Method and chamber for backside physical vapor deposition
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12142478
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to methods and apparatus for backside stress engineering of substrates to combat film stresses and bowing issues. In one embodiment, a method of depositing a film layer on a backside of a substrate is provided. The method includes flipping a substrate at a factory interface so that the backside of the substrate is facing up, and transferring the flipped substrate from the factory interface to a physical vapor deposition chamber to…
Chalcogen precursors for deposition of silicon nitride
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12142477
Chalcogen silane precursors are described. Methods for depositing a silicon nitride (SixNy) film on a substrate are described. The substrate is exposed to the chalcogen silane and a reactant to deposit the silicon nitride (SixNy) film. The exposures can be sequential or simultaneous. The chalcogen silane may be substantially free of halogen. The chalcogen may be selected from the group consisting of sulfur (S), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te).
Sequential plasma and thermal treatment
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12142475
Methods of manufacturing memory devices are provided. The methods improve the quality of a selectively deposited silicon-containing dielectric layer. The method comprises selectively depositing a silicon-containing dielectric layer in a recessed region of a film stack. The selectively deposited silicon-containing dielectric layer is then exposed to a high-density plasma and annealed at a temperature greater than 800 ° C. to provide a silicon-containing dielectric film having a wet etch…
Plasma processing chambers configured for tunable substrate and edge sheath control
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12142469
Embodiments herein provide plasma processing chambers and methods configured for fine-tuning and control over a plasma sheath formed during the plasma-assisted processing of a semiconductor substrate. Embodiments include a sheath tuning scheme, including plasma processing chambers and methods, which can be used to tailor one or more characteristics of a plasma sheath formed between a bulk plasma and a substrate surface. Generally, the sheath tuning scheme provides differently configured…
Control and prediction of multiple plasma coupling surfaces and corresponding power transfer
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12142461
Embodiments disclosed herein include a process power controller for a plasma processing tool. In an embodiment, the process power controller includes a process power source optimizer, a source predictor, and a process uniformity controller. In an embodiment, the source predictor is communicatively coupled to the process power source optimizer and the process uniformity controller.
Use of adaptive replacement maps in digital lithography for local cell replacement
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12141517
Embodiments described herein relate to a system, software, and a method of using the system to edit a design to be printed by a lithography system. The system and methods utilize a server of a maskless lithography device. The server includes a memory. The memory includes a virtual mask file. The virtual mask file includes cells and the cells include sub-cells that form one or more polygons. The server further includes a controller coupled to the memory. The controller is configured to…
Large area seamless master and imprint stamp manufacturing method
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12140864
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to pattern replication, imprint lithography, and more particularly to methods and apparatuses for creating a large area imprint without a seam. Methods disclosed herein generally include filling seams between pairs of masters with a filler material such that the seams are flush with a surface of the masters having a plurality of features disposed thereon.
Polishing system apparatus and methods for defect reduction at a substrate edge
Granted: November 12, 2024
Patent Number:
12138732
Embodiments herein include carrier loading stations and methods related thereto which may be used to beneficially remove nano-scale and/or micron-scale particles adhered to a bevel edge of a substrate before polishing of the substrate. By removing such contaminates, e.g., loosely adhered particles of dielectric material, from the bevel edge, contamination of the polishing interface can be avoided thus preventing and/or substantially reducing scratch related defectivity associated…
Technique for training neural network for use in in-situ monitoring during polishing and polishing system
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136574
A method of polishing a substrate includes polishing a conductive layer on the substrate at a polishing station, monitoring the layer with an in-situ eddy current monitoring system to generate a plurality of measured signals values for a plurality of different locations on the layer, generating thickness measurements the locations, and detecting a polishing endpoint or modifying a polishing parameter based on the thickness measurements. The conductive layer is formed of a first material…
In-line monitoring of OLED layer thickness and dopant concentration
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12137601
An organic light-emitting diode (OLED) deposition system includes two deposition chambers, a transfer chamber between the two deposition chambers, a metrology system having one or more sensors to perform measurements of the workpiece within the transfer chamber, and a control system to cause the system to form an organic light-emitting diode layer stack on the workpiece. Vacuum is maintained around the workpiece while the workpiece is transferred between the two deposition chambers and…
Reactor for coating particles in stationary chamber with rotating paddles
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12134091
A reactor for coating particles includes a stationary vacuum chamber to hold a bed of particles to be coated, a vacuum port in an upper portion of the chamber, a chemical delivery system configured to inject a reactant or precursor gas into a lower portion of the chamber, a paddle assembly, and a motor to rotate a drive shaft of the paddle assembly. The lower portion of the chamber forms a half-cylinder. The paddle assembly includes a rotatable drive shaft extending through the chamber…
Integrated substrate measurement system to improve manufacturing process performance
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136557
A process recipe associated with a substrate at a manufacturing system is identified. A first set of measurements for the substrate is obtained from a substrate measurement subsystem. A second set of measurements for the substrate is obtained from one or more sensors of a chamber of the manufacturing system. A determination is made based on the obtained first set of measurements and the obtained second set of measurements of whether to modify the process recipe by at least one of…
Etch uniformity improvement for single turn internal coil PVD chamber
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136544
Methods and apparatus for generating a magnetic field external to a physical vapor deposition (PVD) chamber to improve etch or deposition uniformity on a substrate disposed inside of the PVD chamber are provided herein. In some embodiments, a process chamber, includes a chamber body defining an interior volume therein; a pedestal disposed in the interior volume for supporting a substrate; a coil disposed in the interior volume above the pedestal; and an external magnet assembly,…
Deposition chamber system diffuser with increased power efficiency
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136538
A diffuser includes a front-side gradient surface formed from a diffuser block, a back-side gradient surface formed from the diffuser block, and opening structures formed from the front-side gradient surface to the back-side gradient surface. Each opening structure includes a conical opening having a first end along the front-side gradient surface and a second end corresponding to an apex at a depth within the diffuser block, and a cylindrical opening formed from the depth to the…
Cost effective radio frequency impedance matching networks
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136537
Embodiments provided herein generally include apparatus and methods in a plasma processing system for rapid and inexpensive repair and replacement of RF sensors necessary for the operation of radio frequency (RF) power generation and impedance matching equipment used for generating a plasma in a plasma chamber during semiconductor processing therein. Flexible communications between equipment of the plasma processing system allows sharing of process information and equipment settings for…
Electrostatic chuck with multiple radio frequency meshes to control plasma uniformity
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136536
The present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for controlling a plasma sheath near a substrate edge. Changing the voltage/current distribution across the inner electrode and the outer electrode with in the substrate assembly facilitates the spatial distribution of the plasma across the substrate. The method includes providing a first radio frequency power to a central electrode embedded in a substrate support assembly, providing a second radio frequency power to an annular…
Clog detection via image analytics
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12136225
A method includes identifying an image of a substrate processing equipment part that forms a plurality of holes. The method further includes determining, by a processing device based on the image, a corresponding neighboring angular distance of each of the plurality of holes and a corresponding area of each of the plurality of holes. The method further includes identifying, by the processing device, a first subset of the plurality of holes that are at least partially clogged based on at…
Post preventative maintenance chamber condition monitoring and simulation
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12135529
The subject matter of this specification can be implemented in, among other things, methods, systems, computer-readable storage medium. A method can include a processing device receiving sensor data indicating a state of an environment of a processing chamber processing a series of substrates according to a substrate processing procedure. The series of substrates may be processed subsequent to a preventive maintenance procedure. The processing device may determine a first set of values…
Quartz susceptor for accurate non-contact temperature measurement
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12134835
The present disclosure generally relates to a substrate support for processing of semiconductor substrates. In one example, the substrate support has a body. The body has a top surface configured to support a substrate thereon. The body has a bottom surface opposite the top surface. The body has an upper portion disposed at the top surface and a lower portion disposed at the bottom surface. An IR blocking material is encased by the upper portion and the lower portion, wherein the IR…
Pad conditioner cleaning system
Granted: November 5, 2024
Patent Number:
12134167
A method of cleaning a conditioner head includes bringing two clamps of a cleaning tool inward toward a disk-shaped pad conditioner head to press a sponge against an outer surface of the disk-shaped pad conditioner head, and creating relative motion between the cleaning tool and the pad conditioner head to wipe the sponge against the pad conditioner head.
