Methods and apparatus for stripping photoresist and polymer layers from a semiconductor stack in a non-corrosive environment
US6251568A · kind A · utility
8Cited by
7References
9Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 9, 1999 |
| Grant date | Jun 26, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 9, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01L21/31138
- WIPO fieldSemiconductors
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The present invention relates to method and apparatus for removing photoresist material from a wafer surface. In particular, the present invention employs a dry strip process to remove photoresist material that remains after conductive material has been etched to form conductive features. The inventive process includes a reactive ion strip process that includes fluorine, which forms salts with conductive material embedded in the photoresist material. The salts are then removed from the wafer surface by dissolving them in a solvent such as deionized water.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.