Adhesion promotion for etch by-products
US7176140B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 9, 2004 |
| Grant date | Feb 13, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 2, 2025 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH01L21/02057
- WIPO fieldSemiconductors
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Methods and apparatus for cleaning a semiconductor substrate that significantly reduce the number of particles falling onto the substrate during cleaning by coating all interior surfaces within a processing chamber with an adhesion film that has an increased sticking coefficient for any subsequently arriving etched species to promote a continuous film growth and improve adhesion of such etched species. Due to its increased sticking coefficient, this adhesion film reduces surface mobility of any arriving by-products to enable the growth of the continuous film of etched species. The continuous film of etched species adheres firmly to the adhesion film such that the etched species are prevented from flaking off and falling onto the substrate being cleaned. The methods and apparatus may clean a plurality of semiconductor substrates, whereby a plurality of adhesion films are sequentially deposited over a plurality of continuous film growths of removed materials for cleaning the substrates.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.