Microwave apparatus for generating plasma afterglows
US4673456A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 17, 1985 |
| Grant date | Jun 16, 1987 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 17, 2005 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01J37/32357
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A microwave apparatus for generating plasma afterglows for stripping and/or etching of photoresist and semiconductor material at a sufficiently high rate to allow single wafer processing in a fully automated reactor. The apparatus includes a stripping/etching chamber for plasma afterglow stripping of photoresist and selective isotropic etching of semiconductor material, such as polysilicon and silicon nitride, using a variety of etchant compositions which form reactive species in a plasma. In addition, the apparatus may be employed for anisotropic etching for semiconductive material by decoupling etchant generation from ion production and acceleration by using two plasma sources, i.e., microwave power and radio frequency (RF) power. Anisotropic etching is carried out in an etching chamber which subjects, in situ, a plasma afterglow to RF power and which is designed to operate in the reactive ion etch mode.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.