US20100300622A1 - Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus - Google Patents

Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus Download PDF

Info

Publication number
US20100300622A1
US20100300622A1 US12/788,396 US78839610A US2010300622A1 US 20100300622 A1 US20100300622 A1 US 20100300622A1 US 78839610 A US78839610 A US 78839610A US 2010300622 A1 US2010300622 A1 US 2010300622A1
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
shaped member
circular ring
groove
plasma
focus ring
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
US12/788,396
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Koichi Yatsuda
Hideki Mizuno
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Tokyo Electron Ltd
Original Assignee
Tokyo Electron Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Tokyo Electron Ltd filed Critical Tokyo Electron Ltd
Priority to US12/788,396 priority Critical patent/US20100300622A1/en
Assigned to TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED reassignment TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: MIZUNO, HIDEKI, YATSUDA, KOICHI
Publication of US20100300622A1 publication Critical patent/US20100300622A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

Links

Images

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J37/00—Discharge tubes with provision for introducing objects or material to be exposed to the discharge, e.g. for the purpose of examination or processing thereof
    • H01J37/32—Gas-filled discharge tubes
    • H01J37/32431—Constructional details of the reactor
    • H01J37/32623—Mechanical discharge control means
    • H01J37/32642—Focus rings
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J37/00—Discharge tubes with provision for introducing objects or material to be exposed to the discharge, e.g. for the purpose of examination or processing thereof
    • H01J37/32—Gas-filled discharge tubes
    • H01J37/32009—Arrangements for generation of plasma specially adapted for examination or treatment of objects, e.g. plasma sources
    • H01J37/32082—Radio frequency generated discharge
    • H01J37/32091—Radio frequency generated discharge the radio frequency energy being capacitively coupled to the plasma

Definitions

  • the present disclosure relates to a circular ring-shaped member for a plasma process configured to surround a peripheral portion of a target substrate on which a plasma process is performed in a plasma processing chamber, and a plasma processing apparatus including the same.
  • a plasma processing apparatus for etching, deposition, oxidation, sputtering, or the like.
  • a plasma processing apparatus for etching, deposition, oxidation, sputtering, or the like.
  • a plasma etching apparatus in which an upper electrode and a lower electrode are arranged parallel to each other within a processing vessel or reaction chamber, a target substrate (semiconductor wafer, glass substrate or the like) is mounted on the lower electrode, and a high frequency voltage for plasma generation is applied to either or both of the upper electrode and the lower electrode via a matching unit in most cases.
  • a plurality of gas discharge holes is provided in the upper electrode and an etching gas excited into plasma is discharged to the entire substrate through the gas discharge holes so as to etch the entire surface of the target substrate at the same time.
  • an upper electrode and a lower electrode are arranged parallel to each other, and a high frequency voltage for generating plasma is applied to the upper electrode or the lower electrode via a matching unit. Electrons accelerated by a high frequency electric field between both the electrodes, secondary electrons emitted from the electrodes, or heated electrons collide with molecules of a processing gas and are ionized, so that the processing gas is excited into plasma. By radicals or ions in the plasma, a required microprocessing such as an etching process is performed on a surface of a substrate.
  • an intensity of an electric field at a central portion of an electrode tends to be higher than that of an electric field at an edge portion thereof.
  • a density of the generated plasma at the central portion of the electrode is different from a plasma density at the edge portion thereof. Therefore, a resistivity of the plasma becomes low at a portion in which plasma density is high, and a current is also concentrated on a corresponding portion of a facing electrode. Accordingly, there is a problem in that a non-uniformity of the plasma density becomes serious.
  • a plasma density at a central portion of the target substrate is different from a plasma density at a peripheral portion thereof in an actual etching process due to a flow of a processing gas caused by a temperature distribution.
  • the non-uniformity of the plasma density causes a difference in an etching rate of the target substrate, and particularly, it causes a deterioration of a device yield obtained from the peripheral portion of the target substrate.
  • a dielectric member is embedded in a main surface of an electrode facing a processing space such that impedance against a high frequency power supplied from the main surface of the electrode to the processing space is relatively high at an central portion of the electrode and relatively low at an edge portion of the electrode.
  • the plasma processing apparatus includes a circular ring-shaped member such as a focus ring, provided so as to surround an outer periphery of a wafer mounted on a mounting table within the processing chamber.
  • the focus ring may have a double-circle structure including a ring-shaped inner focus ring positioned on inner side and a ring-shaped outer focus ring positioned so as to surround an outer periphery of the inner focus ring.
  • the inner focus ring may be made of a conductive material such as silicon and the outer focus ring may be made of an insulating material such as quartz.
  • the inner focus ring has a function to concentrate plasma on the wafer, and the outer focus ring serves as an insulator confining the plasma on the wafer.
  • a temperature of the outer focus ring increases due to heat transferred from the plasma. If the temperature is not stable, a radical density in the vicinity of the outer focus ring becomes non-uniform and a plasma density at an outer peripheral portion of the wafer becomes non-uniform as well. As a result, an effect of the plasma process at the central portion of the wafer is different from that at the outer peripheral portion thereof, and, thus, it becomes difficult to perform the plasma process on the wafer uniformly.
  • Patent Document 3 a ring-shaped groove is formed in an outer focus ring so as to reduce a heat capacity of the outer focus ring, so that a temperature of the outer focus ring is rapidly increased and is easily maintained high by heat transferred from plasma.
  • uniformity of the plasma density at a peripheral portion of the wafer can be achieved and deposits on the focus ring can be removed at the earliest stage of a production lot.
  • Patent Document 1 Japanese Laid-open Publication No. 2000-323456
  • Patent Document 3 a groove is formed in an outer focus ring so as to reduce a heat capacity. Accordingly, uniformity of a plasma density distribution at a peripheral portion of a wafer can be obtained due to increase and stabilization of a temperature in a short time.
  • Patent Document 3 by providing the groove in the outer focus ring so as to reduce the heat capacity, stability of the temperature can be obtained.
  • the uniformity of the plasma density distribution caused by the stability of the temperature is obtained only while the temperature is stabilized, which does not mean that the distribution or intensity of the electric field is adjusted to a desired level. Therefore, in Patent Document 3, a problem of adjusting the electric field distribution to a desired level can not be solved.
  • Patent Document 3 the groove is formed in the outer focus ring so as to reduce the heat capacity, so that uniformity of the plasma density distribution can be obtained.
  • an electric field distribution on a top surface in the vicinity of the end portion of the wafer needs to be adjusted to a desired level, which has not been solved in Patent Document 3.
  • the present disclosure provides a circular ring-shaped member for a plasma process capable of improving uniformity and production yield in the plasma process by adjusting an electric field distribution at a peripheral portion of a wafer to a desired level, and a plasma processing apparatus.
  • a circular ring-shaped member for a plasma process to surround a peripheral portion of a target substrate to be plasma-processed.
  • the circular ring-shaped member includes at least one ring-shaped groove configured to adjust an electric field distribution to a desired distribution in a plasma generation space.
  • the groove may be formed in a surface of the circular ring-shaped member and the surface may be on an opposite side to the plasma generation space. Since the ring-shaped groove is formed in the circular ring-shaped member configured to surround the peripheral portion of the target substrate to be plasma-processed, the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate can be changed.
  • the groove may be formed in an inner peripheral portion of the circular ring-shaped member. Since the groove is formed in the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, it is possible to adjust the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate more favorably.
  • impedance of the circular ring-shaped member may be adjusted to be a desired value depending on a shape of the groove.
  • the impedance varies depending on the shape of the groove, thereby adjusting the electric field distribution.
  • the groove may be formed to have a predetermined width, starting from a position between an inner end of the circular ring-shaped member and a position in a range of about 30% or less of a width of the circular ring-shaped member in a diametric direction. If the groove is formed at a position exceeding about 30% of the width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from the inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, it becomes difficult to adjust the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate.
  • the groove may be formed to have a predetermined width which is about 80% or less of a width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from an inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in a diametric direction. If the groove is formed to exceed about 80% of the width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from the inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, the groove has less effect on the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate.
  • a depth of the groove may be about 70% or less of a thickness of the circular ring-shaped member.
  • the depth of the groove (a length in a vertical direction when the circular ring-shaped member is provided in a horizontal direction) exceeds about 70% of the thickness of the circular ring-shaped member, a lifetime of the circular ring-shaped member is shortened by abrasion caused by a plasma impact.
  • the circular ring-shaped member may be made of at least one of quartz, carbon, silicon, silicon carbide, and a ceramic material.
  • a plasma processing apparatus including a processing chamber the inside of which is maintained in a vacuum condition; a mounting table configured to mount thereon a target substrate and serve as a lower electrode in the processing chamber; a circular ring-shaped member provided at the mounting table so as to surround a peripheral portion of the target substrate; an upper electrode arranged to face the lower electrode thereabove; and a power feed unit for supplying a high-frequency power to the mounting table.
  • the plasma processing apparatus performs a plasma process on the target substrate by plasma generated in the processing chamber.
  • the circular ring-shaped member may include at least one ring-shaped groove configured to adjust an electric field distribution to a desired distribution in a plasma generation space.
  • the groove may be formed in a surface of the circular ring-shaped member and the surface may be on an opposite side to the plasma generation space. Since the ring-shaped groove is formed in the circular ring-shaped member configured to surround the peripheral portion of the target substrate to be plasma-processed, the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate can be changed.
  • the groove may be formed in an inner peripheral portion of the circular ring-shaped member. Since the groove is formed in the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, it is possible to adjust the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate more favorably.
  • impedance of the circular ring-shaped member may be adjusted to be a desired value depending on a shape of the groove.
  • the impedance varies depending on the shape of the groove, thereby adjusting the electric field distribution.
  • the groove may be formed to have a predetermined width, starting from a position between an inner end of the circular ring-shaped member and a position in a range of about 30% or less of a width of the circular ring-shaped member in a diametric direction. If the groove is formed at a position exceeding about 30% of the width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from the inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, it becomes difficult to adjust the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate.
  • the groove may be formed to have a predetermined width which is about 80% or less of a width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from an inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in a diametric direction. If the groove is formed to exceed about 80% of the width of the circular ring-shaped member, starting from the inner end of the circular ring-shaped member in contact with the target substrate, the groove has less effect on the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the target substrate.
  • a depth of the groove may be about 70% or less of a thickness of the circular ring-shaped member.
  • the depth of the groove (a length in a vertical direction when the circular ring-shaped member is provided in a horizontal direction) exceeds about 70% of the thickness of the circular ring-shaped member, a lifetime of the circular ring-shaped member is shortened by abrasion caused by a plasma impact.
  • the circular ring-shaped member may be made of at least one of quartz, carbon, silicon, silicon carbide, and a ceramic material.
  • the etching rate or deposition rate at the peripheral portion of the wafer can be adjusted easily and freely by adjusting the electric field distribution at the peripheral portion of the wafer, thereby improving uniformity or production yield in the plasma process.
  • FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross sectional view showing a configuration of a plasma processing apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure
  • FIG. 2A is a cross sectional view of a conventional focus ring
  • FIG. 2B is a cross sectional view of a groove-formed focus ring
  • FIGS. 3A to 3C show shapes of grooves
  • FIG. 4 is a graph showing an etching rate of an oxide film
  • FIG. 5 is a graph showing an etching rate of a nitride film
  • FIGS. 6A and 6B provide graphs showing a characteristic of a sputtering rate
  • FIGS. 7A and 7B provide graphs showing a characteristic of a deposition rate.
  • FIG. 1 shows a schematic overall configuration of a plasma processing apparatus 1 in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • the plasma processing apparatus includes a cylindrical processing chamber the inside of which can be airtightly sealed and is made of, e.g., aluminum or stainless steel.
  • a capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus of a lower electrode dual frequency application type is employed, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.
  • a plasma processing apparatus of an upper and lower electrode dual frequency application type or a plasma processing apparatus of a single frequency application type may be employed.
  • a susceptor 2 configured to support a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, referred to as “wafer”) 15 as a target substrate is horizontally placed.
  • the susceptor 2 is made of a conductive material such as aluminum and serves as an RF electrode.
  • an electrostatic chuck 16 installed on a top surface of the susceptor 2 is an electrostatic chuck 16 made of a dielectric material such as ceramic so as to hold the wafer 15 by an electrostatic attracting force.
  • An internal electrode 17 formed of a conductive film made of a conductive material such as copper or tungsten is embedded in the electrostatic chuck 16 .
  • the susceptor 2 is supported by a cylindrical holder 3 made of an insulating material such as ceramic.
  • the cylindrical holder 3 is supported by a cylindrical support 4 of the processing chamber.
  • Installed on a top surface of the cylindrical holder 3 is a focus ring 5 configured to surround the top surface of the susceptor 2 in a ring shape.
  • a circular ring-shaped cover ring 25 is installed around the outside of the focus ring 5 .
  • the electrostatic chuck 16 is used as a heat exchange plate for adjusting a temperature of the wafer 15 by exchanging heat with the wafer 15 in contact with each other.
  • the focus ring 5 serving as one of circular ring-shaped members for a plasma process is installed around the outside of the wafer 15 .
  • the single focus ring 5 is provided, but it may be possible to use a double focus ring which is divided into an outer focus ring and an inner focus ring.
  • the focus ring 5 can be made of, e.g., Si, SiC, C or SiO 2 depending on the wafer 15 .
  • a ring-shaped exhaust line 6 is provided between a sidewall of the processing chamber and the cylindrical support 4 .
  • a ring-shaped baffle plate 7 is provided at the entrance or on the way to the exhaust line 6 .
  • a bottom portion of the exhaust line 6 is connected with an exhaust device 9 via an exhaust pipe 8 .
  • the exhaust device 9 includes a vacuum pump such as a turbo molecular pump, and, thus, a plasma processing space within the processing chamber can be depressurized to a predetermined vacuum level.
  • a gate valve 11 configured to open and close a transfer port 10 for loading/unloading the wafer 15 is installed outside the sidewall of the processing chamber.
  • a rear surface (bottom surface) of the susceptor 2 and an upper electrode 21 are connected with upper ends of circular column-shaped or cylindrical-shaped power feed rods 14 a and 14 b extending from output terminals of matching units 13 a and 13 b, respectively.
  • First and second high frequency power supplies 12 a and 12 b used in a dual frequency application type are electrically connected with the susceptor 2 and the upper electrode 21 via the matching units 13 a and 13 b and the power feed rods 14 a and 14 b , respectively.
  • the power feed rods 14 a and 14 b are made of a conductive material such as copper or aluminum.
  • the first high frequency power supply 12 a outputs a first high frequency power having a relatively high frequency of, e.g., about 60 MHz for generating plasma above the susceptor 2 .
  • the second high frequency power supply 12 b outputs a second high frequency power having a relatively low frequency of, e.g., about 2 MHz for attracting ions to the wafer 15 on the susceptor 2 .
  • the matching unit 13 a performs matching between impedance of the first high frequency power supply 12 a and impedance of a load (mainly, electrode, plasma, and chamber), and the matching unit 13 b performs matching between impedance of the second high frequency power supply 12 b and the impedance of the load.
  • the electrostatic chuck 16 is configured such that the internal electrode 17 formed of a sheet-shaped or mesh-shaped conductor is embedded in a film-shaped or plate-shaped dielectric member.
  • the electrostatic chuck 16 is integrally fixed to or integrally formed on the top surface of the susceptor 2 .
  • the internal electrode 17 is electrically connected with a DC power supply and a power feed line such as a coated line provided outside the processing chamber, and, thus, the wafer 15 can be attracted to and held on the electrostatic chuck 16 by a Coulomb force generated by a DC voltage applied from the DC power supply.
  • the upper electrode 21 is provided to face parallel to the susceptor 2 .
  • the upper electrode 21 is formed in a circular plate shape having a hollow structure (hollow portion) at the center thereof, and a plurality of gas discharge holes 22 is formed in its bottom surface, thereby functioning as a shower head.
  • An etching gas supplied from a processing gas supply unit is introduced into the hollow portion in the upper electrode 21 through a gas inlet line 23 and uniformly distributed and supplied from the hollow portion to the processing chamber through the gas discharge holes 22 .
  • the upper electrode 21 is made of, e.g., Si or SiC.
  • a heat transfer gas such as a He gas is supplied between the electrostatic chuck 16 and the rear surface of the wafer 15 from a heat transfer gas supply unit (not illustrated) through a gas supply line 24 .
  • the heat transfer gas accelerates heat conduction in the electrostatic chuck 16 , i.e., between the susceptor 2 and the wafer 15 .
  • a main feature of this plasma processing apparatus is that the focus ring 5 , in which a circular ring-shaped groove is formed, is used so as to obtain an impedance characteristic capable of forming an intensity and distribution of an electric field most suitable for a characteristic of the wafer 15 or various kinds of plasma processes.
  • FIG. 2A is a cross sectional view of a conventional focus ring which has been used in a conventional plasma process
  • FIG. 2B is a cross sectional view of a groove-formed focus ring in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
  • All the focus rings illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B are single (or referred to as “integrated type”) focus rings.
  • the present disclosure is not limited to the single focus ring and, for example, may be applied to either or both of two separate focus rings which are divided into an inner focus ring and an outer focus ring.
  • the focus ring may be made of, for example, the same material (Si) as the wafer 15 , or any one of quartz, carbon, silicon carbide, and ceramic materials (yttria (Y 2 O 3 ) or silica).
  • the focus ring 5 is mounted on the electrostatic chuck 16 so as to support a peripheral end portion of the wafer 15 .
  • a groove 51 is formed on a surface (rear surface of the focus ring) in contact with the electrostatic chuck 16 .
  • a groove may be formed on the rear surface of the focus ring. That is because that if a groove-formed surface is exposed to plasma ions, the groove may be eroded (worn out) by a plasma ion impact and, thus, a shape of the groove may be deformed. Further, that is because that if the groove is formed by a cutting process or the like, dust caused by the plasma ion impact may be highly generated as compared to the other surface.
  • a depth of the groove 51 (length in a vertical direction when the focus ring 5 is installed in a horizontal direction) is desirably about 70% or less of a thickness of the focus ring and more desirably about 50% or less. If the depth of the groove 51 exceeds about 70%, a lifetime of the focus ring 5 may be shortened by abrasion caused by a plasma impact. Further, in order to secure hardness of the focus ring, the depth of the groove is desirably about 70% or less. Furthermore, the depth of the groove 51 of the groove-formed focus ring illustrated in FIG. 2B is about 0.4 mm, which is about one-ninth ( 1/9) of a thickness of the focus ring 5 , i.e., about 3.6 mm.
  • a width of the groove 51 in a diametric direction may be about 80% or less of a width of the focus ring in a diametric direction.
  • the width of the groove 51 of the groove-formed focus ring illustrated in FIG. 2B is about 40 mm, which corresponds to about two-fifth (2 ⁇ 5) (40%) of a width of the focus ring 5 , i.e., about 100 mm.
  • the groove 51 may be formed from an end of the focus ring at the install position of the wafer 15 or from a position in the range of about 30% or less of the width of the focus ring in a diametric direction. That is because that by forming the groove 51 from the end portion as close as possible, in such a range that is not affected by the ion impact, an electric field distribution on a surface of the wafer 15 can be adjusted more easily.
  • FIGS. 3A to 3C show shapes of grooves in accordance with the present disclosure.
  • FIG. 3A shows a case where a groove 51 is formed in a semi-elliptic shape from the vicinity of an inner end portion of a focus ring 5 .
  • FIG. 3B shows a case where a trapezoid-shaped groove 51 is formed at an inner end portion of a focus ring 5 and a rectangular groove 51 is formed outside thereof in a diametric direction.
  • FIG. 3C shows a case where three circular hollow grooves 51 are successively formed inside a focus ring 5 .
  • the present disclosure is related to a technique of forming a groove in a focus ring so as to obtain a desired electric field distribution, and, thus, it may be possible to form an optimal groove for a desired electric field distribution.
  • a couple of the focus rings 5 illustrated in FIG. 2B were prepared.
  • a heat transfer sheet having a heat conductivity of about 1 W/MK was almost fully filled in a groove 51 of one focus ring. It will be referred to as “groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type” in the specification hereinafter.
  • a heat transfer sheet having a heat conductivity of about 17 W/MK was almost fully filled in a groove 51 of the other focus ring. It will be referred to as “groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type” in the specification hereinafter.
  • the conventional focus ring illustrated in FIG. 2A was prepared. It will be referred to as “conventional focus ring” in the specification hereinafter.
  • wafer Ox three sheets of blanket wafers having a diameter of about 300 mm with an oxide film formed thereon and three sheets of blanket wafers (hereinafter, referred to as “wafer Ni”) having a diameter of about 300 mm with a nitride film formed thereon were prepared.
  • a temperature of an upper electrode, a temperature of a wall surface of a processing chamber, and a temperature of a bottom surface of an electrostatic chuck were about 60° C., 60° C., and 45° C., respectively.
  • FIG. 4 is a graph showing etching rates of the wafers Ox and FIG. 5 is a graph showing etching rates of the wafers Ni under the above-described plasma process conditions.
  • a point “O” represents a central point of the wafer and the right and left sides in a diametric direction from that point are represented in millimeters up to 150 mm.
  • the vertical axis represents an etching rate (nm/min) of an oxide film or an etching rate (nm/min) of a nitride film.
  • an etching rate of the oxide film is about 187 nm/min at the central portion of the wafer and is increased toward the end portion thereof. At a position about 30 mm away from the end portion of the wafer, the etching rate has the maximum value of about 195 nm/min. From that position to the farthest end portion, the etching rate is approximately constant.
  • the etching rate is approximately the same as the etching rate (about 187 nm/min) of the conventional focus ring at the central portion of the wafer, but the etching rate is increased toward the end portion thereof.
  • the etching rate is about 197 nm/min. From that position to the farthest end portion, the etching rate is sharply increased and is about 218 nm/min at the farthest end portion.
  • the etching rate of the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type has approximately the same characteristic as that of the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type as illustrated in FIG. 4 .
  • FIG. 5 is a graph showing an etching rate of a nitride film when the conventional focus ring was installed around the wafer Ni and the plasma process was performed under the above-described conditions.
  • the etching rate is about ⁇ 2 nm/min at the central portion of the wafer, which means that CxFy has been deposited at the central portion of the wafer.
  • the etching rate is decreased to a larger minus value (deposition rate of CxFy is increased) toward the end portion thereof. From a position about 50 mm away from the end portion of the wafer to the farthest end portion, the deposition rate is increased.
  • the etching rate has a slightly bigger minus value (about ⁇ 4 nm/min) at the central portion of the wafer than that of the conventional focus ring.
  • the etching rate comes to have plus values from minus values as it goes to the end portion. That is, at a position about 25 mm away from the end portion of the wafer, the deposition rate and the etching rate becomes substantially the same, and the etching rate is increased toward the end portion of the wafer from that position.
  • the etching rate of the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type on the wafer Ni has a different etching rate but approximately the same characteristic as that of the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type.
  • a difference in the heat conductivity of the heat transfer sheet embedded in the groove 51 does not make a big difference in the etching characteristic. That is because that the groove 51 formed in the focus ring 5 does not cause a change in its heat capacity but causes a change in the impedance of the focus ring 5 , so that an electric field distribution in its vicinity is varied by a change of the impedance. As a result, an intensity of the plasma (electric charge) impact on the wafer 15 is changed. Therefore, if a shape of the groove 51 is changed so as to obtain a desired electric field distribution according to a material to be plasma-processed, a desired electric field distribution can be formed at a desired position. Accordingly, the plasma process can be uniformly performed on the wafer 15 .
  • the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type and the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type were prepared in the same manner as experimental example 1, and as a comparative example thereof, the conventional focus ring was also prepared to find characteristics of a sputtering rate.
  • a temperature of an upper electrode, a temperature of a wall surface of the processing chamber, and a temperature of a bottom surface of an electrostatic chuck were about 60° C., 60° C., and 45° C., respectively.
  • FIGS. 6A and 6B are graphs each showing a characteristic of a sputtering rate in case of using the above-described three kinds of focus rings under the above-stated plasma process conditions.
  • a point “O” represents a central point of the wafer and the right and left sides in a diametric direction from that point are represented in millimeters up to 150 mm.
  • the vertical axis represents a sputtering rate in a unit of nm/min.
  • the sputtering rate is about 15 mm/min at the central portion of the wafer and is decreased toward the end portion thereof. From a position about 40 mm away from the end portion of the wafer, the sputtering rate is sharply decreased and is about 13 nm/min at the farthest end portion.
  • the sputtering rate is about 17 nm/min at the central portion of the wafer. From a position about 40 mm away from the end portion of the wafer, the sputtering rate is gradually decreased. However, from a position about 10 mm away from the end portion of the wafer to the farthest end portion, the sputtering rate is increased and is about 19 nm/min at the farthest end portion, which shows a characteristic contrary to that of the conventional focus ring.
  • the sputtering rate of the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type has approximately the same characteristic as that of the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type.
  • FIG. 6B is a graph showing normalized sputtering rates in case of using the three kinds of focus rings illustrated in FIG. 6A .
  • a difference in the heat conductivity of the heat transfer sheet embedded in the groove 51 does not make a big difference in the sputtering rate characteristic. Therefore, the groove 51 formed in the focus ring 5 does not cause a change in its heat capacity but causes a change in the impedance of the focus ring 5 , so that an electric field distribution in its vicinity can be varied by the change of the impedance.
  • an intensity of the plasma impact is changed, resulting in a change of the sputtering rate.
  • the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type and the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type were prepared in the same manner as experimental examples 1 and 2, and as a comparative example thereof, the conventional focus ring was prepared to find characteristics of a deposition rate.
  • a temperature of an upper electrode, a temperature of a wall surface of the processing chamber, and a temperature of a bottom surface of an electrostatic chuck were about 60° C., 60° C., and 45° C., respectively.
  • FIGS. 7A and 7B are graphs each showing a characteristic of a deposition rate when the above-described three kinds of focus rings, i.e., the conventional focus ring, the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type, and the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type, were installed around each of the blanket wafers under the above-stated plasma process conditions.
  • a point “O” represents a central point of the wafer and the right and left sides in a diametric direction from that point are represented in millimeters up to 150 mm.
  • the vertical axis represents a deposition rate in a unit of nm/min.
  • the deposition rate is about nm/min at the central portion of the wafer and is gradually increased toward the end portion thereof. From a position about 50 mm away from the end portion of the wafer, the deposition rate is sharply increased and is about 105 nm/min at the farthest end portion.
  • the deposition rate is about 80 nm/min, which is approximately the same deposition rate as that of the conventional focus ring.
  • the deposition rate is decreased and is about 70 nm/min at the farthest end portion.
  • the deposition rate of the groove-formed focus ring of 17 W type has approximately the same characteristic as that of the groove-formed focus ring of 1 W type as depicted in FIG. 7A .
  • FIG. 7B is a graph showing normalized deposition rates of the three kinds of focus rings illustrated in FIG. 7A .
  • a difference in the heat conductivity of the heat transfer sheet embedded in the groove 51 does not make a big difference in the deposition rate characteristic as mentioned in experimental examples 1 and 2. Therefore, the groove 51 formed in the focus ring 5 does not cause a change in its heat capacity but causes a change in the impedance of the focus ring 5 , so that an electric field distribution in its vicinity can be varied by the change of the impedance. As a result, it is deemed that an intensity of the plasma impact is changed, resulting in a change in the deposition rate.
  • a desired electric field distribution can be formed at a desired position. Therefore, it is obvious that an etching rate or a deposition rate can be adjusted to be a desired value at a desired position.
  • the present disclosure is not limited to a plasma etching apparatus but can be applied to other plasma processing apparatuses for plasma CVD, plasma oxidation, plasma nitridation, sputtering or the like.
  • a target substrate of the present disclosure is not limited to a semiconductor wafer but can be any one of various kinds of substrates for flat panel display, a photo mask, a CD substrate, and a print substrate.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Plasma & Fusion (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Analytical Chemistry (AREA)
  • Drying Of Semiconductors (AREA)
  • Plasma Technology (AREA)
US12/788,396 2009-05-27 2010-05-27 Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus Abandoned US20100300622A1 (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US12/788,396 US20100300622A1 (en) 2009-05-27 2010-05-27 Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP2009-128355 2009-05-27
JP2009128355A JP2010278166A (ja) 2009-05-27 2009-05-27 プラズマ処理用円環状部品、及びプラズマ処理装置
US22863609P 2009-07-27 2009-07-27
US12/788,396 US20100300622A1 (en) 2009-05-27 2010-05-27 Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US20100300622A1 true US20100300622A1 (en) 2010-12-02

Family

ID=43218877

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US12/788,396 Abandoned US20100300622A1 (en) 2009-05-27 2010-05-27 Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus

Country Status (5)

Country Link
US (1) US20100300622A1 (ko)
JP (1) JP2010278166A (ko)
KR (1) KR20100128238A (ko)
CN (1) CN101901744B (ko)
TW (1) TW201130395A (ko)

Cited By (13)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8486798B1 (en) 2012-02-05 2013-07-16 Tokyo Electron Limited Variable capacitance chamber component incorporating a semiconductor junction and methods of manufacturing and using thereof
US8721833B2 (en) 2012-02-05 2014-05-13 Tokyo Electron Limited Variable capacitance chamber component incorporating ferroelectric materials and methods of manufacturing and using thereof
US20170213751A1 (en) * 2012-01-13 2017-07-27 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus and heater temperature control method
US20170256435A1 (en) * 2016-03-04 2017-09-07 Applied Materials, Inc. Universal process kit
US20180171473A1 (en) * 2016-12-20 2018-06-21 Lam Research Corporation Conical wafer centering and holding device for semiconductor processing
US10047457B2 (en) * 2013-09-16 2018-08-14 Applied Materials, Inc. EPI pre-heat ring
US20200312634A1 (en) * 2019-03-29 2020-10-01 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus
US10840119B2 (en) 2019-03-22 2020-11-17 Toto Ltd. Electrostatic chuck
US20210249232A1 (en) * 2020-02-10 2021-08-12 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. Apparatus and method for etching
US20210305030A1 (en) * 2020-03-27 2021-09-30 Tokyo Electron Limited Substrate processing device, substrate processing system, control method for substrate processing device, and control method for substrate processing system
US20210358725A1 (en) * 2020-05-15 2021-11-18 Tokyo Electron Limited Substrate support assembly, substrate processing apparatus, and substrate processing method
US11450545B2 (en) * 2019-04-17 2022-09-20 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Capacitively-coupled plasma substrate processing apparatus including a focus ring and a substrate processing method using the same
US11538668B2 (en) * 2018-06-12 2022-12-27 Tokyo Electron Limited Mounting stage, substrate processing device, and edge ring

Families Citing this family (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN103887138B (zh) * 2014-03-31 2017-01-18 上海华力微电子有限公司 一种刻蚀设备的边缘环
CN105336561B (zh) * 2014-07-18 2017-07-21 中微半导体设备(上海)有限公司 等离子体刻蚀装置
CN106548967B (zh) * 2015-09-18 2020-04-28 北京北方华创微电子装备有限公司 承载装置以及半导体加工设备
SG11201908445PA (en) * 2017-10-17 2020-05-28 Ulvac Inc Object processing apparatus
JP7018331B2 (ja) * 2018-02-23 2022-02-10 東京エレクトロン株式会社 プラズマ処理方法及びプラズマ処理装置
JP7454976B2 (ja) * 2020-03-24 2024-03-25 東京エレクトロン株式会社 基板支持台、プラズマ処理システム及びエッジリングの交換方法

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20030121609A1 (en) * 1999-11-26 2003-07-03 Tadahiro Ohmi Plasma etching device
US20040040931A1 (en) * 2000-12-26 2004-03-04 Akira Koshiishi Plasma processing method and plasma processor

Family Cites Families (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPS59132623A (ja) * 1983-01-20 1984-07-30 Ulvac Corp ドライエツチング用電極
US6500314B1 (en) * 1996-07-03 2002-12-31 Tegal Corporation Plasma etch reactor and method
US6363882B1 (en) * 1999-12-30 2002-04-02 Lam Research Corporation Lower electrode design for higher uniformity
KR100657054B1 (ko) * 2003-01-07 2006-12-13 동경 엘렉트론 주식회사 플라즈마 처리 장치 및 포커스 링
TW200520632A (en) * 2003-09-05 2005-06-16 Tokyo Electron Ltd Focus ring and plasma processing apparatus
WO2006001253A1 (ja) * 2004-06-25 2006-01-05 Kyoto University プラズマ処理装置
KR100610010B1 (ko) * 2004-07-20 2006-08-08 삼성전자주식회사 반도체 식각 장치
US20060043067A1 (en) * 2004-08-26 2006-03-02 Lam Research Corporation Yttria insulator ring for use inside a plasma chamber
US20070091540A1 (en) * 2005-10-20 2007-04-26 Applied Materials, Inc. Method of processing a workpiece in a plasma reactor using multiple zone feed forward thermal control
US7544270B2 (en) * 2005-11-14 2009-06-09 Infineon Technologies Ag Apparatus for processing a substrate
JP2007250967A (ja) * 2006-03-17 2007-09-27 Tokyo Electron Ltd プラズマ処理装置および方法とフォーカスリング
JP2009044075A (ja) * 2007-08-10 2009-02-26 Toshiba Corp プラズマ処理装置およびプラズマエッチング方法

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20030121609A1 (en) * 1999-11-26 2003-07-03 Tadahiro Ohmi Plasma etching device
US20040040931A1 (en) * 2000-12-26 2004-03-04 Akira Koshiishi Plasma processing method and plasma processor

Cited By (19)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20170213751A1 (en) * 2012-01-13 2017-07-27 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus and heater temperature control method
US10026631B2 (en) * 2012-01-13 2018-07-17 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus and heater temperature control method
US10629464B2 (en) 2012-01-13 2020-04-21 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus and heater temperature control method
US8721833B2 (en) 2012-02-05 2014-05-13 Tokyo Electron Limited Variable capacitance chamber component incorporating ferroelectric materials and methods of manufacturing and using thereof
US8486798B1 (en) 2012-02-05 2013-07-16 Tokyo Electron Limited Variable capacitance chamber component incorporating a semiconductor junction and methods of manufacturing and using thereof
US10047457B2 (en) * 2013-09-16 2018-08-14 Applied Materials, Inc. EPI pre-heat ring
US11049760B2 (en) * 2016-03-04 2021-06-29 Applied Materials, Inc. Universal process kit
US20170256435A1 (en) * 2016-03-04 2017-09-07 Applied Materials, Inc. Universal process kit
US20180171473A1 (en) * 2016-12-20 2018-06-21 Lam Research Corporation Conical wafer centering and holding device for semiconductor processing
US10655224B2 (en) * 2016-12-20 2020-05-19 Lam Research Corporation Conical wafer centering and holding device for semiconductor processing
US11538668B2 (en) * 2018-06-12 2022-12-27 Tokyo Electron Limited Mounting stage, substrate processing device, and edge ring
US10840119B2 (en) 2019-03-22 2020-11-17 Toto Ltd. Electrostatic chuck
US10943809B2 (en) 2019-03-22 2021-03-09 Toto Ltd. Electrostatic chuck including ceramic dielectric substrate
US20200312634A1 (en) * 2019-03-29 2020-10-01 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus
US11664198B2 (en) * 2019-03-29 2023-05-30 Tokyo Electron Limited Plasma processing apparatus
US11450545B2 (en) * 2019-04-17 2022-09-20 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Capacitively-coupled plasma substrate processing apparatus including a focus ring and a substrate processing method using the same
US20210249232A1 (en) * 2020-02-10 2021-08-12 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. Apparatus and method for etching
US20210305030A1 (en) * 2020-03-27 2021-09-30 Tokyo Electron Limited Substrate processing device, substrate processing system, control method for substrate processing device, and control method for substrate processing system
US20210358725A1 (en) * 2020-05-15 2021-11-18 Tokyo Electron Limited Substrate support assembly, substrate processing apparatus, and substrate processing method

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CN101901744A (zh) 2010-12-01
CN101901744B (zh) 2013-01-30
JP2010278166A (ja) 2010-12-09
TW201130395A (en) 2011-09-01
KR20100128238A (ko) 2010-12-07

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US20100300622A1 (en) Circular ring-shaped member for plasma process and plasma processing apparatus
US20210027980A1 (en) Plasma processing apparatus
US9263298B2 (en) Plasma etching apparatus and plasma etching method
CN101540277B (zh) 等离子体处理装置
US6394026B1 (en) Low contamination high density plasma etch chambers and methods for making the same
US6363882B1 (en) Lower electrode design for higher uniformity
KR200478935Y1 (ko) 플라즈마 처리 챔버를 위한 ｃ-형상 한정 링
KR100841118B1 (ko) 플라즈마 처리 장치 및 플라즈마 처리 방법
US20100243608A1 (en) Plasma processing apparatus and plasma processing method
US8529730B2 (en) Plasma processing apparatus
US8261691B2 (en) Plasma processing apparatus
US8647438B2 (en) Annular baffle
KR20150082196A (ko) 플라즈마 처리 방법
US10083820B2 (en) Dual-frequency surface wave plasma source
KR20010042268A (ko) 오염 제어 방법 및 플라즈마 공정 챔버
US8034213B2 (en) Plasma processing apparatus and plasma processing method
JP2017212051A (ja) プラズマ処理方法
CN111261511A (zh) 等离子体处理装置和等离子体处理方法
JP2011171750A (ja) プラズマ処理装置
JP5893260B2 (ja) プラズマ処理装置および処理方法
JP2007184611A (ja) プラズマ処理装置およびプラズマ処理方法
WO2010119947A1 (ja) プラズマ処理装置
JP2007266536A (ja) プラズマ処理装置

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
AS Assignment

Owner name: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED, JAPAN

Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:YATSUDA, KOICHI;MIZUNO, HIDEKI;REEL/FRAME:024538/0081

Effective date: 20100525

STCB Information on status: application discontinuation

Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION