Method and apparatus for uniform microwave treatment of semiconductor wafers
US7939456B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 17, 2010 |
| Grant date | May 10, 2011 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 17, 2030 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01J5/802
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A microwave heating system comprises a microwave applicator cavity; a microwave power supply to deliver power to the applicator cavity; a dielectric support to support a generally planar workpiece; a dielectric gas manifold to supply a controlled flow of inert gas proximate to the periphery of the workpiece to provide differential cooling to the edge relative to the center; a first temperature measuring device configured to measure the temperature near the center of the workpiece; and, a second temperature measuring device configured to measure the temperature near the edge of the workpiece. The gas flow is controlled to minimize the temperature difference from center to edge, and may be recipe driven or controlled in real time, based on the two temperature measurements. The method is particularly useful for monolithic semiconductor wafers, various semiconducting films on substrates, and dielectric films on semiconducting wafers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.