WO2023113130A1 - Substrate treatment method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a substrate treatment method and, more specifically, to a substrate treatment method for improving substrate properties. The present invention provides a substrate treatment method comprising: a first compression and decompression step (S100) for performing, at least once, compression and decompression of a chamber in which a substrate is treated; and a second compression and decompression step (S200) for performing, at least once, compression and decompression of the chamber at a temperature higher than the first compression and decompression step (S100), after the first compression and decompression step (S100).

Description

Substrate treatment method

The present invention relates to a substrate processing method, and more particularly, to a substrate processing method for improving substrate characteristics.

In general, a substrate processing method may include a process of forming a film through deposition.

However, in the prior art, there has been no particularly well-known technology that is particularly favored or perfectly verified in the industry for removing impurities in the film and improving the properties of the film after forming a thin film on a substrate.

In particular, with the advent of 3D semiconductor devices and substrates with a high aspect ratio, it is inevitable to lower the film deposition temperature or to use a source with a high impurity content in order to meet the step coverage standard. As a result, it is becoming more difficult to remove impurities in the membrane.

Therefore, there is a need for a substrate processing method capable of improving film properties by removing impurities present in the film without deteriorating film properties after film formation.

To this end, conventionally, after raising the pressure and temperature to process values, pressurization and depressurization are performed on the substrate to remove impurities. There is a problem in that the efficiency of the impurity removal process is lowered because it is not effectively removed.

Therefore, in the prior art, impurities could not be completely removed or pressure and pressure had to be repeatedly performed at a high temperature for a long time. However, in the case of performing a substrate treatment for a long-term impurity removal process at a high temperature, the heat budget exceeds the acceptable level of the substrate There is a problem that the film is damaged due to this.

As a result, in the conventional substrate processing method, there is a problem in that impurities are not completely removed when the heat balance is reduced, and when the impurity removal is completely performed, the film quality is damaged due to the excessive heat balance, resulting in a decrease in process yield and an increase in process time. there is.

In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing method capable of improving substrate characteristics by removing impurities while reducing the heat balance of the substrate.

The present invention, as created to achieve the object of the present invention as described above, the present invention, a first pressurization and decompression step (S100) of performing pressurization and decompression at least once in the chamber in which the substrate is processed; A substrate including a second pressurization and depressurization step (S200) of performing pressurization and decompression in the chamber at least once at a higher temperature than the first pressurization and decompression step (S100) after the first pressurization and depressurization step (S100) Initiate processing method.

In the first pressure reduction step (S100), the first temperature (T ₁ ) is constantly maintained, and in the second pressure reduction step (S200), the second temperature (T higher than the first temperature (T ₁ )) ₂ ), substrate treatment can be performed.

In the first pressure reduction step (S100), the temperature may be raised to a temperature at which the second pressure reduction step (S200) is performed either continuously or stepwise, or a combination thereof.

Prior to the first pressure reduction step ( S100 ), a standby step ( S300 ) of preparing a substrate process for the substrate and maintaining the temperature in the chamber at a third temperature ( T ₃ ) may be further included.

The first temperature T ₁ may be the same as the third temperature T ₃ .

The first temperature T ₁ may be greater than the third temperature T ₃ and less than the second temperature T ₂ .

The first pressure reduction step (S100) and the second pressure reduction step (S200) may use the same process gas.

The process gas may include hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas.

The first pressure reduction step (S100) performs substrate processing using a first gas, and the second pressure reduction step (S200) performs substrate processing using a second gas different from the first gas. can do.

The first gas may include hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas, and the second gas may include at least one of nitrogen (N ₂ ) and oxygen (O ₂ ) gas.

The first pressure reduction step (S100) uses a first gas containing hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas, and the second pressure reduction step (S200) uses the first gas to the substrate and the substrate and a stabilization step of performing stabilization of the thin film, and an impurity removal step of removing impurities from the thin film formed on the thin film, wherein the stabilization step includes at least one of nitrogen (N ₂ ) and oxygen (O ₂ ) gas. A second gas containing

The first pressure reduction step (S100) includes a first pressure step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a first pressure (P ₁ ) or less greater than the atmospheric pressure, and the pressure in the chamber after the first pressure step is increased to the first pressure step (P 1 ). 1 pressure (P ₁ ) Lower than the second pressure (P ₂ ) It may include a first decompression step of lowering.

The first pressurizing step may include a pressure raising step of increasing the pressure in the chamber, and a pressure maintaining step of maintaining the pressure in the chamber that has risen through the pressure raising step to be constant.

In the first pressure reducing step (S100), the first pressure step and the first pressure reducing step are set as one unit cycle, and the first pressure (P ₁ ) is set to a maximum value and the second pressure (P ₂ ) to a minimum value. It can be performed n times (n≥1) within the pressure range of

The second pressure P ₂ may be greater than or equal to atmospheric pressure.

The second pressure reduction step (S200) includes a second pressure step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a third pressure (P ₃ ) or less that is greater than atmospheric pressure, and the pressure in the chamber after the second pressure step is increased to the first pressure. A second pressure reduction step of lowering the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) or higher than the third pressure (P ₃ ) may be included.

The first pressure P ₁ may have the same pressure value as the third pressure P ₃ .

The fourth pressure (P ₄ ) may be a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure.

The second pressure-reducing step (S200) includes a temperature-raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber to the second temperature (T ₂ ), and a high-temperature maintaining step of maintaining the temperature in the chamber at the second temperature (T ₂ ). and a temperature reduction step of lowering the temperature in the chamber from the second temperature T ₂ to the fourth temperature T ₄ .

In the second pressure reduction step (S200), the second pressure step and the second pressure reduction step are performed within a pressure range in which the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is the minimum value. It is performed n times (n≥1) as one unit cycle, and at least one unit cycle may be performed in the high temperature maintaining step.

The second pressure reduction step (S200) includes a temperature raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber to the second temperature (T ₂ ), and the temperature in the chamber is increased from the second temperature (T ₂ ) to a fourth temperature (T ₄ ), and at least one of the temperature raising step and the temperature decreasing step may be performed when the pressure in the chamber is equal to or greater than atmospheric pressure.

The fourth temperature T ₄ may be equal to or lower than the first temperature T ₁ .

The substrate processing method according to the present invention has the advantage of maximizing the annealing effect in the main process by removing impurities from the inside of the reactor and the substrate and removing unnecessary gases adsorbed to the substrate in advance.

In particular, the substrate processing method according to the present invention has an advantage of minimizing film damage by minimizing a process under high temperature and reducing heat balance with respect to the substrate.

Through this, the substrate processing method according to the present invention has an advantage of improving process yield while reducing process time.

In addition, the substrate processing method according to the present invention has the advantage of maximizing the annealing effect by increasing the concentration of the reaction gas inside the reactor by performing the pressure reduction process before the process under high temperature.

1 is a flow chart showing a substrate processing method according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a graph showing a substrate processing method according to FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a graph showing temperature changes of another embodiment of the substrate processing method according to FIG. 1 .

Figure 4 is a graph showing the effect of the substrate processing method according to Figure 1.

Hereinafter, a substrate processing method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , a substrate processing method according to the present invention includes a first pressurization and decompression step (S100) of performing pressurization and decompression at least once in a chamber in which a substrate is processed; After the first pressure reduction step (S100), a second pressure reduction step (S200) of performing pressurization and pressure reduction in the chamber at least once at a higher temperature than the first pressure reduction step (S100).

In addition, the substrate processing method according to the present invention, before the first pressure reduction step (S100), a standby step of preparing a substrate treatment for the substrate and maintaining the temperature in the chamber at a third temperature (T ₃ ) ( S300) may be further included.

A substrate described below may be used as a concept including both a state before a thin film is formed and a state in which a thin film is deposited.

Here, the substrate to be processed may be understood as including all substrates such as substrates used for display devices such as LED, LCD, and OLED, semiconductor substrates, solar cell substrates, and glass substrates.

Further, the process of processing the substrate may include deposition, etching, annealing, and the like, and may include, in particular, a process of removing impurities and unnecessary gases from the substrate and a thin film deposited on the substrate.

In addition, the substrate may have a configuration including a non-metal film including a dielectric film and a metal film, and in this case, details of the non-metal film and the metal film will be described later.

The chamber is a configuration in which a processing space is formed to process a substrate, and various configurations are possible.

In this case, the chamber may be configured to perform substrate processing on a single substrate, and as another example, may be configured to perform substrate processing by stacking a plurality of substrates in a vertical direction in a batch manner.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a batch type structure capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of substrates will be described, and a single layer type structure in which substrate processing for a single substrate is performed can be applied, of course.

The chamber may have a single tube or double tube structure, an internal processing space is formed, and gas may be supplied or exhausted through a lower manifold.

At this time, the chamber has a structure in which a lower part is opened, and a lower part can be opened and closed through a cap flange or the like, thereby forming a closed processing space and introducing and taking out substrates.

Meanwhile, the chamber may be made of a metal material such as aluminum, and may be made of a quartz material as another example.

The first pressure reduction step ( S100 ) may be a step of performing pressurization and decompression at least once in a chamber in which a substrate can be placed.

More specifically, the first pressure reduction step (S100) removes impurities and unnecessary gases from the substrate at a relatively lower temperature than the second pressure reduction step (S200) before the second pressure reduction step (S200) to be described later. step, whereby the effect of the main process through the second pressure reduction step (S200) can be maximized.

In particular, the first pressure reduction step (S100) is performed at a relatively lower temperature than the second pressure reduction step (S200), and removes impurities and unnecessary gases while minimizing damage to the substrate and thin film by lowering the heat balance of the substrate. There are advantages to maximizing the effect.

To this end, the first pressure reduction step (S100) may be performed before the second pressure reduction step (S200), which is the main process.

More specifically, in the first pressurization and depressurization step (S100), pressurization and decompression of the chamber in which the substrate can be placed may be performed at least once at a temperature lower than that of the second pressurization and decompression step (S200).

At this time, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), the first temperature (T ₁ ) may be constantly maintained, and the substrate is treated by performing pressurization and decompression while maintaining the first temperature (T ₁ ). can be performed.

In addition, as another example, the first pressure reduction step (S100) is performed at a relatively lower temperature than the second pressure reduction step (S200), and continuously up to the temperature at which the second pressure reduction step (S200) is performed. At the same time as raising the temperature in any one step or a combination thereof, pressurization and decompression may be performed at least once.

That is, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), the temperature is continuously increased linearly to the temperature at which the second pressure reduction step (S200) is performed, or pressurization and pressure reduction are performed at least once while increasing the temperature in stages. can

Meanwhile, the first temperature (T ₁ ) at which the first pressure reduction step (S100) is performed is a temperature lower than the second temperature (T ₂ ) at which the second pressure reduction step (S200) is performed, and is a standby step to be described later. It may be the same temperature as the third temperature (T ₃ ) maintained in (S300).

That is, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), pressurization and pressure reduction may be performed at least once at the same temperature as the third temperature (T ₃ ) of the standby step (S300), which is a process preparation step for substrate processing.

As another example, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), the first temperature (T ₁ ) may be set to be greater than the third temperature (T ₃ ) and smaller than the second temperature (T ₂ ), of course. .

Meanwhile, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), substrate processing may be performed using a process gas, and at this time, the process gas may include hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas.

More specifically, the process gas may be a gas containing at least one element of hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), chlorine (Cl), and fluorine (F).

That is, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), the substrate may be treated by supplying hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas into the chamber, and more specifically, the substrate and the surface of the thin film formed on the substrate may have impurities and unnecessary gas can be removed.

A specific mechanism for removing impurities at this time has been proposed in Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0006422A previously disclosed, and may include a related configuration.

At this time, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), substrate treatment may be performed by applying the same process gas as that of the second pressure reduction step (S200) to be described later, and the process gas at this time is hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas. It may be a gas containing

On the other hand, as another example, the substrate treatment may be performed in the first pressurizing/reducing step (S100) with a process gas different from that of the second pressurizing/reducing step (S200), which will be described later in this regard.

The first pressure reduction step (S100), the first pressure step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a first pressure (P ₁ ) or less greater than the atmospheric pressure, and after the first pressure step, the pressure in the chamber to the first pressure (P ₁ ) lower than the second pressure (P ₂ ) It may include a first decompression step of lowering.

That is, in the first pressure reduction step (S100), pressurization and pressure reduction may be performed at least once within a pressure range in which the first pressure (P ₁ ) is the maximum value and the second pressure (P ₂ ) is the minimum value. there is.

At this time, the first pressurizing step may include a pressure raising step of increasing the pressure in the chamber, and a pressure maintaining step of maintaining the pressure in the chamber that has risen through the pressure raising step to be constant.

That is, the first pressurizing step may include a pressure raising step of raising the pressure in the chamber to the first pressure P ₁ , and when the first pressure P ₁ is reached, the pressure in the chamber is reduced to the first pressure P 1 . ₁ ) may include a pressure maintaining step of maintaining a constant for a preset time.

On the other hand, unlike the above, the first pressurization step, as shown in Figure 1, the pressure in the chamber is raised to the first pressure (P ₁ ) And the first depressurization step can be performed immediately afterwards, of course. am.

In the first pressure reduction step (S100), the first pressure step and the first pressure reduction step are set as one unit cycle, and the first pressure (P ₁ ) is the maximum value and the second pressure (P ₂ ) The pressure range of the minimum value It can be performed n times (n≥1) within

That is, the first pressure reduction step (S100) may be repeatedly performed with the first pressure step and the first pressure pressure step as one unit cycle, and in this process, the maximum and minimum pressure values in each cycle are the same or different. may be set differently.

More specifically, the unit cycle may be repeatedly performed within a pressure range in which the first pressure (P ₁ ) is the maximum value and the second pressure (P ₂ ) is the minimum value, and the maximum and minimum values of the pressure for each unit cycle are as described above. They may be the same or different within the pressure range.

On the other hand, the second pressure (P ₂ ) may be greater than or equal to the atmospheric pressure, and through this, the inflow of outside air according to the formation of a vacuum state for the inside of the chamber before the main process, which is the second pressure reduction step (S200), can be blocked. there is.

As an example, the first pressure (P ₁ ) may be a preset pressure value within a range of 2 atm to 5 atm, and the second pressure (P ₂ ) may be 1 atm, that is, atmospheric pressure.

The second pressure reduction step (S200) may be a step of performing pressurization and pressure reduction in the chamber at least once at a higher temperature than the first pressure reduction step (S100) after the first pressure reduction step (S100). .

At this time, the second pressure reduction step (S200) is a step in which substrate processing is performed at a relatively high temperature following the first pressure reduction step (S100), and may be a main process for removing impurities and unnecessary gases from the substrate and thin film. .

In the second pressure reduction step (S200), _the substrate treatment may be performed at a second temperature (T _{2 ) higher than the first temperature (T 1} ), and the second temperature (T ₂ ) is constantly maintained during the entire step. Alternatively, a heating section in which the temperature changes before and after the second temperature T ₂ may be included.

On the other hand, in the second pressure reduction step (S200), as described above, substrate processing may be performed through the same process gas as the first pressure reduction step (S100), wherein the process gas is hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas. It may be a gas containing

At this time, the first pressure reduction step (S100) and the second pressure reduction step (S200) in which a process gas containing hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas is used may be a configuration in which a metal electrode is formed on the substrate to be processed, As an example, it may be a film such as TiN, Mo, or Ru.

In addition, as another example, the substrate processing may be performed in the second pressure reduction step ( S200 ) using a process gas different from that of the first pressure reduction step ( S100 ).

More specifically, the second pressure reduction step (S200), unlike the first pressure reduction step (S100) in which the substrate processing is performed using a first gas containing hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas, nitrogen (N ₂ ) And oxygen (O ₂ ) It is possible to perform the substrate treatment using a second gas containing at least one gas.

In this case, the second pressure reduction step (S200) may perform thin film stabilization for stabilizing the thin film formed on the substrate without performing a separate impurity removal process on the substrate. At this time, nitrogen (N ₂ ) and A second gas including at least one of oxygen (O ₂ ) gases may be used.

In addition, the first gas may be more specifically, a gas containing at least one element of hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), chlorine (Cl), and fluorine (F).

In addition, as another example, the second pressure reduction step (S200) may include both an impurity removal step of removing impurities from the substrate and a thin film formed on the substrate, and a stabilization step of stabilizing the substrate and the thin film. can

At this time, in the second pressure reduction step (S200), the impurity removal step may be performed using a first gas containing hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas, and among nitrogen (N ₂ ) and oxygen (O ₂ ) gases. The stabilization step may be performed using a second gas containing at least one gas.

In this case, a first pressure reduction step (S100) in which substrate processing is performed using the first gas, and a second pressure reduction step (S200) in which substrate processing is performed using the first gas and the second gas sequentially may be performed when a dielectric film is formed on the substrate, and for example, ZrO2, HfO2, and Al2O3 may be applied.

In the stabilization step, a dielectric film such as HfO ₂ or ZrO ₂ is filled with oxygen (O) in place of the carbon (C) removed through the hydrogen gas (H ₂ ) in the impurity removal step, thereby enabling a stable dielectric film to be formed. there is.

On the other hand, the second pressurization step (S200), the second pressurization step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a third pressure (P ₃ ) or less greater than the atmospheric pressure, and the inside of the chamber raised through the second pressurization step A high pressure maintaining step of maintaining the pressure in a high pressure state, and a second pressure reducing step of lowering the pressure in the chamber to a fourth pressure (P _{4 ) or higher lower than the third pressure (P 3 )} after the high pressure maintaining step. can do.

That is, the second pressure reduction step (S200), similar to the above-described first pressure reduction step (S100), the pressure range in which the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is the minimum value. Pressurization and depressurization may be performed at least once.

The second pressure reduction step (S200), the second pressure step of increasing the pressure in the chamber to the third pressure (P ₃ ) and the third pressure (P ₃ ) when the pressure in the chamber reaches the third pressure (P ₃ ) It may include a high pressure maintaining step for maintaining constant as long as a preset time.

On the other hand, unlike the above, of course, the second decompression step may be performed immediately following the second depressurization step of raising the pressure in the chamber to the third pressure P ₃ .

In the second pressure reduction step (S200), the second pressure step and the second pressure reduction step are used as one unit cycle, and the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is a pressure range of the minimum value It can be performed n times (n≥1) within

That is, the second pressure reduction step (S200) may be repeatedly performed by taking the second pressure step and the second pressure pressure step as one unit cycle, and in this process, the maximum and minimum pressure values in each cycle are the same or different. may be set differently.

More specifically, the unit cycle may be repeatedly performed within a pressure range in which the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is the minimum value, and the maximum and minimum values of the pressure for each unit cycle are as described above. They may be the same or different within the pressure range.

On the other hand, the third pressure (P ₃ ) may have the same pressure value as the first pressure (P ₁ ), whereby the maximum pressure value of the first pressure reduction step (S100) and the second pressure reduction step (S200) The maximum pressure values of may be equal to each other.

The fourth pressure (P ₄ ) may be a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure, and through this, the second pressure reduction step (S200), unlike the first pressure reduction step (S100), the third pressure relatively greater than the atmospheric pressure ( A rapid pressure change between P ₃ ) and the fourth pressure P ₄ in a vacuum state can be induced.

To this end, the third pressure (P ₃ ) may have a pressure value within a range of 2 atm to 5 atm, and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) may be a pressure value in a vacuum state of 10 torr less than normal pressure.

On the other hand, the second pressure reduction step (S200), a temperature raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber from the first temperature (T ₁ ) to the second temperature (T ₂ ), the temperature in the chamber to the second temperature (T ₂ ) It may include a high-temperature maintaining step of maintaining the temperature and a temperature reduction step of lowering the temperature in the chamber from the second temperature T ₂ to the fourth temperature T ₄ .

In this case, in the second pressure reduction step (S200), the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is within a pressure range of the minimum value, the second pressure step and the second pressure range The depressurization step may be performed n times (n≥1) as one unit cycle, and at least one unit cycle at this time may be performed in the high temperature maintaining step.

That is, at least one of the unit cycles consisting of the second pressurization step and the second depressurization step is performed in the high-temperature maintaining step, so that the reaction for removing impurities from the substrate can be further promoted.

More specifically, by repeatedly performing the pressurization step and the depressurization step in a high temperature state, the thermal vibration of atoms can be increased, and through this, it is possible to promote decomposition of the bond of impurities forming a weak bond with the substrate or thin film. It is possible to improve the binding between the constituting material of the first gas, such as hydrogen, and impurities on the surface of the substrate or thin film.

The temperature raising step may be a step of raising the temperature in the chamber from the first temperature T ₁ to the second temperature T ₂ .

That is, in the temperature raising step, the temperature in the chamber may be raised to create a temperature atmosphere for removing impurities, thereby creating temperature conditions for substrate processing.

At this time, the temperature raising step may be performed when the pressure in the chamber is equal to or greater than atmospheric pressure during the second pressure reduction step (S200).

The high-temperature maintaining step is a step of maintaining the temperature in the chamber at the second temperature T2, and the second pressing step and the second depressurizing step are performed, so that impurities and unnecessary gases can be effectively removed from the substrate and the thin film.

The temperature reduction step may be a step of lowering the temperature in the chamber from the second temperature T ₂ to the fourth temperature T ₄ .

At this time, the fourth temperature (T ₄ ) may be the same temperature as the third temperature (T ₃ ), which is a chamber temperature applied during the standby step (S300) to be described later, and, as another example, a temperature higher than the third temperature (T ₃ ). It may be a low temperature, and as described above, it may be the same as the first temperature (T ₁ ) or a different temperature depending on subsequent processes.

On the other hand, the temperature reduction step may be performed during any one of the second pressurization step and the high pressure maintaining step, and more specifically, the pressure in the chamber is maintained at a first pressure P ₁ , which is a high pressure state greater than atmospheric pressure. During the period, the temperature can be reduced from the second temperature (T ₂ ) to the fourth temperature (T ₄ ).

More specifically, when the pressure is lower than atmospheric pressure in a state where O ₂ remains inside the conventional chamber, when the temperature inside the chamber rises or the temperature inside the chamber decreases, as O ₂ remaining inside the chamber is outgassed, the thin film and There is a problem with reacting.

In order to solve this problem, the temperature raising step and the temperature decreasing step may be performed when the pressure in the chamber is higher than atmospheric pressure during the second increasing/decreasing step (S200), and more preferably, during the high pressure maintaining step maintaining the high pressure state. can be performed

More specifically, the temperature increase time point and temperature increase end point of the temperature increase step, and the temperature decrease point and temperature decrease end point of the temperature decrease step can be specified as points at which deterioration of the thin film can be minimized.

For example, in the temperature raising step, the temperature atmosphere is changed from the first temperature T 1 to the second temperature T ₂ from the preset temperature rising time point to the temperature rising end point during or after the second pressing step _is performed. can be heated with

At this time, the temperature rising point and the temperature rising end point in the temperature raising step are the start point of the second pressurization step (the point at which pressurization starts with the third pressure P ₃ ) and the start point of the second decompression step (the fourth pressure P ₄ ) to the point at which decompression begins).

As an example, in the temperature raising step, the temperature may be raised from a preset temperature raising time point to a temperature raising end point during the performance of the second pressurizing step.

Here, the temperature increase time point may be set at any time point after the start point of the second pressurization step, but the inside of the chamber is blocked by O ₂ gas. It is preferable to set a time point after a certain amount of the first gas or the second gas is introduced so that the process pressure is pressurized above the atmospheric pressure so as to be sufficiently protected.

Furthermore, at this time, the temperature rising point and the temperature rising end point are preferably set within a high pressure maintaining step in which the pressure is maintained in a state in which the process pressure in the chamber is pressurized to a sufficiently high pressure of the third pressure level (P ₃ ) through the second pressing step. do.

In the temperature reduction step, like the above-described temperature raising step, the temperature atmosphere can be reduced to the fourth temperature T ₄ from a preset temperature reduction time point to a temperature reduction end point during or after the second pressure step is performed. .

At this time, the temperature reduction start point and the temperature reduction end point in the temperature reduction step are the start point of the second pressure step (the point at which pressurization starts with the third pressure (P ₃ )) and the start point of the second pressure reduction step (the fourth pressure (P _{4 )} ). ) to the point at which decompression begins).

For example, in the temperature reduction step, the temperature may be reduced from a predetermined temperature reduction time point to a temperature reduction end point during any one of the second pressurization step and the high pressure maintaining step.

Here, the temperature reduction time point may be set at any time point after the start point of the pressurization step, but the inside of the chamber is free from O ₂ gas. It is preferable to set the time point after a certain amount of the first gas or the second gas is introduced so as to be sufficiently protected and the process pressure is pressurized above the atmospheric pressure. It may be set to a time point before the pressure is reduced to below atmospheric pressure.

Furthermore, at this time, the temperature reduction start point and temperature reduction end point are preferably set within a high pressure maintenance step in which the pressure is maintained in a state in which the process pressure in the chamber is pressurized to a sufficiently high pressure of the level of the third pressure (P ₃ ) through the second pressurization step. do.

Meanwhile, as an example, the temperature reduction step may be performed during the last n-th high-pressure maintaining step when the second pressure step and the second pressure step are repeated n times as one unit cycle.

That is, in the process of repeating from 1 to n-1 times of the unit cycle, the temperature in the chamber may be maintained at the second temperature (T ₂ ), and the temperature reduction step is performed at the nth pressure for the temperature condition of the subsequent process. This can be done during the maintenance phase.

Accordingly, there is an effect of enabling high-quality substrate processing by reducing the sheet resistance (R _S ) of the substrate to be processed.

Meanwhile, the aforementioned fourth temperature T ₄ may be equal to or lower than the first temperature T ₁ .

The waiting step (S300) may be a step of preparing a substrate treatment for the substrate before the first pressure reduction step (S100).

For example, in the waiting step (S300), as shown in FIG. 2, the temperature in the chamber is constantly maintained at the third temperature (T ₃ ) to prepare for substrate processing before the first pressure reduction step (S100). It may be a step to

In this case, the third temperature T ₃ , as described above _{, may be equal to or lower than the first temperature T 1 .}

When the third temperature (T ₃ ) is lower than the first temperature (T ₁ ), in the standby step (S300), the temperature in the chamber is maintained at the third temperature (T ₃ ) in a standby state preparing for substrate processing. It may include a temperature maintaining step and a temperature raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber to the first temperature T ₁ for the first pressure reduction step S100 after the temperature maintaining step.

On the other hand, hereinafter, with reference to the attached Figure 4, the effect according to the present invention will be described in detail.

4 is a graph comparing substrate processing experiment results through a conventional substrate processing method and a substrate processing method according to the present invention, and the experiment was conducted in the following situation.

In the conventional substrate processing method, the temperature in the chamber was maintained at 300 ° C in the standby step (S300), and the process corresponding to the second pressure reduction step (S200) of the present invention, which is the main process, was repeatedly performed at 400 ° C. for three cycles. .

In the substrate processing method according to the present invention, the temperature in the chamber is maintained at 300 ° C in the standby step (S300), the first pressure reduction step (S100) is performed at the same 300 ° C, and then the second pressure reduction step (S200) was performed one cycle under 400 ° C., wherein both the first pressure reduction step (S100) and the second pressure reduction step (S200) used hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas.

As a result, when performing the substrate processing method according to the present invention, it can be confirmed that the sheet resistance (R _s ) is improved and the substrate characteristics are improved. ) to reduce damage to the substrate and the thin film, while improving the sheet resistance (R _s ) can be confirmed.

Since the above has only been described with respect to some of the preferred embodiments that can be implemented by the present invention, as noted, the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the above embodiments, and the scope of the present invention described above It will be said that the technical idea and the technical idea together with the root are all included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims (22)

1. a first pressure reduction step (S100) of performing pressurization and decompression of the chamber in which the substrate is processed at least once;

   After the first pressure reducing step (S100), including a second pressure reducing step (S200) of performing pressurization and pressure reduction in the chamber at least once at a higher temperature than the first pressure reducing step (S100). Characterized by a substrate processing method.
2. The method of claim 1,

   In the first pressure reduction step (S100), the first temperature (T ₁ ) is maintained constant,

   In the second increasing/decreasing step (S200), the substrate processing method is characterized in that the substrate processing is performed at a second temperature (T ₂ ) higher than the first temperature (T ₁ ).
3. The method of claim 1,

   The first pressure reduction step (S100),

   The substrate processing method characterized in that the temperature is raised by any one or a combination of continuous and stepwise to the temperature at which the second pressure reduction step (S200) is performed.
4. The method of claim 2,

   Prior to the first pressure reduction step (S100), a standby step (S300) of preparing a substrate treatment for the substrate and maintaining the temperature in the chamber at a third temperature (T ₃ ) Characterized in that it further comprises Substrate treatment method.
5. The method of claim 4,

   The first temperature (T ₁ ) is,

   The third temperature (T ₃ ) Substrate processing method, characterized in that the same temperature.
6. The method of claim 4,

   The first temperature (T ₁ ) is,

   The substrate processing method, characterized in that the temperature is higher than the third temperature (T ₃ ) and lower than the second temperature (T ₂ ).
7. The method of claim 1,

   The first pressure reduction step (S100) and the second pressure reduction step (S200),

   A substrate processing method characterized by using the same process gas as each other.
8. The method of claim 7,

   The process gas,

   A substrate processing method comprising hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas.
9. The method of claim 1,

   In the first pressure reduction step (S100), substrate processing is performed using a first gas,

   In the second pressure reduction step (S200), the substrate processing method is characterized in that the substrate processing is performed using a second gas different from the first gas.
10. The method of claim 9,

    The first gas includes hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas,

    The second gas includes at least one of nitrogen (N ₂ ) and oxygen (O ₂ ) gas,

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    A substrate processing method characterized in that performing stabilization of the thin film formed on the substrate using the second gas.
11. The method of claim 1,

    The first pressure reduction step (S100),

    A first gas containing hydrogen (H ₂ ) gas is used,

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    a step of removing impurities from the substrate and a thin film formed on the substrate using the first gas; and a stabilization step of stabilizing the thin film,

    The stabilization step is

    A substrate processing method comprising using a second gas containing at least one of nitrogen (N ₂ ) and oxygen (O ₂ ) gases.
12. The method of claim 1,

    The first pressure reduction step (S100),

    A first pressurizing step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a first pressure (P ₁ ) or less greater than the atmospheric pressure, and a second pressure lowering the pressure in the chamber after the first pressurizing step is lower than the first pressure (P ₁ ) (P ₂ ) A substrate processing method characterized in that it comprises a first pressure reduction step to lower.
13. The method of claim 12,

    In the first pressing step,

    A substrate processing method comprising: a pressure raising step of increasing the pressure in the chamber; and a pressure maintaining step of maintaining the pressure in the chamber, which has risen through the pressure raising step, constant.
14. The method of claim 12,

    The first pressure reduction step (S100),

    The first pressurization step and the first decompression step are regarded as one unit cycle, and the first pressure (P ₁ ) is the maximum value and the second pressure (P ₂ ) n times (n≥1) within a pressure range of the minimum value ) Substrate processing method, characterized in that for performing.
15. The method of claim 12,

    The second pressure (P ₂ ) is,

    A substrate processing method characterized in that the pressure is greater than or equal to atmospheric pressure.
16. The method of claim 12,

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    A second pressurization step of raising the pressure in the chamber to a third pressure (P ₃ ) or less greater than the atmospheric pressure, and a fourth pressure lower than the third pressure (P ₃ ) after the second pressurization step in the chamber. (P ₄ ) A substrate processing method characterized in that it comprises a second pressure reduction step to lower.
17. The method of claim 16

    The first pressure (P ₁ ) is,

    The third pressure (P ₃ ) Substrate processing method, characterized in that the same pressure value.
18. The method of claim 16

    The fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is,

    A substrate processing method characterized in that the pressure is lower than atmospheric pressure.
19. The method of claim 16

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    A temperature raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber to a second temperature (T ₂ ), a high temperature maintaining step of maintaining the temperature in the chamber at the second temperature (T ₂ ), and raising the temperature in the chamber to the second temperature ( A substrate processing method comprising a step of reducing the temperature from T ₂ ) to a fourth temperature (T ₄ ).
20. The method of claim 19

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    Within the pressure range in which the third pressure (P ₃ ) is the maximum value and the fourth pressure (P ₄ ) is the minimum value, n times (n≥1 ) is performed,

    At least one unit cycle is

    Substrate processing method, characterized in that carried out in the high temperature maintaining step.
21. The method of claim 16

    The second pressure reduction step (S200),

    A temperature raising step of raising the temperature in the chamber to a second temperature (T ₂ ) and a temperature decreasing step of lowering the temperature in the chamber from the second temperature (T ₂ ) to a fourth temperature (T ₄ ),

    At least one of the temperature raising step and the temperature decreasing step,

    A substrate processing method, characterized in that carried out when the pressure in the chamber is equal to or greater than atmospheric pressure.
22. According to claim 19 or claim 21,

    The fourth temperature (T ₄ ) is,

    The substrate processing method, characterized in that the temperature is equal to or lower than the first temperature (T ₁ ).

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