the upper panel 132 may be connected to the gas source 104 and the RF source 106. In particular, a cooling passage 134 through which a coolant is circulated for temperature control may be formed in the upper panel 132.

In addition, the gas supply unit 130 is disposed above the process chamber 110 to insulate the base ring 150 supporting the upper panel 132 and the upper panel 132 from the base ring 150. It may further include an insulator ring 152. The upper portion of the upper panel 132 may be provided with a ring-shaped flange 136, the flange 136 may be disposed on the insulator ring 152. The lower panel 140 may be disposed inside the insulator ring 152. Although not shown, the upper panel 132 may be formed by the plurality of fastening members (not shown). Can be coupled to.

The lower panel 140 may include a shower plate 142 and a shower plate 142 in which a plurality of through holes 144 are formed to uniformly supply the process gas or the cleaning gas into the process chamber 110. It may consist of a sidewall 146 extending vertically upward from an edge and coupled to the flange 136 of the top panel 132. That is, the lower panel 132 may have a plate shape. For example, when the shower plate 142 has a disk shape, the lower panel 140 may be a petri dish.

An upper portion of the sidewall 146 of the lower panel 140 may be coupled to a lower portion of the flange 136 of the upper panel 132 by a plurality of fastening members 160. In this case, the inner surface of the side wall 146 of the lower panel 140 may be spaced apart from the outer surface of the upper panel 132 by a predetermined interval. This is to suppress heat transfer by reducing the contact area between the upper panel 132 and the lower panel 140. Meanwhile, as illustrated, sealing members 162 may be interposed between the fastening members 160 and the upper panel 132 to prevent gas leakage.

The upper panel 132 may have a gas flow path connected to the gas source 104. For example, the process gas or the cleaning gas may be supplied downward through a gas flow passage passing through the central portion of the upper panel 132. That is, the process gas or the cleaning gas may be supplied to the space between the upper panel 132 and the lower panel 140 through the upper panel 132, and through holes of the lower panel 140 from the space. Through the holes 144 may be uniformly supplied into the process chamber 110. In this case, the space between the upper panel 132 and the lower panel 140 may be used as a buffer space for uniformly supplying the process gas or the cleaning gas, and the process space or the cleaning gas may be further inside the buffer space. A baffle plate 170 may be disposed to uniformly supply the same. The baffle plate 170 may have a plurality of through holes or through slits.

As described above, the lower panel 140 is composed of only the sidewall 146 extending in the vertical direction with the shower plate 142, so that the upper panel 132 and the lower panel 140 are separated from each other. The horizontal contact area can be reduced, thereby reducing heat transfer in the vertical direction between the upper panel 132 and the lower panel 140, and also increasing the temperature distribution in the lower panel 140. It can be kept uniform. As a result, it is possible to reduce the accumulation of process by-products at the lower edge portion of the lower panel 140, thereby extending the cycle of the cleaning process using the cleaning gas and increasing the operation rate of the substrate processing apparatus 100. Can be.

In addition, since the flange does not need to be provided in the lower panel 140, the area of the shower plate 142 may be increased, and the buffer space may be extended laterally. Accordingly, the area in which the through holes 144 of the shower plate 142 are formed may be configured to be wider than the upper area of the heater 120, and the size of the baffle plate 170 may be relatively increased. .

As a result, the process gas or the cleaning gas may be more uniformly supplied into the process chamber 110, and the region of the plasma generated inside the process chamber 110 may be relatively expanded, thereby improving process uniformity. It can also improve the efficiency of the cleaning process.

4 to 6 are schematic partial enlarged cross-sectional views for describing other examples of the gas supply unit.

Referring to FIG. 4, the sidewall 146A of the lower panel 140A may be coupled to the lower edge of the upper panel 132A using the plurality of fastening members 160A. In this case, although the length of the fastening members 160A is relatively long, the height of the side wall 146A of the lower panel 140A is lowered, thereby improving structural stability of the lower panel 140A. have.

5 and 6, the upper panels 132B and 132C and the lower panels 140B and 140C are provided with a plurality of fastening members 160B passing through the sidewalls 146B and 146C of the lower panels 140B and 140C. 160C) may be combined with each other. In this case, since the sealing members 162 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 are unnecessary, the number of parts can be reduced, and thus manufacturing cost can be reduced.

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view for describing a substrate processing apparatus according to another exemplary embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for explaining an edge portion of the gas supply unit illustrated in FIG. 7.

7 and 8, the substrate processing apparatus 200 according to another embodiment of the present invention is partially identical to the substrate processing apparatus 100 described above with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6. Therefore, further description of the same parts as described above will be omitted.

The substrate processing apparatus 200 may include a process chamber 210, a heater 220, a gas supply unit 230, a pressure control unit 202, a gas source 204, and the like. The gas supply unit 230 may include an upper panel 232 having a cooling passage 234 and a lower panel 240 having a plurality of through holes.

A liner 212 may be disposed on an inner side surface of the process chamber 210, and an upper portion of the liner 212 may be configured to surround a lower portion of the lower panel 240. In this case, an inner surface of the process chamber 210, that is, an inner surface of the side wall to which the liner 212 is attached, may be provided with a ring-shaped vacuum channel 214 to discharge the cleaning gas. 214 is in communication with the interior space of the process chamber 210 through a gap 216 between the inner side of the process chamber 210 and the upper side of the liner 212 and the lower side of the lower panel 240. Can be.

Specifically, between an inner surface of the process chamber 210 and an upper portion of the liner 212, between an upper portion of the liner 212 and an insulator ring 252 disposed to surround the lower panel 240, and the A gap 216 may be formed between the upper portion of the liner 212 and the lower panel 240, and the vacuum channel 212 communicates with the inside of the process chamber 210 through the gap 216. Can be. That is, the gas supplied to the process chamber 210 may be evacuated to the outside through the gap 216 and the vacuum channel 214.

In particular, the cleaning gas supplied into the process chamber 210 or the cleaning gas plasma formed in the process chamber 210 in an in-situ cleaning process for removing process by-products accumulated at the lower edge portion of the lower panel 240 may be The gap 216 may flow into the vacuum channel 214, and thus, the removal efficiency of the process by-product accumulated at the edge portion of the lower panel 240 may be greatly improved.

The vacuum channel 214 may be connected to the pressure regulator 202 through the vacuum pipe 208, the on / off valve 209 may be installed in the vacuum pipe 208. In particular, the on / off valve 209 improves the cleaning efficiency of the edge portion of the lower panel 240 during the in-situ cleaning process for removing contaminants on the inner surfaces of the process chamber 210. May be opened selectively.

FIG. 9 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view for describing another example of a method of communicating the inside of the process chamber with the vacuum channel shown in FIG. 8.

Referring to FIG. 9, an upper portion of the liner 212A disposed on the inner surface of the process chamber 210 may be configured to surround a lower portion of the lower panel 240, and an upper portion and the lower portion of the liner 212A. A predetermined gap 216A may be formed between the lower portions of the panel 240. In this case, the liner 212A may have a plurality of vacuum holes 218 for communicating the vacuum channel 214 and the internal space of the process chamber 210. In particular, the vacuum holes 218 may extend from the vacuum channel 214 toward the gap 216A between the upper and lower panels 240 of the liner 212A.

As a result, during the cleaning process, the cleaning gas or the cleaning gas plasma may flow through the gap 216A and the vacuum holes 218 between the upper panel and the lower panel 240 of the liner 212A. Accordingly, the cleaning efficiency of the lower edge portion of the lower panel 240 may be greatly improved.

As described above, configuring the cleaning gas or cleaning gas plasma to flow through the gaps 216 and 216A between the upper and lower panels 240 of the liners 212 and 212A may be the cleaning gas or cleaning gas plasma. To partially discharge the gas. This is to relatively improve the cleaning efficiency at the edge of the lower panel 240 without significantly affecting the overall cleaning process for cleaning the surfaces inside the process chamber 210. That is, most of the cleaning gas and cleaning by-products may be discharged along a conventional path through the bottom of the process chamber 210.

According to the embodiments of the present invention as described above, the lower panel of the gas supply may be composed of a shower plate and a side wall. The side wall extends vertically upward from the shower plate and may be coupled to the top panel by a plurality of fastening members. In particular, since a ring-shaped flange is not used for coupling between the upper panel and the lower panel, heat transfer from the lower panel to the upper panel can be reduced as compared with the prior art, and through holes formed in the lower panel can be reduced. The size of the area, buffer space and baffle plate can be increased.

As a result, the temperature distribution of the lower panel can be greatly improved, thereby greatly reducing the accumulation of process by-products at the edge portion of the lower panel. In addition, the process uniformity may be greatly improved by expanding the region of the through holes.

In addition, the cleaning efficiency of the lower panel can be greatly improved by partially discharging the cleaning gas or the cleaning gas plasma through the sidewall of the process chamber adjacent to the lower panel in an in-situ cleaning process for cleaning the inner surfaces of the process chamber. have.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims It can be understood that

2: substrate 100: substrate processing apparatus
102: pressure regulator 104: gas source
110: process chamber 120: heater
130: gas supply unit 132: upper panel
134: cooling passage 140: lower panel
142: shower plate 144: through hole
146 side wall 150 base ring
152: insulator ring 160: fastening member
162: sealing member 170: baffle plate

Claims (5)

A process chamber, a heater disposed within the process chamber for supporting and heating at least one substrate, a process gas for processing the substrate, or a cleaning gas for cleaning the inner surfaces of the process chamber, into the process chamber. In the substrate processing apparatus including the gas supply part to supply,
The gas supply unit
An upper panel connected to a gas source providing the process gas or the cleaning gas and having a cooling flow path through which a coolant for temperature control is circulated;
And a lower panel including a shower plate having a plurality of through holes for supplying the process gas or the cleaning gas into the process chamber, and a side wall extending vertically from an edge of the shower plate and coupled to the upper panel. A substrate processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The method of claim 1, further comprising a liner disposed on the inner side of the process chamber,
The upper portion of the liner is configured to surround the lower side of the lower panel. According to claim 2, wherein the inner surface of the process chamber is provided with a vacuum channel in the form of a ring for discharging the cleaning gas, the vacuum channel is the inner surface of the process chamber, the top of the liner and the bottom of the lower panel A substrate processing apparatus characterized in that it communicates with the interior space of the process chamber through the gap between the sides. According to claim 2, The inner surface of the process chamber is provided with a ring-shaped vacuum channel for discharging the cleaning gas, the liner is a plurality of vacuum holes connecting the vacuum channel and the interior space of the process chamber It has a substrate processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The method of claim 1, wherein the lower panel is coupled by a plurality of fastening members penetrating downwardly through the upper panel and coupled upwardly to the upper panel through the sidewall of the lower panel. Substrate processing apparatus, characterized in that coupled to the top panel.

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