Spacer patterning process with flat top profile
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211693
A method for forming a metal containing feature includes performing a deposition process, the deposition process comprising conformally depositing an over layer on top surfaces of a patterned mandrel layer and over a spacer layer on sidewalls of the patterned mandrel layer, and performing an etch process, the etch process comprising removing the over layer from the top surfaces of the patterned mandrel layer and shoulder portions of the spacer layer, and removing the shoulder portions of…
Copper, indium, gallium, selenium (CIGS) films with improved quantum efficiency
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211947
A method includes forming, on a substrate by performing physical vapor deposition in vacuum, an absorber layer including copper (Cu), indium (In), gallium (Ga) and selenium (Se), forming a stack including the substrate and an oxygen-annealed absorber layer by performing in-situ oxygen annealing of the absorber layer to improve quantum efficiency of the image sensor by passivating selenium vacancies due to dangling bonds, and forming a cap layer over the oxygen-annealed absorber layer by…
Profile shaping for control gate recesses
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211908
Exemplary semiconductor structures and processing methods may include forming a first portion of a first semiconductor layer characterized by a first etch rate for an etch treatment, forming a second portion of the first semiconductor layer characterized by a second etch rate that is less than the first etch rate for the etch treatment, and forming a third portion of the first semiconductor layer characterized by a third etch rate that is greater than the second etch rate. The processing…
Method of forming a metal liner for interconnect structures
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211743
Methods of forming devices comprise forming a dielectric layer on a substrate, the dielectric layer comprising at least one feature defining a gap including sidewalls and a bottom. A self-assembled monolayer (SAM) is formed on the bottom of the gap, and a barrier layer is formed on the SAM before selectively depositing a metal liner on the barrier layer. The SAM is removed after selectively depositing the metal liner on the barrier layer.
Flowable chemical vapor deposition of metal oxides
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211736
Exemplary deposition methods may include introducing a vapor of a metal alkoxide into a processing volume of a semiconductor processing chamber. A substrate defining a trench may be housed in the processing volume. The methods may include condensing the vapor into a liquid metal alkoxide within the trench on the substrate. The methods may include forming a plasma external to the processing volume of the semiconductor processing chamber. The methods may include introducing…
Lift pin mechanism
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211734
Methods and apparatus for a lift pin mechanism for substrate processing chambers are provided herein. In some embodiments, the lift pin mechanism includes a lift pin comprising a shaft with a top end, a bottom end, and a coupling end at the bottom end; a bellows assembly disposed about the shaft. The bellows assembly includes an upper bellows flange having an opening for axial movement of the shaft; a bellows having a first end coupled to a lower surface of the upper bellows flange such…
Electrostatic chuck design with improved chucking and arcing performance
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211728
Aspects of the present disclosure relate to one or more implementations of a substrate support for a processing chamber. In one implementation, a substrate support includes a body having a center, and a support surface on the body configured to at least partially support a substrate. The substrate support includes a first angled wall that extends upward and radially outward from the support surface, and a first upper surface disposed above the support surface. The substrate support also…
Spatial pattern loading measurement with imaging metrology
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211717
A method includes identifying first structure data of a first region of a substrate and receiving optical metrology data of the substrate associated with one or more substrate deposition processes in a processing chamber. The method further includes determining, based on the optical metrology data and the first structure data, a first growth rate of the first region of the substrate associated with the one or more substrate deposition processes. The method further includes predicting,…
Reconfigurable mainframe with replaceable interface plate
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211714
A mainframe of a device fabrication system comprises a base and a plurality of facets on the base. Each facet of the plurality of facets comprises a frame. The mainframe further comprises a plurality of replaceable interface plates. Each replaceable interface plate of the plurality of replaceable interface plates is attached to a respective facet such that at most one replaceable interface plate is attached to each facet. At least one replaceable interface plate comprises one or more…
Ultra-high modulus and etch selectivity boron-carbon hardmask films
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211694
Implementations of the present disclosure generally relate to the fabrication of integrated circuits. More particularly, the implementations described herein provide techniques for deposition of boron-carbon films on a substrate. In one implementation, a method of processing a substrate is provided. The method comprises flowing a hydrocarbon-containing gas mixture into a processing volume of a processing chamber having a substrate positioned therein, wherein the substrate is heated to a…
Uniformity control for plasma processing
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211677
A system and method including a processing device. The processing device receives data including one or more plasma exposure durations of a plasma process. The plasma exposure duration are associated with a set of controlled elements. The processing device causes a each set of controlled elements to switch between a first mode of operation and a second mode of operation. Each set of controlled elements expose appropriate portion of a substrate to the plasma related fluxes. The first set…
Processing chamber deposition confinement
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211673
Exemplary semiconductor processing systems may include a chamber body including sidewalls and a base. The system may include a substrate support extending through the base of the chamber body. The chamber body may define an access circumferentially extending about the substrate support at the base of the chamber body. The system may include one or more isolators disposed within the chamber body. The one or more isolators may define an exhaust path between the one or more isolators and…
Performing radio frequency matching control using a model-based digital twin
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211670
A method includes receiving, from one or more sensors, sensor data associated with manufacturing equipment and updating one or more values of a digital replica associated with the manufacturing equipment based on the sensor data. The digital replica comprises a model reflecting a virtual representation of physical elements and dynamics of how the manufacturing equipment operates. One or more outputs indicative of predictive data is obtained from the digital replica and, based on the…
System for automatic tumor detection and classification
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211296
Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for automatically detecting and classifying tumor regions in a tissue slide. The method generally includes obtaining a digitized tissue slide from a tissue slide database and determining, based on output from a tissue classification module, a type of tissue of shown in the digitized tissue slide. The method further includes determining, based on output from a tumor classification model for the type of tissue, a region of…
Edge defect detection via image analytics
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12211195
The present disclosure includes edge defect detection via image analytics. A method includes identifying an image of an edge of a susceptor pocket formed by a susceptor of a substrate processing system. The method further includes predicting, based on the image, whether property values of the edge of the susceptor meet threshold values. The method further includes, responsive to the property values of the edge meeting threshold values, causing performance of a corrective action…
Sealing member with lip seal
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12209663
A sealing member includes a monolithic body including a first portion adjoining a second portion. The first portion forms part of a circle. The second portion includes first and second lobes. Each lobe adjoins the first portion with a concave surface. In one example, each lobe includes a rounded tip, and a convex surface extends from one rounded tip to the other rounded tip.
Nanofiltration for wafer rinsing
Granted: January 28, 2025
Patent Number:
12209325
The present technology includes methods for rinsing an electroplating apparatus, a component thereof, and/or a substrate. The method includes removing at least a portion of a bath solution having a first pH from an electroplating bath. The method includes filtering the removed bath solution through a nanofiltration membrane, forming a permeating containing a recycled rinse agent, and a retentate. The method includes transferring the recycled rinse agent to the one or more nozzles and…
Interference in-sensitive Littrow system for optical device structure measurement
Granted: January 21, 2025
Patent Number:
12203747
Embodiments described herein provide for devices and methods of measuring a pitch P of optical device structures and an orientation angle ? of the optical device structures. One embodiment of the system includes an optical arm coupled to an arm actuator. The optical arm includes a light source. The light source emits a light path operable to be diffracted to the stage. The optical arm further includes a first beam splitter and a second beam splitter positioned in the light path. The…
Metal oxide resist patterning with electrical field guided post-exposure bake
Granted: January 21, 2025
Patent Number:
12204246
A method for processing a substrate is described. The method includes forming a metal containing resist layer onto a substrate, patterning the metal containing resist layer, and performing a post exposure bake on the metal containing resist layer. The post exposure bake on the metal containing resist layer is a field guided post exposure bake operation and includes the use of an electric field to guide the ions or charged species within the metal containing resist layer. The field guided…
Method and system for detecting anomalies in a semiconductor processing system
Granted: January 21, 2025
Patent Number:
12203828
The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for detecting anomalies in a semiconductor processing system. According to certain embodiments, one or more external sensors are mounted to a sub-fab component, communicating with the processing system via a communication channel different than a communication channel utilized by the sub-fab component and providing extrinsic sensor data that the sub-fab component is not configured to provide. The extrinsic sensor data may be combined…
