Title:
HF VAPOR PHASE WAFER CLEANING AND OXIDE ETCHING
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO2000046838
Kind Code:
A3
Abstract:
The invention provides HF vapor process conditions that can be precisely controlled with a high degree of reproducibility for a wide range of starting wafer conditions. These HF vapor processes for, e.g., etching oxide on a semiconductor substrate, cleaning a contaminant on a semiconductor substrate, removing etch residue from a metal structure on a semiconductor substrate, and cleaning a metal contact region of a semiconductor substrate. In the HF vapor process, a semiconductor substrate having oxide, a contaminant, metal etch residue, or a contact region to be processed is exposed to hydrofluoric acid vapor and water vapor in a process chamber held at temperature and pressure conditions that are controlled to form on the substrate no more than a sub-monolayer of etch reactants and products produced by the vapor as the substrate is processed by the vapor. The sub-monolayer HF vapor process regime is defined in accordance with the invention to proceed under conditions wherein no more than about 95 % of a monolayer of coverage of the substrate surface occurs.
Inventors:
HAN YONG-PIL
SAWIN HERBERT S
SAWIN HERBERT S
Application Number:
PCT/US2000/002840
Publication Date:
February 15, 2001
Filing Date:
February 04, 2000
Export Citation:
Assignee:
MASSACHUSETTS INST TECHNOLOGY (US)
International Classes:
H01L21/306; H01L21/311; (IPC1-7): H01L21/306; H01L21/311
Domestic Patent References:
| WO1994027315A1 | 1994-11-24 | |||
| WO1992022084A1 | 1992-12-10 |
Foreign References:
| EP0732733A1 | 1996-09-18 | |||
| EP0602633A2 | 1994-06-22 | |||
| EP0288263A2 | 1988-10-26 | |||
| US5439553A | 1995-08-08 |
Other References:
NAKANISHI N ET AL: "PRECISE CONTROL OF SIO2 ETCHING CHARACTERISTICS USING MONO-LAYER ADSORPTION OF HF/H2O VAPOR", INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SOLID STATE DEVICES AND MATERIALS,JA,JAPAN SOCIETY OF APPLIED PHYSICS. TOKYO, 21 August 1995 (1995-08-21), pages 255 - 257, XP000544617
PATENT ABSTRACTS OF JAPAN vol. 1997, no. 03 31 March 1997 (1997-03-31)
HAN Y-P, LAWING A S, SAWIN H H: "Characterization of Silicon Oxide Etching in HF Vapor Process", ELECTROCHEM. SOC., PENNIGTON, NJ, USA, 1998, pages 423 - 430, XP000920581
LEE Y -I ET AL: "DRY RELEASE FOR SURFACE MICROMACHINING WITH HF VAPOR-PHASE ETCHING", JOURNAL OF MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS,US,IEEE INC. NEW YORK, vol. 6, no. 3, 1 September 1997 (1997-09-01), pages 226 - 232, XP000727189, ISSN: 1057-7157
IZUMI A: "A NEW CLEANING METHOD BY USING ANHYDROUS HF/CH3OH VAPOR SYSTEM", JAPANESE JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS, SUPPLEMENTS,JA,JAPAN SOCIETY OF APPLIED PHYSICS. TOKYO, 27 August 1991 (1991-08-27), pages 135 - 137, XP000279433, ISSN: 0021-4922
PATENT ABSTRACTS OF JAPAN vol. 1997, no. 03 31 March 1997 (1997-03-31)
HAN Y-P, LAWING A S, SAWIN H H: "Characterization of Silicon Oxide Etching in HF Vapor Process", ELECTROCHEM. SOC., PENNIGTON, NJ, USA, 1998, pages 423 - 430, XP000920581
LEE Y -I ET AL: "DRY RELEASE FOR SURFACE MICROMACHINING WITH HF VAPOR-PHASE ETCHING", JOURNAL OF MICROELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS,US,IEEE INC. NEW YORK, vol. 6, no. 3, 1 September 1997 (1997-09-01), pages 226 - 232, XP000727189, ISSN: 1057-7157
IZUMI A: "A NEW CLEANING METHOD BY USING ANHYDROUS HF/CH3OH VAPOR SYSTEM", JAPANESE JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS, SUPPLEMENTS,JA,JAPAN SOCIETY OF APPLIED PHYSICS. TOKYO, 27 August 1991 (1991-08-27), pages 135 - 137, XP000279433, ISSN: 0021-4922
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