Plasma method and apparatus for processing a substrate

US6831021B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Applied Materials, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Tal Cheng Chua · San Jose, US
• Philip Allan Kraus · San Jose, US
• John Holland · San Jose, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 12, 2003
• Grant date: Dec 14, 2004
• Expiry date: Jun 12, 2023

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H01L21/28202
• WIPO field: Semiconductors
• WIPO sector: Electrical engineering

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention generally provide a method of forming a nitride gate dielectric layer. The method includes generating a nitrogen-containing plasma in a processing chamber via introduction of a nitrogen-containing processing gas into the processing chamber and the application of an ionizing energy to the processing gas, and pulsing the ionizing energy to maintain a mean temperature of electrons in the nitrogen-containing plasma of less than about 0.7 eV.