In-situ Metrology Method for Thickness Measurement During Pecvd Processes

Content Provider	The Lens
Abstract	Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to apparatus and methods for forming films having uniformity of thickness on substrates. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be used to measure thickness or other properties of films being deposited on a substrate without knowing beforehand the surface properties of the substrate. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be used to measure thickness or other properties of a plurality of layers being formed. For example, embodiments of the present disclosure may be used in measuring thickness of vertical memory stacks.
Related Links	https://www.lens.org/lens/patent/011-792-433-842-340/frontpage
Language	English
Publisher Date	2019-07-11
Access Restriction	Open
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Patent
Jurisdiction	United States of America
Date Applied	2019-03-18
Applicant	Applied Materials Inc
Application No.	201916356317
Claim	An apparatus, comprising: a processing chamber, comprising: a substrate support disposed in the processing chamber; and a substrate learning system disposed in the processing chamber opposite the substrate support, the substrate learning system comprising: a hollow cylindrical tube; and a film located at one end of the hollow cylindrical tube proximate the substrate support and spaced therefrom, wherein the film is a multilayer structure including a first layer and a second layer, wherein the second layer has a different refractive index than the first layer. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first layer comprises sapphire, fused silica, glass, or quartz and the second layer comprises a nitride or oxide layer. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first layer has a thickness ranging from about 1 mm to about 3 mm and the second layer has a thickness ranging from about 100 nm to about 500 nm. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second layer has a uniform thickness. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second layer has a non-uniform thickness. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing chamber further comprises: a chamber body; a lid assembly disposed over the chamber body, wherein the lid assembly includes a shower head; and an in-situ metrology assembly, wherein the in-situ metrology assembly comprises: a light source; a spectrograph; and one or more fiber-optic bundles. The apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising a mounting bracket for securing the light source and the spectrograph to the lid assembly. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the shower head includes one or more observing windows. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the observing window is made of sapphire, MgF 2 or CaF 2 . The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the one or more fiber-optic bundles each includes one or more fiber-optic cables, and each fiber-optic cable has a diameter of about 200 microns. An apparatus, comprising: a processing chamber, comprising: a chamber body; a substrate support disposed in the chamber body; an in-situ metrology assembly, wherein the in-situ metrology assembly comprises: a light source; a spectrograph; and one or more fiber-optic bundles; and a substrate learning system disposed in the chamber body opposite the substrate support, the substrate learning system comprising: a hollow cylindrical tube; and a film located at one end of the hollow cylindrical tube proximate the substrate support and spaced therefrom, wherein the film is a multilayer structure including a first layer and a second layer, wherein the second layer has a different refractive index than the first layer. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the first layer comprises sapphire, fused silica, glass, or quartz and the second layer comprises a nitride or oxide layer. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the first layer has a thickness ranging from about 1 mm to about 3 mm and the second layer has a thickness ranging from about 100 nm to about 500 nm. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the second layer has a uniform thickness. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the second layer has a non-uniform thickness. An apparatus, comprising: a chamber, comprising: a substrate support disposed in the chamber; and a substrate learning system disposed in the chamber opposite the substrate support, the substrate learning system comprising: a hollow cylindrical tube; a film located at one end of the hollow cylindrical tube proximate the substrate support and spaced therefrom, wherein the film is a multilayer structure including a first layer and a second layer, wherein the second layer has a different refractive index than the first layer; and one or more capacitance sensors surrounding the hollow cylindrical tube. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the first layer comprises sapphire, fused silica, glass, or quartz and the second layer comprises a nitride or oxide layer. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the first layer has a thickness ranging from about 1 mm to about 3 mm and the second layer has a thickness ranging from about 100 nm to about 500 nm. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the second layer has a uniform thickness. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein one or more capacitance sensors are four capacitance sensors.
CPC Classification	Electric Discharge Tubes Or Discharge Lamps Measuring Length; Thickness Or Similar Linear Dimensions;Measuring Angles;Measuring Areas;Measuring Irregularities Of Surfaces Or Contours Semiconductor Devices Not Covered By Class H10 COATING METALLIC MATERIAL;COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL;SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE; BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION;COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION; BY SPUTTERING; BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION; IN GENERAL
Extended Family	144-531-731-867-99X 011-792-433-842-340 076-816-406-115-668 110-496-964-818-561 126-221-241-928-968 134-806-199-348-735 072-546-475-433-026 112-094-565-099-37X 154-796-249-187-802 145-650-777-525-344 128-535-332-485-765 084-748-574-864-869
Patent ID	20190212128
Inventor/Author	Paul Khokan C Budiarto Edward Egan Todd Vaez-iravani Mehdi Lee Jeongmin Du Bois Dale R Lee Terrance Y
IPC	C23C16/509 G01B11/06 C23C16/52 G01B7/06 H01J37/32 H01L21/66
Status	Active
Owner	Applied Materials Inc
Simple Family	112-094-565-099-37X 126-221-241-928-968 110-496-964-818-561 076-816-406-115-668 011-792-433-842-340 072-546-475-433-026 134-806-199-348-735 154-796-249-187-802 144-531-731-867-99X 145-650-777-525-344 128-535-332-485-765 084-748-574-864-869
CPC (with Group)	H01J37/32082 H01J37/32935 G01B11/0616 H01L22/12 H01L21/67253 G01B7/085 C23C16/52 C23C16/509 C23C16/45565 H01L22/30
Issuing Authority	United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
Kind	Patent Application Publication