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JP-7856654-B2 - Plasma processing equipment

JP7856654B2JP 7856654 B2JP7856654 B2JP 7856654B2JP-7856654-B2

Inventors

  • 日高 康貴
  • 風間 晃一
  • 佐藤 孝紀
  • 四本松 みゆ
  • 加藤 武宏

Assignees

  • 東京エレクトロン株式会社

Dates

Publication Date
20260511
Application Date
20220706
Priority Date
20210804

Claims (17)

  1. Plasma processing chamber and A substrate support portion is disposed within the plasma processing chamber, The lower electrode is disposed within the substrate support portion, At least one RF power supply coupled to the lower electrode, The system comprises an upper electrode assembly positioned above the substrate support portion, The upper electrode assembly is A gas diffusion plate having at least one first gas supply port for a first gas and at least one second gas supply port for a second gas, Insulating plate and, The system comprises an upper electrode plate disposed between the gas diffusion plate and the insulating plate, having a plurality of first through-holes communicating with the at least one first gas supply port and a plurality of second through-holes communicating with the at least one second gas supply port, The insulating plate has an inner annular projection and an outer annular projection that protrude downward from its lower surface. The aforementioned insulating plate is A plurality of first gas inlet holes formed on the inner annular protrusion, each first gas inlet hole communicates with at least one first gas supply port via one of the plurality of first through-holes, A plurality of second gas inlet holes formed on the outer annular protrusion, each second gas inlet hole communicates with at least one first gas supply port via one of the plurality of first through-holes, A plasma processing apparatus having a plurality of third gas inlet holes formed outside the second gas inlet hole, each of which communicates with the plurality of second through-holes to the minimum one second gas supply port.
  2. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein all or part of the outer annular protrusion overlaps with the substrate support surface of the substrate support portion in a plan view.
  3. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of first gas introduction holes are formed near the inner wall of the inner annular protrusion.
  4. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the width of the outer annular projection is greater than the width of the inner annular projection.
  5. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion dimension of the outer annular projection is greater than the protrusion dimension of the inner annular projection.
  6. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an electromagnet unit positioned above or above the plasma processing chamber.
  7. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the insulating plate is made of quartz and the upper electrode plate is made of aluminum.
  8. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one or both of the inner annular projection and the outer annular projection have a substantially rectangular shape in cross-sectional view.
  9. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein one or both of the inner annular projection and the outer annular projection have a rounded shape with chamfered corners in a rectangular cross-sectional view.
  10. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one or both of the inner annular projection and the outer annular projection have a substantially semicircular shape in cross-sectional view.
  11. The plurality of third gas introduction holes are formed at the outer base end of the outer annular protrusion, The insulating plate is a plurality of fourth gas introduction holes formed at the inner base end of the outer annular protrusion, and each fourth gas introduction hole communicates with the at least one first gas supply port via one of the plurality of first through holes. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of fourth gas introduction holes.
  12. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of third gas introduction holes are formed on the outer annular protrusion.
  13. The insulating plate further has an additional outer annular projection that protrudes downward from its lower surface and surrounds the outer annular projection, The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of third gas introduction holes are formed at the outer base end of the additional outer annular protrusion.
  14. The insulating plate further has an additional outer annular projection that protrudes downward from its lower surface and surrounds the outer annular projection, The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of third gas introduction holes are formed on the additional outer annular protrusions.
  15. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the width of the additional outer annular projection is greater than the width of the outer annular projection.
  16. The plasma processing apparatus according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the protrusion dimension of the additional outer annular projection is greater than the protrusion dimension of the outer annular projection.
  17. Plasma processing chamber and A substrate support portion is disposed within the plasma processing chamber, An upper electrode assembly positioned above the substrate support portion, The system includes a plasma generating unit configured to generate plasma in the space between the substrate support and the upper electrode assembly, The upper electrode assembly is At least one first gas supply port for the first gas, At least one second gas supply port for the second gas, Having an exposed surface that is exposed to the plasma, The exposed surface is, An inner annular projection and an outer annular projection that protrude downward, A plurality of first gas inlet holes are formed on the inner annular protrusion, and each first gas inlet hole is connected to at least one first gas supply port, A plurality of second gas inlet holes are formed on the outer annular protrusion, and each second gas inlet hole communicates with the plurality of second gas inlet holes, A plasma processing apparatus comprising a plurality of third gas inlet holes formed outside the second gas inlet hole, each of which communicates with at least one second gas supply port.

Description

This disclosure relates to a plasma processing apparatus. Patent Document 1 discloses a capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus configuration comprising an electromagnet assembly positioned above or above the chamber. The capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus of Patent Document 1 includes an upper electrode that also functions as a showerhead. The apparatus configuration of Patent Document 1 suppresses the localized increase in the processing speed of the plasma processing performed in the plasma processing apparatus, particularly in the central portion of the substrate. Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2021-44535 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of a plasma processing system.This is an explanatory diagram showing a magnified view of a portion of the upper electrode assembly.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of an insulating plate according to the first embodiment.This is a schematic plan view of the insulating plate according to the first embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the insulating plate according to the second embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of an insulating plate according to the third embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the insulating plate according to the fourth embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of an insulating plate according to the fifth embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the insulating plate according to the sixth embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the insulating plate according to the seventh embodiment.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the gas flow in one embodiment of the present disclosure.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the gas flow in one embodiment of the present disclosure.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the gas flow in one embodiment of the present disclosure.This is a schematic diagram illustrating the gas flow in one embodiment of the present disclosure. In the semiconductor device manufacturing process, a processing gas supplied into a chamber is excited to generate plasma, which is then used to perform various plasma treatments on a semiconductor substrate (hereinafter simply referred to as "substrate") supported by a substrate support. These plasma treatments are carried out using a capacitively coupled plasma (CCP) plasma processing apparatus, which includes, for example, an upper electrode assembly that serves as a gas diffusion section constituting at least a part of the chamber's top plate. For example, when performing etching using a mask in a plasma processing apparatus, it is known that the condition of the remaining mask film differs between the peripheral and central parts of the substrate, even within the same processing area. To prevent such unevenness in the remaining mask film on the substrate, it is necessary to reduce by-products (deposits) generated during the etching process and adhering to the upper electrode by homogenizing the processing gas introduced from the upper electrode assembly, which acts as a gas diffusion area, or by introducing additive gases. By homogenizing the process, it is expected that the condition of the remaining mask film will be made uniform, and the etching process will proceed more effectively. Furthermore, when etching is performed as a plasma treatment, the plasma density may differ between the periphery and the center of the substrate, resulting in an uneven process. This can lead to inconsistencies in the size of the etching holes; for example, the etching holes at the periphery of the substrate may be smaller than those in the center. In plasma processing equipment, it is known that additional gases are introduced in addition to the processing gas (etching gas) for various purposes, such as protecting the inner wall. It is suspected that the plasma density becomes uneven due to the influence of these gas flows, suggesting room for improvement in the arrangement and configuration of gas introduction holes in the gas diffusion section. However, the plasma processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 focuses on the plasma processing speed on the substrate and was devised to solve the problem of the processing speed being locally high at the center of the substrate. Patent Document 1 mainly discloses technology related to the lower electrode of the plasma processing apparatus and its vicinity, and does not disclose the technical concept for process uniformity focusing on the gas diffusion part of the plasma processing apparatus. In other words, when aiming to improve the uniformity of plasma processing on the substrate in a plasma processing apparatus, there is room for further improvement, especially in the technology related to the gas diffusion part and its vicinity. Hereinafter, a plasma processi