SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR CONTROLLING ETCH SELECTIVITY OF VARIOUS MATERIALS

A method for filling a recessed feature of a substrate includes a) at least partially filling a recessed feature of a substrate with tungsten-containing film using at least one of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and atomic layer deposition (ALD); b) at a predetermined temperature, using an etchant including activated fluorine species to selectively etch the tungsten-containing film more than an underlying material of the recessed feature without removing all of the tungsten-containing film at a bottom of the recessed feature; and c) filling the recessed feature using at least one of CVD and ALD. 1. A method for filling a recessed feature of a substrate , comprising:a) at least partially filling a recessed feature of a substrate with tungsten-containing film using at least one of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and atomic layer deposition (ALD);b) at a predetermined temperature, using an etchant including activated fluorine species to selectively etch the tungsten-containing film more than an underlying material of the recessed feature without removing all of the tungsten-containing film at a bottom of the recessed feature; andc) filling the recessed feature using at least one of CVD and ALD.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein (a) includes filling the recessed feature with the tungsten-containing film such that an opening of the recessed feature is pinched off.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein (a) includes filling the recessed feature with the tungsten-containing film such that an opening of the recessed feature is closed and overburden is deposited on a field of the substrate.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein (b) is performed in one of a CVD chamber and an etch chamber.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the underlying material includes a liner/barrier layer.6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the liner/barrier layer includes one of titanium and tantalum.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the liner/barrier layer includes one of titanium claim 1 , titanium nitride ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs). 1. (canceled)2. A method comprising:performing multiple cycles of a feature fill process to fill a feature on substrate, wherein each cycle comprises a) conformally depositing a boron layer in the feature, the boron layer having a thickness of at least 1.5 nm and b) converting the boron layer in the feature to tungsten.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the feature is completely filled with tungsten.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the boron layer in at least one cycle of the multiple cycles has a thickness of at least 3 nm.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the boron layer in at least one cycle of the multiple cycles has a thickness of at least 5 nm.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein (b) comprises volumetric expansion of material in the feature.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the feature includes a titanium nitride layer.8. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature;conformally depositing a reducing agent layer in the feature;converting a portion of the boron layer in the feature to tungsten, leaving a remaining boron layer in the feature;selectively etching the tungsten with respect to the remaining boron layer; andconverting the remaining boron layer to tungsten.9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the reducing ...

DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO HIGH ASPECT RATIO FEATURES

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner. 1. A method of filling a high aspect ratio feature provided on a partially manufactured semiconductor substrate , the method comprising:introducing a tungsten-containing precursor and a reducing agent into a processing chamber;depositing a layer of a tungsten-containing material on the partially manufactured semiconductor substrate via a chemical vapor deposition reaction between the tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent, such that the layer partially fills the high aspect ratio feature; and selectively removing a portion of the layer using an etching material to form a remaining layer, wherein selective removal is performed without using an in-situ plasma and in a mass transport regime corresponding to a lower concentration of the etching material inside the high aspect ratio feature than near the opening of the high aspect ratio feature.2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising depositing a second layer of tungsten-containing material on the remaining layer.3. ...

VOID FREE LOW STRESS FILL

Provided herein are methods of depositing low stress and void free metal films in deep features and related apparatus. Embodiments of the methods include treating the sidewalls of the holes to inhibit metal deposition while leaving the feature bottom untreated. In subsequent deposition operations, metal precursor molecules diffuse to the feature bottom for deposition. The process is repeated with subsequent inhibition operations treating the remaining exposed sidewalls. By repeating inhibition and deposition operations, high quality void free fill can be achieved. This allows high temperature, low stress deposition to be performed.

METHOD FOR DEPOSITING THIN TUNGSTEN FILM WITH LOW RESISTIVITY AND ROBUST MICRO-ADHESION CHARACTERISTICS

Methods of forming low resistivity tungsten films with good uniformity and good adhesion to the underlying layer are provided. The methods involve forming a tungsten nucleation layer using a pulsed nucleation layer process at low temperature and then treating the deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing the bulk tungsten fill. The treatment operation lowers resistivity of the deposited tungsten film. In certain embodiments, the depositing the nucleation layer involves a boron-based chemistry in the absence of hydrogen. Also in certain embodiments, the treatment operations involve exposing the nucleation layer to alternating cycles of a reducing agent and a tungsten-containing precursor. The methods are useful for depositing films in high aspect ratio and/or narrow features. The films exhibit low resistivity at narrow line widths and excellent step coverage. 1. A method of forming a tungsten film on a substrate in a reaction chamber , the method comprising:exposing the substrate to alternating pulses of a tungsten-containing precursor and a reducing agent to thereby deposit a tungsten nucleation layer on the substrate;performing a treatment operation on the deposited tungsten nucleation layer, wherein the treatment operation comprises exposing the tungsten nucleation layer to alternating pulses of a borane and tungsten hexafluoride wherein substantially no tungsten is deposited on the tungsten nucleation layer during said treatment operation; anddepositing a tungsten bulk layer over the treated tungsten nucleation layer to form the tungsten film.2. An apparatus for depositing tungsten film on a substrate comprising: i) a tungsten nucleation layer deposition station, the deposition station comprising a substrate support and one or more gas inlets configured to expose the substrate to pulses of gas;', 'ii) a treatment station, the reducing agent exposure station comprising a substrate support and one or more gas inlets configured to expose the substrate to pulses ...

FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias. 118-. (canceled)19. A method comprising:(a) exposing a metal layer in a feature to nitrogen species to form an inhibition profile in the feature, wherein nucleation is inhibited according to the inhibition profile; and(b) after (a), exposing the feature to oxygen species to modify the inhibition profile.20. The method of claim 19 , further comprising depositing tungsten in the feature in accordance with the modified inhibition profile.21. The method of claim 19 , wherein the metal is tungsten.22. The method of claim 19 , wherein (a) forms a metal nitride layer in the feature.23. The method of claim 19 , wherein (a) comprises exposing the metal layer to a nitrogen-containing plasma.24. The method of claim 23 , wherein the nitrogen-containing plasma is a remotely-generated plasma.25. The method of claim 19 , wherein (b) comprises exposing the metal layer to an oxygen-containing plasma.26. The method of claim 25 , wherein the oxygen-containing plasma is a remotely-generated plasma.27. The method of claim 19 , wherein the inhibition profile ...

Method for depositing tungsten film having low resistivity, low roughness and high reflectivity

Top-down methods of increasing reflectivity of tungsten films to form films having high reflectivity, low resistivity and low roughness are provided. The methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten involve exposing it to a fluorine-containing plasma. The methods produce low resistivity tungsten bulk layers having lower roughness and higher reflectivity. The smooth and highly reflective tungsten layers are easier to photopattern than conventional low resistivity tungsten films. Applications include forming tungsten bit lines.

FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

METHOD FOR DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN FILM HAVING LOW RESISTIVITY, LOW ROUGHNESS AND HIGH REFLECTIVITY

Top-down methods of increasing reflectivity of tungsten films to form films having high reflectivity, low resistivity and low roughness are provided. The methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten involve exposing it to a fluorine-containing plasma. The methods produce low resistivity tungsten bulk layers having lower roughness and higher reflectivity. The smooth and highly reflective tungsten layers are easier to photopattern than conventional low resistivity tungsten films. Applications include forming tungsten bit lines. 1. A method of forming a tungsten layer on a substrate surface , the method comprising:{'b': '1', 'receiving a substrate having a deposited tungsten layer on the substrate surface, wherein the deposited tungsten layer has a thickness T; and'}{'b': 1', '1, 'removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten layer to form a tungsten bulk layer having thickness Td, wherein Td is less than T and wherein no more than the top portion is removed, wherein the top portion is between about 5% and 25% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.'}21. The method of claim 1 , wherein the top portion is between about 5% and 15% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.31. The method of claim 1 , wherein the top portion is about 10% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein removing the top portion comprises exposing the deposited tungsten layer to atomic fluorine.5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising introducing a fluorine-containing compound to a remote plasma generator upstream of a chamber that houses the substrate claim 1 , generating atomic fluorine within the remote plasma generator claim 1 , and flowing atomic fluorine from the remote plasma generator to the chamber to remove the top portion of the deposited tungsten layer.6. The method of claim 5 , ...

ATOMIC LAYER ETCHING OF TUNGSTEN FOR ENHANCED TUNGSTEN DEPOSITION FILL

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein. 1. A method of filling features on a substrate , the method comprising:(a) depositing a first amount of a metal in a feature; and (i) modifying the surface of the deposited metal by exposing the metal to a halogen-containing gas; and', '(ii) exposing the modified surface to an activation gas to selectively etch the metal at or near the opening of the feature relative to the interior region of the feature., '(b) directionally etching the metal at or near an opening of the feature relative to an interior region of the feature by'}2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal contains one of titanium claim 1 , tantalum claim 1 , nickel claim 1 , cobalt claim 1 , or molybdenum.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal contains tungsten.4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising applying a bias during at least one of (i) and (ii).5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the bias is applied at a voltage less than the voltage at which the halogen-containing gas or the activation gas sputters the metal.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein (b) comprises a self-limiting reaction.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate comprises features having different size openings.8. The method of claim 1 , wherein (a) and (b) are performed without breaking vacuum.910-. (canceled)11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising igniting a plasma during at least one of (i) and (ii).1214-. (canceled)15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the halogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of chlorine claim 1 , bromine claim 1 , iodine claim 1 , sulfur hexafluoride claim 1 , silicon tetrafluoride claim 1 , boron trichloride claim 1 , and combinations thereof.16. The method of claim 11 , wherein the plasma power is between about 0 W and about 1000 W.17. The ...

Depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs). 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature;conformally depositing tungsten in the feature to fill the feature with a first bulk tungsten layer;etching a portion of the first bulk tungsten layer to leave an etched tungsten layer in the feature, including removing tungsten from at least a portion of the sidewalls of the feature; andselectively depositing a second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the conformally depositing tungsten includes allowing a void to be formed within the first bulk tungsten layer.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein etching the portion of the first bulk tungsten layer includes opening the void.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the conformally depositing tungsten includes allowing a seam running along the axis of the feature in the first bulk tungsten layer to be formed.5. The method of claim 4 , wherein etching the portion of the first bulk tungsten layer includes etching the first tungsten bulk layer to remove tungsten through the point of seam formation.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively depositing a second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer includes depositing the second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process. Process parameters including exposure time, substrate temperature, and chamber pressure can be used to tune the inhibition profile. Also provided are methods of filling multiple adjacent lines with reduced or no line bending. The methods involve selectively inhibiting the tungsten nucleation to reduce sidewall growth during feature fill. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature having one or more feature openings and a feature interior,selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature such that there is a differential inhibition profile along a feature axis by exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process; andselectively depositing tungsten in the feature in accordance with the differential inhibition profile.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature further comprises exposing the feature to a reducing agent and a tungsten-containing precursor.3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising depositing a tungsten layer in the feature prior to selective inhibition.4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the tungsten layer is deposited by a pulsed nucleation layer (PNL) process.5. The method of claim 3 , wherein the tungsten layer is conformally deposited in the feature.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively depositing tungsten comprises a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process.7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising claim 1 , after selectively depositing tungsten in the feature claim 1 , depositing tungsten in the feature to complete feature fill.8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising claim 1 , after ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process. Process parameters including exposure time, substrate temperature, and chamber pressure can be used to tune the inhibition profile. Also provided are methods of filling multiple adjacent lines with reduced or no line bending. The methods involve selectively inhibiting the tungsten nucleation to reduce sidewall growth during feature fill. 115.-. (canceled)16. A method comprising:providing a substrate including multiple adjacent trenches;depositing a conformal layer of tungsten in the multiple adjacent trenches;selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation on the conformal layer of tungsten at the top of the multiple adjacent trenches with respect to the bottom of the multiple adjacent trenches;depositing tungsten at the bottom of the multiple adjacent trenches while preventing tungsten from growing from the sidewalls of each of the multiple adjacent trenches to thereby reduce line-to-line non-uniformity.17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the multiple adjacent trenches widen from the trench bottom to the trench top.18. The method of claim 16 , wherein the multiple adjacent trenches have sloped sidewalls.19. The method of claim 16 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation on the conformal layer of tungsten is a remote plasma process.20. The method of claim 16 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation on the conformal layer of tungsten comprises exposing the layer to nitrogen radicals.21. The method of claim 16 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation on the conformal layer of tungsten is a thermal process.22. The method of claim 16 , wherein the center-to-center distance of the ...

DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO HIGH ASPECT RATIO FEATURES

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner. 1introducing a tungsten-containing precursor and a reducing agent into a processing chamber;depositing a layer of a tungsten-containing material on the partially manufactured semiconductor substrate via a chemical vapor deposition reaction between the tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent, such that the layer partially fills the high aspect ratio feature;introducing an activated etching material into the processing chamber;removing a portion of the layer using the activated etching material to form a remaining layer;reintroducing the tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent into the processing chamber; andselectively depositing an additional layer of the tungsten-containing material on the partially manufactured semiconductor substrate via a chemical vapor deposition reaction between the tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent such that the additional layer is thicker inside the feature than near the feature opening.. A method of filling a ...

Void free low stress fill

Provided herein are methods of depositing low stress and void free metal films in deep features and related apparatus. Embodiments of the methods include treating the sidewalls of the holes to inhibit metal deposition while leaving the feature bottom untreated. In subsequent deposition operations, metal precursor molecules diffuse to the feature bottom for deposition. The process is repeated with subsequent inhibition operations treating the remaining exposed sidewalls. By repeating inhibition and deposition operations, high quality void free fill can be achieved. This allows high temperature, low stress deposition to be performed.

Pulsing RF power in etch process to enhance tungsten gapfill performance

Methods and apparatuses for filling features with metal materials such as tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a metal such as a tungsten-containing material followed by removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ratio feature. The portion may be removed by exposing the tungsten-containing material to a plasma generated from a fluorine-containing nitrogen-containing gas and pulsing and/or ramping the plasma during the exposure.

Chamber conditioning for remote plasma process

The methods, systems and apparatus described herein relate to chamber conditioning for remote plasma processes, in particular remote nitrogen-based plasma processes. Certain implementations of the disclosure relate to remote plasma inhibition processes for feature fill that include chamber conditioning. Embodiments of the disclosure relate to exposing remote plasma processing chambers to fluorine species prior to nitrogen-based remote plasma processing of substrates such as semiconductor wafers. Within-wafer uniformity and wafer-to-wafer uniformity is improved.

High step coverage tungsten deposition

Methods of depositing a tungsten nucleation layers that achieve very good step coverage are provided. The methods involve a sequence of alternating pulses of a tungsten-containing precursor and a boron-containing reducing agent, while co-flowing hydrogen (H2) with the boron-containing reducing agent. The H2 flow is stopped prior to the tungsten-containing precursor flow. By co-flowing H2 with the boron-containing reducing agent but not with the tungsten-containing precursor flow, a parasitic CVD component is reduced, resulting in a more self-limiting process. This in turn improves step coverage and conformality of the nucleation layer. Related apparatuses are also provided.

ATOMIC LAYER ETCHING OF TUNGSTEN FOR ENHANCED TUNGSTEN DEPOSITION FILL

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein.

EDGE EXCLUSION CONTROL

Provided herein are methods and apparatuses for controlling uniformity of processing at an edge region of a semiconductor wafer. In some embodiments, the methods include exposing an edge region to treatment gases such as etch gases and/or inhibition gases. Also provided herein are exclusion ring assemblies including multiple rings that may be implemented to provide control of the processing environment at the edge of the wafer.

PULSING RF POWER IN ETCH PROCESS TO ENHANCE TUNGSTEN GAPFILL PERFORMANCE

Methods and apparatuses for filling features with metal materials such as tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a metal such as a tungsten-containing material followed by removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ratio feature. The portion may be removed by exposing the tungsten-containing material to a plasma generated from a fluorine-containing nitrogen-containing gas and pulsing and/or ramping the plasma during the exposure. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate having a feature partially filled with a metal;exposing the substrate to a fluorine- and nitrogen-based plasma; andpulsing the plasma to remove a portion of the metal.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal is tungsten.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed between an ON state and an OFF state claim 1 , wherein the plasma power during the OFF state is OW and the plasma power during the ON state is between about 50 W and about 3000 W.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed at a frequency between about 1 Hz and about 400 kHz.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed using a duty cycle between about 10% and about 90%.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed between an ON state and an OFF state claim 1 , and wherein the plasma is in the ON state for a duration between about 100 milliseconds and about 10 seconds in each pulse.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein exposing the substrate to the fluorine- and nitrogen-based plasma comprises flowing a fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas and igniting a plasma.8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas flow is pulsed.9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas flow is pulsed using a duty cycle between about 30% and about ...

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process. Process parameters including exposure time, substrate temperature, and chamber pressure can be used to tune the inhibition profile. Also provided are methods of filling multiple adjacent lines with reduced or no line bending. The methods involve selectively inhibiting the tungsten nucleation to reduce sidewall growth during feature fill.

FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature having one or more feature openings and a feature interior,selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature such that there is a differential inhibition profile along a feature axis,modulating the differential inhibition profile to form a modified differential inhibition profile; andselectively depositing tungsten in the feature in accordance with the modified differential inhibition profile.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature comprises exposing the feature to a direct plasma while applying a bias to the substrate.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the plasma contains one or more of nitrogen claim 2 , hydrogen claim 2 , oxygen and carbon activated species.4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the plasma is nitrogen-based and/or hydrogen-based.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature comprises exposing the feature to a remotely-generated plasma.6. The method of claim ...

FILL PROCESS OPTIMIZATION USING FEATURE SCALE MODELING

Provided herein are systems and methods for optimizing feature fill processes. The feature fill optimization systems and methods may be used to optimize feature fill from a small number of patterned wafer tests. The systems and methods may be used for optimizing enhanced feature fill processes including those that include inhibition and/or etch operations along with deposition operations. Results from experiments may be used to calibrate a feature scale behavioral model. Once calibrated, parameter space may be iteratively explored to optimize the process.

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon ...

METHODS FOR DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN FILMS HAVING LOW RESISTIVITY FOR GAPFILL APPLICATIONS

Methods of filling gaps or recessed features on substrates are provided. According to various embodiments, the methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten to partially fill the feature followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, the top portion is removed by exposing the substrate to activated fluorine species. By selectively removing sharp and protruding peaks of the deposited tungsten grains, the removal operation polishes the tungsten along the feature sidewall. Multiple deposition-removal cycles can be used to close the feature. The filled feature is less prone to coring during CMP.

PULSING RF POWER IN ETCH PROCESS TO ENHANCE TUNGSTEN GAPFILL PERFORMANCE

Methods and apparatuses for filling features with metal materials such as tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a metal such as a tungsten-containing material followed by removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ratio feature. The portion may be removed by exposing the tungsten-containing material to a plasma generated from a fluorine-containing nitrogen-containing gas and pulsing and/or ramping the plasma during the exposure. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate having a feature partially filled with a metal;exposing the substrate to a fluorine- and nitrogen-based plasma; andpulsing the plasma to remove a portion of the metal.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal is tungsten.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed between an ON state and an OFF state claim 1 , wherein the plasma power during the OFF state is 0 W and the plasma power during the ON state is between about 50 W and about 3000 W.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed at a frequency between about 1 Hz and about 400 kHz.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed using a duty cycle between about 10% and about 90%.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is pulsed between an ON state and an OFF state claim 1 , and wherein the plasma is in the ON state for a duration between about 100 milliseconds and about 10 seconds in each pulse.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein exposing the substrate to the fluorine- and nitrogen-based plasma comprises flowing a fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas and igniting a plasma.8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas flow is pulsed.9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the fluorine- and nitrogen-containing gas flow is pulsed using a duty cycle between about 30% and ...

Filling structures of high aspect ratio elements for growth amplification and device fabrication

The present invention includes compositions, devices and methods for filling structures of high aspect ratio elements for growth amplification and device fabrication. A method includes a method of filling a structure comprising the steps of providing one or more structures, each structure having a plurality of high aspect ratio elements, wherein the aspect ratio is at least 5; and coating the plurality of high aspect ratio elements with at least one solidifying material produced by a form of chemical vapor deposition thereby forming a structured-film. Compositions of the present invention are solid formed structures that are less fragile, do not require such delicate handling to avoid serious degradation, are more stable, last longer, do not deform, and exhibit little stress as well as improved properties that include mechanical, chemical, electrical, biologic, and optical.

Feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

Feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

Depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner ...

Ex situ coating of chamber components for semiconductor processing

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

ATOMIC LAYER ETCH OF TUNGSTEN FOR ENHANCED TUNGSTEN DEPOSITION FILL

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein. 1. A method of filling features on a substrate , the method comprising:(a) depositing a first amount of a metal in a feature; and (i) modifying the surface of the deposited metal by exposing the metal to a halogen-containing gas; and', '(ii) exposing the modified surface to an activation gas to selectively etch the metal., '(b) directionally etching the metal at or near an opening of the feature relative to an interior region of the feature by'}2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal contains one of titanium claim 1 , tantalum claim 1 , nickel claim 1 , cobalt claim 1 , or molybdenum.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal contains tungsten.4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising applying a bias during at least one of (i) and (ii).5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the bias power is less than a threshold bias power.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein (b) comprises a self-limiting reaction.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate comprises features having different size openings.8. The method of claim 1 , wherein (a) and (b) are performed without breaking vacuum.9. The method of claim 1 , wherein (a) and (b) are performed in the same chamber.10. The method of claim 8 , wherein (a) and (b) are performed in different chambers of the same tool.11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising igniting a plasma during at least one of (i) and (ii).12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the feature has an aspect ratio of at least 3:1.13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the opening is less than 20 nm wide.14. The method of claim 1 , further comprising repeating (a) and (b).15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the halogen-containing gas is selected from the group consisting of chlorine claim 1 , bromine claim 1 , iodine claim 1 , sulfur ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature having one or more feature openings and a feature interior,selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature such that there is a differential inhibition profile along a feature axis; andselectively depositing tungsten in the feature in accordance with the differential inhibition profile.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature comprises exposing the feature to a direct plasma while applying a bias to the substrate.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the plasma contains one or more of nitrogen claim 2 , hydrogen claim 2 , oxygen and carbon activated species.4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the plasma is nitrogen-based and/or hydrogen-based.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation in the feature comprises exposing the feature to a remotely-generated plasma.6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising depositing a ...

Depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials are provided. The method involves providing a partially fabricated semiconductor substrate and depositing a tungsten-containing layer on the substrate surface to partially fill one or more high aspect ratio features. The method continues with selective removal of a portion of the deposited layer such that more material is removed near the feature opening than inside the feature. In certain embodiments, removal may be performed at mass-transport limited conditions with less etchant available inside the feature than near its opening. Etchant species are activated before being introduced into the processing chamber and/or while inside the chamber. In specific embodiments, recombination of the activated species is substantially limited and/or controlled during removal, e.g., operation is performed at less than about 250° C. and/or less than about 5 Torr.

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs).

CONTINUOUS AND PULSED RF PLASMA FOR ETCHING METALS

Methods for etching tungsten and other metal or metal-containing films using a nitrogen-containing etchant gas are provided. The methods involve exposing the film to a continuous wave (CW) plasma and switching to a pulsed plasma toward the end of the etching operation. The pulsed plasma has a lower concentration of nitrogen radicals and can mitigate the effects of nitridation on the tungsten surface. In some embodiments, subsequent deposition on etched surfaces is performed with no nucleation delay. Apparatuses for performing the methods are also provided. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate having a feature partially filled with tungsten;exposing the substrate to a continuous wave (CW) plasma generated from a nitrogen-containing and fluorine-containing gas; andexposing the substrate to a pulsed plasma generated from the nitrogen-containing and fluorine-containing gas, wherein the tungsten is preferentially etched from the top of the feature by exposure to the CW plasma and the pulsed plasma.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein exposing the substrate to a CW plasma generated from a nitrogen-containing and fluorine-containing gas and exposing the substrate to a pulsed plasma generated from the nitrogen-containing and fluorine-containing gas comprises: igniting a plasma in a plasma processing chamber using a power supply operating in a CW mode and transitioning from the CW mode to a pulsed mode while maintaining the plasma in the plasma processing chamber.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate is exposed to the CW plasma for a first duration and exposed to the pulsed plasma for a second duration claim 1 , wherein the first duration is longer than the second duration.4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the first duration is at least twice as long as the second duration.5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising depositing tungsten in the feature to completely fill the feature with tungsten.6. The method of claim 5 , wherein there is no nucleation ...

Low tempature tungsten film deposition for small critical dimension contacts and interconnects

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process ...

Ex situ coating of chamber components for semiconductor processing

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

EX SITU COATING OF CHAMBER COMPONENTS FOR SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSING

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers. 1. A method of coating a chamber component for use in a second reaction chamber , the method comprising:(a) receiving the chamber component as a substrate in a first reaction chamber;(b) providing a first reactant to the first reaction chamber and allowing the first reactant to adsorb onto a surface of the chamber component;(c) providing a second reactant to the first reaction chamber and reacting the first and second reactants with one another in an atomic layer deposition reaction to form a protective coating on the surface of the chamber component;(d) repeating (b) and (c) until the protective coating reaches a final thickness; and(e) removing the chamber component from the first reaction chamber.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the protective coating comprises a metal oxide claim 1 , a metal nitride claim 1 , or a metal fluoride.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the metal in the metal oxide claim 2 , metal nitride claim 2 , or metal fluoride is a transition metal.4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the ...

Feature fill with multi-stage nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon ...

LOW RESISTANCE GATE OXIDE METALLIZATION LINER

Methods and apparatuses for forming low resistivity tungsten using tungsten nitride barrier layers are provided herein. Methods involve depositing extremely thin tungsten nitride barrier layers prior to depositing tungsten nucleation and bulk tungsten layers. Methods are applicable for fabricating tungsten word lines in 3D NAND fabrication as well as for fabricating tungsten-containing components of DRAM and logic fabrication. Apparatus included processing stations with multiple charge volumes to pressurize gases in close vicinity to a showerhead of a processing chamber for processing semiconductor substrates.

METHOD FOR FORMING TUNGSTEN CONTACTS AND INTERCONNECTS WITH SMALL CRITICAL DIMENSIONS

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process ...

Method for forming tungsten film having low resistivity, low roughness and high reflectivity

Top-down methods of increasing reflectivity of tungsten films to form films having high reflectivity, low resistivity and low roughness are provided. The methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten involve exposing it to a fluorine-containing plasma. The methods produce low resistivity tungsten bulk layers having lower roughness and higher reflectivity. The smooth and highly reflective tungsten layers are easier to photopattern than conventional low resistivity tungsten films. Applications include forming tungsten bit lines.

Tungsten nitride barrier layer deposition

Provided herein are methods of tungsten nitride (WN) deposition. Also provided are stacks for tungsten (W) contacts to silicon germanium (SiGe) layers and methods for forming them. The stacks include SiGe/tungsten silicide (WSix)/WN/W layers, with WSix providing an ohmic contact between the SiGe and WN layers. Also provided are methods for reducing fluorine (F) attack of underlying layers in deposition of W-containing films using tungsten hexafluoride (WF6). Apparatuses to perform the methods are also provided.

CHAMBER CONDITIONING FOR REMOTE PLASMA PROCESS

The methods, systems and apparatus described herein relate to chamber conditioning for remote plasma processes, in particular remote nitrogen-based plasma processes. Certain implementations of the disclosure relate to remote plasma inhibition processes for feature fill that include chamber conditioning. Embodiments of the disclosure relate to exposing remote plasma processing chambers to fluorine species prior to nitrogen-based remote plasma processing of substrates such as semiconductor wafers. Within-wafer uniformity and wafer-to-wafer uniformity is improved. 1. A method comprising: introducing a fluorine-containing gas to a plasma generator to generate a fluorine-containing conditioning plasma;', 'inletting the fluorine-containing conditioning plasma to the remote plasma processing chamber, wherein the remote plasma processing chamber includes a substrate support and a showerhead and the showerhead is disposed between the substrate support and the plasma generator and wherein, during the conditioning process, no fabrication substrate is present in the remote plasma processing chamber, wherein the conditioning process further comprises introducing a nitrogen-containing compound to the plasma generator to generate a fluoride-free nitrogen-based conditioning plasma and inletting the fluoride-free nitrogen-based conditioning plasma to the remote plasma processing chamber;, 'performing a conditioning process on a remote plasma processing chamber, the conditioning process comprisingafter performing the conditioning process, introducing a fabrication substrate to the remote plasma processing chamber; andexposing the fabrication substrate to a remotely generated nitrogen-based plasma.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fabrication substrate comprises one or more features to be filled.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remotely generated nitrogen-based plasma is generated from Ngas.4. (canceled)5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising sequentially introducing ...

Tungsten feature fill

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs).

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL WITH INHIBITION CONTROL

Systems and methods for selective inhibition control in semiconductor manufacturing are provided. An example method includes providing a substrate including a feature having one or more feature openings and a feature interior. A nucleation layer is formed on a surface of the feature interior. Based on a differential inhibition profile, a nonconformal bulk layer is selectively formed on a surface of the nucleation layer to leave a region of the nucleation layer covered, and a region of the nucleation layer uncovered by the nonconformal bulk layer. An inhibition layer is selectively formed on the covered and uncovered regions of the nucleation layer. Tungsten is deposited in the feature in accordance with the differential inhibition profile.

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

Pulsing RF power in etch process to enhance tungsten gapfill performance

Methods and apparatuses for filling features with metal materials such as tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a metal such as a tungsten-containing material followed by removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ratio feature. The portion may be removed by exposing the tungsten-containing material to a plasma generated from a fluorine-containing nitrogen-containing gas and pulsing and/or ramping the plasma during the exposure.

Continuous and pulsed RF plasma for etching metals

Methods for etching tungsten and other metal or metal-containing films using a nitrogen-containing etchant gas are provided. The methods involve exposing the film to a continuous wave (CW) plasma and switching to a pulsed plasma toward the end of the etching operation. The pulsed plasma has a lower concentration of nitrogen radicals and can mitigate the effects of nitridation on the tungsten surface. In some embodiments, subsequent deposition on etched surfaces is performed with no nucleation delay. Apparatuses for performing the methods are also provided.

DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO HIGH ASPECT RATIO FEATURES

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner ...

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon ...

Void free tungsten fill in different sized features

Methods of depositing tungsten in different sized features on a substrate are provided herein. The methods involve depositing a first bulk layer of tungsten in the features, etching the deposited tungsten, depositing a second bulk tungsten, which is interrupted to treat the tungsten after the smaller features are completely filled, and resuming deposition of the second bulk layer after treatment to deposit smaller, smoother tungsten grains into the large features. The methods also involve depositing tungsten in multiple cycles of dep-etch-dep, where each cycle targets a group of similarly sized features using etch chemistry specific for that group, and depositing in groups from smallest sized features to the largest sized features. Deposition using methods described herein produce smaller, smoother grains with void-free fill for a wide range of sized features in a substrate.

EX SITU COATING OF CHAMBER COMPONENTS FOR SEMICONDUCTOR PROCESSING

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

METHODS FOR DEPOSITING ULTRA THIN LOW RESISTIVITY TUNGSTEN FILM FOR SMALL CRITICAL DIMENSION CONTACTS AND INTERCONNECTS

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process. 1. A method of filling a recessed feature on a substrate , the method comprising:providing a substrate having a field region and a first feature recessed from the field region, said recessed feature comprising sidewalls, a bottom, an opening, and corners;depositing a tungsten nucleation layer on the sidewalls and bottom of the recessed feature; andfilling the feature with a low temperature CVD tungsten bulk layer via a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process; wherein the substrate temperature during the CVD process is maintained at between about 250° C. and 350° C.2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising after filling the first recessed feature claim 1 , raising the substrate temperature at least about 50° C. and claim 1 , after raising the substrate temperature claim 1 , depositing a high temperature bulk tungsten CVD layer on the filled first recessed feature.3. The method of wherein the first recessed feature has an aspect ratio of at least 10:1.4. The method of wherein ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs).

Atomic layer etch of tungsten for enhanced tungsten deposition fill

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein.

Method for depositing thin tungsten film with low resistivity and robust micro-adhesion characteristics

Methods of forming low resistivity tungsten films with good uniformity and good adhesion to the underlying layer are provided. The methods involve forming a tungsten nucleation layer using a pulsed nucleation layer process at low temperature and then treating the deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing the bulk tungsten fill. The treatment operation lowers resistivity of the deposited tungsten film. In certain embodiments, the depositing the nucleation layer involves a boron-based chemistry in the absence of hydrogen. Also in certain embodiments, the treatment operations involve exposing the nucleation layer to alternating cycles of a reducing agent and a tungsten-containing precursor. The methods are useful for depositing films in high aspect ratio and/or narrow features. The films exhibit low resistivity at narrow line widths and excellent step coverage.

Fill process optimization using feature scale modeling

Provided herein are systems and methods for optimizing feature fill processes. The feature fill optimization systems and methods may be used to optimize feature fill from a small number of patterned wafer tests. The systems and methods may be used for optimizing enhanced feature fill processes including those that include inhibition and/or etch operations along with deposition operations. Results from experiments may be used to calibrate a feature scale behavioral model. Once calibrated, parameter space may be iteratively explored to optimize the process.

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs). 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature;conformally depositing tungsten in the feature to fill the feature with a first bulk tungsten layer;etching a portion of the first bulk tungsten layer to leave an etched tungsten layer in the feature, including removing tungsten from at least a portion of the sidewalls of the feature; andselectively depositing a second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer.221.-. (canceled) This application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 13/851,885, titled “TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL,” filed Mar. 27, 2013, which claims priority under 35 USC §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/616,377, filed Mar. 27, 2012. U.S. application Ser. No. 13/851,885 is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/351,970 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,435,894), titled “DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO HIGH ASPECT RATIO FEATURES,” filed Jan. 17, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/016,656 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,124,531), titled “DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO HIGH ASPECT RATIO FEATURES,” filed Jan. 28, 2011, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/833,823 (now U.S. Pat. No. 9,034,768), titled DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN INTO ...

Depositing Tungsten Into High Aspect Ratio Features

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials are provided. The method involves providing a partially fabricated semiconductor substrate and depositing a tungsten-containing layer on the substrate surface to partially fill one or more high aspect ratio features. The method continues with selective removal of a portion of the deposited layer such that more material is removed near the feature opening than inside the feature. In certain embodiments, removal may be performed at mass-transport limited conditions with less etchant available inside the feature than near its opening. Etchant species are activated before being introduced into the processing chamber and/or while inside the chamber. In specific embodiments, recombination of the activated species is substantially limited and/or controlled during removal, e.g., operation is performed at less than about 250° C. and/or less than about 5 Torr. 1. A method of filling a high aspect ratio feature provided on a partially manufactured semiconductor substrate , the method comprising:introducing a tungsten-containing precursor and a reducing agent into a processing chamber;depositing a layer of a tungsten-containing material on the partially manufactured semiconductor substrate via a chemical vapor deposition reaction between the tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent, such that the layer partially fills the high aspect ratio feature;introducing an activated etching material into the processing chamber; andselectively removing a portion of the deposited layer using the activated etching material at process conditions that substantially limit recombination of the activated etching material.2. The method of the claim 1 , wherein the process conditions comprise a temperature of the partially manufactured semiconductor substrate of less than about 250° C. and a pressure of the processing chamber of less than 5 Torr.3. The method of the claim 2 , wherein the ...

Feature fill with multi-stage nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon ...

Depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features

Methods and apparatuses for filling high aspect ratio features with tungsten-containing materials in a substantially void-free manner are provided. In certain embodiments, the method involves depositing an initial layer of a tungsten-containing material followed by selectively removing a portion of the initial layer to form a remaining layer, which is differentially passivated along the depth of the high-aspect ration feature. In certain embodiments, the remaining layer is more passivated near the feature opening than inside the feature. The method may proceed with depositing an additional layer of the same or other material over the remaining layer. The deposition rate during this later deposition operation is slower near the feature opening than inside the features due to the differential passivation of the remaining layer. This deposition variation, in turn, may aid in preventing premature closing of the feature and facilitate filling of the feature in a substantially void free manner ...

HIGH STEP COVERAGE TUNGSTEN DEPOSITION

Methods of depositing a tungsten nucleation layers that achieve very good step coverage are provided. The methods involve a sequence of alternating pulses of a tungsten-containing precursor and a boron-containing reducing agent, while co-flowing hydrogen (H2) with the boron-containing reducing agent. The H2 flow is stopped prior to the tungsten-containing precursor flow. By co-flowing H2 with the boron-containing reducing agent but not with the tungsten-containing precursor flow, a parasitic CVD component is reduced, resulting in a more self-limiting process. This in turn improves step coverage and conformality of the nucleation layer. Related apparatuses are also provided. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature having an opening in a top surface, a sidewall and a bottom in a chamber; and flowing a boron-containing reducing agent pulse in the chamber, wherein the boron-containing reducing agent is adsorbed to the feature sidewall and feature bottom,', 'purging the chamber,', 'flowing a tungsten-containing precursor pulse in the chamber to react with the adsorbed boron-containing reducing agent, and, 'depositing a tungsten nucleation layer in the feature by performing multiple cycles of {'sub': 2', '2', '2, 'wherein hydrogen (H) is flowed during the boron-containing reducing agent pulse and no His flowed during the tungsten-containing precursor pulse, wherein Hsuppresses thermal decomposition of the boron-containing reducing agent.'}, 'purging the chamber,'}2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the tungsten nucleation layer is at least 10 Angstroms thick and step coverage throughout the feature is at least 90% claim 1 , step coverage being the ratio of the thickness of the tungsten nucleation layer at any point in the feature to the thickness of the tungsten nucleation layer at the top surface.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the nucleation layer further comprises at least one cycle of flowing a silane pulse in the chamber; purging ...

TUNGSTEN FEATURE FILL

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs). 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature;conformally depositing tungsten in the feature to fill the feature with a first bulk tungsten layer;etching a portion of the first bulk tungsten layer to leave an etched tungsten layer in the feature, including removing tungsten from at least a portion of the sidewalls of the feature; andselectively depositing a second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the conformally depositing tungsten includes allowing a void to be formed within the first bulk tungsten layer.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein etching the portion of the first bulk tungsten layer includes opening the void.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the conformally depositing tungsten includes allowing a seam running along the axis of the feature in the first bulk tungsten layer to be formed.5. The method of claim 4 , wherein etching the portion of the first bulk tungsten layer includes etching the first tungsten bulk layer to remove tungsten through the point of seam formation.6. The method of claim 1 , wherein selectively depositing a second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer includes depositing the second bulk tungsten layer on the etched tungsten layer ...

Feature fill with multi-stage nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon ...

METHOD FOR DEPOSITING THIN TUNGSTEN FILM WITH LOW RESISTIVITY AND ROBUST MICRO-ADHESION CHARACTERISTICS

Methods of forming low resistivity tungsten films with good uniformity and good adhesion to the underlying layer are provided. The methods involve forming a tungsten nucleation layer using a pulsed nucleation layer process at low temperature and then treating the deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing the bulk tungsten fill. The treatment operation lowers resistivity of the deposited tungsten film. In certain embodiments, the depositing the nucleation layer involves a boron-based chemistry in the absence of hydrogen. Also in certain embodiments, the treatment operations involve exposing the nucleation layer to alternating cycles of a reducing agent and a tungsten-containing precursor. The methods are useful for depositing films in high aspect ratio and/or narrow features. The films exhibit low resistivity at narrow line widths and excellent step coverage.

FEATURE FILL WITH MULTI-STAGE NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate including a feature having one or more feature openings and a feature interior; andperforming a multi-stage inhibition treatment comprising exposing the feature to a plasma generated from a treatment gas in at least a first stage and a second stage with an interval between the first and second stages, wherein one of more of a plasma source power, a substrate bias, or a treatment gas flow rate is reduced during the interval, and wherein the inhibition treatment preferentially inhibits nucleation of a metal at the feature openings.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multi-stage inhibition treatment comprises exposing the feature to a direct plasma while applying a bias to the substrate.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma contains one or more of nitrogen claim 1 , hydrogen claim 1 , oxygen claim 1 , and carbon activated species.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plasma is nitrogen-based or hydrogen-based.5. The method ...

METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR VOID-FREE TUNGSTEN FILL IN THREE-DIMENSIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR FEATURES

Disclosed herein are methods of filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material. The 3-D structure may include sidewalls, a plurality of openings in the sidewalls leading to a plurality of features having a plurality of interior regions. The methods may include depositing a first layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure such that the first layer partially fills a plurality of interior regions of the 3-D structure, etching vertically and horizontally after depositing the first layer, and depositing a second layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure after the vertical and horizontal etching such that the second layer fills at least a portion of the interior regions left unfilled by the first layer. Also disclosed herein are apparatuses for filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material having a controller with instructions for etching vertically and horizontally. 1. A method of filling a 3-D structure of a partially manufactured semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material , the 3-D structure comprising sidewalls , a plurality of openings in the sidewalls leading to a plurality of features having a plurality of interior regions fluidically accessible through the openings , the method comprising:providing a substrate having the 3-D structure to a processing chamber;depositing a first layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure such that the first layer partially fills the plurality of interior regions of the 3-D structure;etching vertically after depositing the first layer of the tungsten-containing material, the vertical etching comprising removing portions of the first layer from the sidewalls using a first activated etching material without substantially removing portions of the first layer from the plurality of interior regions;etching horizontally after depositing the first layer of the tungsten ...

Atomic layer etching of tungsten for enhanced tungsten deposition fill

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein.

Tungsten feature fill

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs).

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process. Process parameters including exposure time, substrate temperature, and chamber pressure can be used to tune the inhibition profile. Also provided are methods of filling multiple adjacent lines with reduced or no line bending. The methods involve selectively inhibiting the tungsten nucleation to reduce sidewall growth during feature fill.

Methods for depositing ultra thin low resistivity tungsten film for small critical dimension contacts and interconnects

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process ...

Systems and methods for controlling etch selectivity of various materials

A method for filling a recessed feature of a substrate includes a) at least partially filling a recessed feature of a substrate with tungsten-containing film using at least one of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and atomic layer deposition (ALD); b) at a predetermined temperature, using an etchant including activated fluorine species to selectively etch the tungsten-containing film more than an underlying material of the recessed feature without removing all of the tungsten-containing film at a bottom of the recessed feature; and c) filling the recessed feature using at least one of CVD and ALD.

Feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

FEATURE FILL WITH NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. Pre-inhibition and post-inhibition treatments are used to modulate the inhibition effect, facilitating feature fill using inhibition across a wide process window. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias. 118.-. (canceled)19. A method comprising:providing a 3-D structure of a partially manufactured semiconductor substrate, the 3-D structure comprising sidewalls, a plurality of openings in the sidewalls leading to a plurality of features having a plurality of interior regions fluidically accessible through the openings;exposing the 3-D structure to diborane; andafter exposing the 3-D structure to diborane, exposing the 3-D structure to an inhibition chemistry to inhibit metal deposition in the plurality of features.20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the inhibition chemistry comprises a nitrogen-containing inhibition chemistry.21. The method of claim 21 , wherein exposing the 3-D structure to an inhibition chemistry comprises exposing the 3-D structure to nitrogen trifluoride (NF).22. The method of claim 21 , wherein exposing the 3-D structure to an inhibition chemistry comprises exposing the 3-D structure to a plasma generated from a nitrogen-containing gas.23. The method of claim 21 , further comprising depositing tungsten in the plurality ...

Thinning tungsten layer after through silicon via filling

Methods of processing partially manufactured semiconductor substrates with one or more through silicon vias to partially remove a tungsten layer formed on the field region during filling the through silicon vias are provided. In certain embodiments, the methods produce substrates with reduced bowing than the bowing present after through silicon vias filling. Substrates with reduced bowing are easier to handle and may expedite subsequent processes.

Method for depositing thin tungsten film with low resistivity and robust micro-adhesion characteristics

Methods of forming low resistivity tungsten films with good uniformity and good adhesion to the underlying layer are provided. The methods involve forming a tungsten nucleation layer using a pulsed nucleation layer process at low temperature and then treating the deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing the bulk tungsten fill. The treatment operation lowers resistivity of the deposited tungsten film. In certain embodiments, the depositing the nucleation layer involves a boron-based chemistry in the absence of hydrogen. Also in certain embodiments, the treatment operations involve exposing the nucleation layer to alternating cycles of a reducing agent and a tungsten-containing precursor. The methods are useful for depositing films in high aspect ratio and/or narrow features. The films exhibit low resistivity at narrow line widths and excellent step coverage.

FEATURE FILL WITH MULTI-STAGE NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

ATOMIC LAYER ETCH OF TUNGSTEN FOR ENHANCED TUNGSTEN DEPOSITION FILL

Methods of depositing tungsten into high aspect ratio features using a dep-etch-dep process integrating various deposition techniques with alternating pulses of surface modification and removal during etch are provided herein. Methods involve introducing an activation gas at a chamber pressure and/or applying a bias using a bias power selected to preferentially etch the metal at or near the opening of the feature relative to the interior region of the feature. Apparatuses include integrated hardware for performing deposition of metal and atomic layer etching of metal in the same tool and/or without breaking vacuum. 135-. (canceled)36. A method comprising: (i) exposing the feature to a halogen-containing gas to form a modified surface of the first amount of the metal;', '(ii) exposing the modified surface to an activation gas; and', '(iii) applying a bias to the substrate during at least one of (i) and (ii) using a bias power., 'preferentially etching a first amount of a metal in a feature on a substrate at or near the opening of the feature relative to an interior region of the feature by'}37. The method of claim 36 , wherein the metal contains tungsten or molybdenum.38. The method of claim 36 , wherein the bias power when applied during (i) is greater than 0V and less than about 200 V.39. The method of claim 36 , wherein the bias power when applied during (ii) is less than a threshold bias power.40. The method of claim 36 , wherein the forming of the modified surface of the first amount of the metal is self-limiting.41. The method of claim 36 , further comprising depositing the first amount of the metal in the feature on the substrate claim 36 , wherein the depositing and the preferentially etching are performed without breaking vacuum.42. The method of claim 41 , wherein the depositing and the preferentially etching are performed in different chambers of the same tool.43. The method of claim 36 , further comprising igniting a plasma during at least one of (i) and ...

VOID FREE TUNGSTEN FILL IN DIFFERENT SIZED FEATURES

Methods of depositing tungsten in different sized features on a substrate are provided herein. The methods involve depositing a first bulk layer of tungsten in the features, etching the deposited tungsten, depositing a second bulk tungsten, which is interrupted to treat the tungsten after the smaller features are completely filled, and resuming deposition of the second bulk layer after treatment to deposit smaller, smoother tungsten grains into the large features. The methods also involve depositing tungsten in multiple cycles of dep-etch-dep, where each cycle targets a group of similarly sized features using etch chemistry specific for that group, and depositing in groups from smallest sized features to the largest sized features. Deposition using methods described herein produce smaller, smoother grains with void-free fill for a wide range of sized features in a substrate.

Low temperature tungsten film deposition for small critical dimension contacts and interconnects

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process.

TUNGSTEN NITRIDE BARRIER LAYER DEPOSITION

Provided herein are methods of tungsten nitride (WN) deposition. Also provided are stacks for tungsten (W) contacts to silicon germanium (SiGe) layers and methods for forming them. The stacks include SiGe/tungsten silicide (WSix)/WN/W layers, with WSix providing an ohmic contact between the SiGe and WN layers. Also provided are methods for reducing fluorine (F) attack of underlying layers in deposition of W-containing films using tungsten hexafluoride (WF6). Apparatuses to perform the methods are also provided.

Methods and apparatuses for void-free tungsten fill in three-dimensional semiconductor features

Disclosed herein are methods of filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material. The 3-D structure may include sidewalls, a plurality of openings in the sidewalls leading to a plurality of features having a plurality of interior regions. The methods may include depositing a first layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure such that the first layer partially fills a plurality of interior regions of the 3-D structure, etching vertically and horizontally after depositing the first layer, and depositing a second layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure after the vertical and horizontal etching such that the second layer fills at least a portion of the interior regions left unfilled by the first layer. Also disclosed herein are apparatuses for filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material having a controller with instructions for etching vertically and horizontally ...

REDUCING LINE BENDING DURING METAL FILL PROCESS

Methods of mitigating line bending during feature fill include deposition of a nucleation layer having increased roughness. In some embodiments, the methods include depositing two or more metal nucleation layers.

Method for depositing tungsten film having low resistivity, low roughness and high reflectivity

Top-down methods of increasing reflectivity of tungsten films to form films having high reflectivity, low resistivity and low roughness are provided. The methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten involve exposing it to a fluorine-containing plasma. The methods produce low resistivity tungsten bulk layers having lower roughness and higher reflectivity. The smooth and highly reflective tungsten layers are easier to photopattern than conventional low resistivity tungsten films. Applications include forming tungsten bit lines.

FEATURE FILL WITH MULTI-STAGE NUCLEATION INHIBITION

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. The methods include performing multi-stage inhibition treatments including intervals between stages. One or more of plasma source power, substrate bias power, or treatment gas flow may be reduced or turned off during an interval. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate and wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

Tungsten feature fill

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten and related systems and apparatus. The methods include inside-out fill techniques as well as conformal deposition in features. Inside-out fill techniques can include selective deposition on etched tungsten layers in features. Conformal and non-conformal etch techniques can be used according to various implementations. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) word lines. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried word line fill, vertically integrated memory gate/word line fill, and 3-D integration with through-silicon vias (TSVs).

LOW TEMPATURE TUNGSTEN FILM DEPOSITION FOR SMALL CRITICAL DIMENSION CONTACTS AND INTERCONNECTS

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process. 1. A method of filling a recessed feature on a substrate , the method comprising:providing a substrate having a field region and a first feature recessed from the field region, said recessed feature comprising sidewalls, a bottom, an opening, and corners;depositing a tungsten nucleation layer on the sidewalls and bottom of the recessed feature; andfilling the feature with a low temperature CVD tungsten bulk layer via a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process; wherein the substrate temperature during the CVD process is maintained at between about 250° C. and 350° C.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first recessed feature has an aspect ratio of at least 10:1.3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first recessed feature has an aspect ratio of at least 20:1.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein width of the first recessed feature opening is no more than about 100 nm.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein width of the first recessed feature opening is no more than about 50 nm.6. The ...

METHODS FOR DEPOSITING ULTRA THIN LOW RESISTIVITY TUNGSTEN FILM FOR SMALL CRITICAL DIMENSION CONTACTS AND INTERCONNECTS

Provided are methods of void-free tungsten fill of high aspect ratio features. According to various embodiments, the methods involve a reduced temperature chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process to fill the features with tungsten. In certain embodiments, the process temperature is maintained at less than about 350° C. during the chemical vapor deposition to fill the feature. The reduced-temperature CVD tungsten fill provides improved tungsten fill in high aspect ratio features, provides improved barriers to fluorine migration into underlying layers, while achieving similar thin film resistivity as standard CVD fill. Also provided are methods of depositing thin tungsten films having low-resistivity. According to various embodiments, the methods involve performing a reduced temperature low resistivity treatment on a deposited nucleation layer prior to depositing a tungsten bulk layer and/or depositing a bulk layer via a reduced temperature CVD process followed by a high temperature CVD process ...

METHOD FOR DEPOSITING TUNGSTEN FILM HAVING LOW RESISTIVITY, LOW ROUGHNESS AND HIGH REFLECTIVITY

Top-down methods of increasing reflectivity of tungsten films to form films having high reflectivity, low resistivity and low roughness are provided. The methods involve bulk deposition of tungsten followed by a removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten. In particular embodiments, removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten involve exposing it to a fluorine-containing plasma. The methods produce low resistivity tungsten bulk layers having lower roughness and higher reflectivity. The smooth and highly reflective tungsten layers are easier to photopattern than conventional low resistivity tungsten films. Applications include forming tungsten bit lines. 1. A method of depositing a tungsten layer having a thickness Td on a substrate surface , the method comprising:{'b': '1', 'depositing a layer of tungsten having a thickness T directly on the substrate surface via a chemical vapor deposition reaction between a tungsten-containing precursor and the reducing agent; and'}{'b': 1', '1, 'removing a top portion of the deposited tungsten layer to form a tungsten bulk layer having thickness Td, wherein Td is less than T and wherein no more than the top portion is removed, wherein the top portion is between about 5% and 25% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.'}21. The method of claim 1 , wherein the top portion is between about 5% and 15% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.31. The method of claim 1 , wherein the top portion is about 10% of the thickness T of the deposited tungsten layer.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein removing the top portion comprises exposing the deposited tungsten layer to atomic fluorine.5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising introducing a fluorine-containing compound to a remote plasma generator upstream of a chamber that houses the substrate claim 1 , generating atomic fluorine within the remote plasma generator claim 1 , and flowing atomic fluorine from the remote plasma generator to the chamber to ...

Ex situ coating of chamber components for semiconductor processing

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

CLEANING SYSTEM FOR REMOVING DEPOSITS FROM PUMP IN AN EXHAUST OF A SUBSTRATE PROCESSING SYSTEM

An exhaust system for a substrate processing system includes a radical generator configured to receive a gas mixture including halogen species and to generate halogen radicals, a first pump to pump exhaust gas from an exhaust outlet of a processing chamber, and a first valve configured to selectively fluidly connect an outlet of the radical generator to the first pump downstream from the outlet of the processing chamber. 1. An exhaust system for a substrate processing system , comprising:a radical generator configured to receive a gas mixture including halogen species and to generate halogen radicals;a first pump to pump exhaust gas from an exhaust outlet of a processing chamber; anda first valve configured to selectively fluidly connect an outlet of the radical generator to an inlet of the first pump downstream from the outlet of the processing chamber;a gas detector fluidly connected to an outlet of the first pump; anda controller configured to communicate with the gas detector and to cause the pump cleaning to be performed until a gas concentration of a predetermined gas species is less than a predetermined threshold.2. The exhaust system of claim 1 , further comprising:a mixing bowl arranged upstream from the first pump and downstream from the outlet of the processing chamber,wherein the first valve is configured to selectively fluidly connect the outlet of the radical generator to a first inlet of the mixing bowl.3. The exhaust system of claim 2 , wherein a second inlet of the mixing bowl is fluidly connected to the exhaust outlet.4. The exhaust system of claim 3 , further comprising a second valve configured to selectively fluidly connect an outlet of the radical generator to the second inlet of the mixing bowl.5. The exhaust system of claim 2 , further comprising:a second pump having an inlet fluidly connected to the outlet of the processing chamber and an outlet fluidly connected to the inlet of the mixing bowl,wherein the inlet of the first pump is fluidly ...

Reducing line bending during metal fill process

Methods of mitigating line bending during feature fill include deposition of an amorphous layer and/or an inhibition treatment during fill.

BACKSIDE REACTIVE INHIBITION GAS

Provided herein are methods and apparatuses for controlling uniformity of processing at an edge region of a semiconductor wafer. In some embodiments, the methods include providing a backside inhibition gas as part of a deposition-inhibition-deposition (DID) sequence. 1. A method comprising:providing a substrate having a metal deposited in features in the substrate, the substrate having a frontside, a backside, and an edge; andperforming a non-plasma inhibition treatment on surfaces of the deposited metal to inhibit nucleation on the treated surfaces, the non-plasma inhibition treatment comprising flowing an inhibition gas from a gas inlet on the frontside of the substrate and flowing the inhibition gas from the backside of the substrate around the edge of the substrate.2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the non-plasma inhibition treatment further comprises flowing a metal precursor from a gas inlet on the frontside of the substrate.3. The method of claim 2 , wherein no metal precursor is flowed from the backside of the substrate.4. The method of claim 1 , wherein flowing the inhibition gas from the gas inlet on the frontside of the substrate is performed concurrently or partially overlaps with flowing the inhibition gas from the backside of the substrate.5. The method of claim 1 , wherein flowing the inhibition gas from the gas inlet on the frontside of the substrate is alternated with flowing the inhibition gas from the backside of the substrate.6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the non-plasma inhibition treatment comprises an anneal period between flowing the inhibition gas from a gas inlet on the frontside of the substrate and flowing the inhibition gas from the backside of the substrate.7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal is one of tungsten (W) claim 1 , molybdenum (Mo) claim 1 , cobalt (Co) claim 1 , and ruthenium (Ru).8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the inhibition gas is a nitrogen-containing gas.9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the inhibition ...

Methods for depositing tungsten films having low resistivity for gapfill applications

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to a direct or remote plasma. In certain embodiments, the substrate can be biased during selective inhibition. Process parameters including bias power, exposure time, plasma power, process pressure and plasma chemistry can be used to tune the inhibition profile. The methods described herein can be used to fill vertical features, such as in tungsten vias, and horizontal features, such as vertical NAND (VNAND) wordlines. The methods may be used for both conformal fill and bottom-up/inside-out fill. Examples of applications include logic and memory contact fill, DRAM buried wordline fill, vertically integrated memory gate/wordline fill, and 3-D integration using through-silicon vias.

Tungsten nitride barrier layer deposition

Provided herein are methods of tungsten nitride (WN) deposition. Also provided are stacks for tungsten (W) contacts to silicon germanium (SiGe) layers and methods for forming them. The stacks include SiGe/tungsten silicide (WSix)/WN/W layers, with WSix providing an ohmic contact between the SiGe and WN layers. Also provided are methods for reducing fluorine (F) attack of underlying layers in deposition of W-containing films using tungsten hexafluoride (WF6). Apparatuses to perform the methods are also provided.

Layer uniformity improvement of deposition-inhibition-deposition processes

Disclosed herein is a process tool, comprising a wafer chuck and a showerhead. In at least one implementation, wafer chuck is coupled to a motor that is operable to vertically displace wafer chuck relative to showerhead. In at least one implementation, a carrier ring is between wafer chuck and showerhead. In at least one implementation, carrier ring comprises an overhang extending over an edge of a wafer on the wafer chuck. In at least one implementation, carrier ring is mechanically coupled to a spindle operable to vertically displace carrier ring relative to wafer chuck.

Showerhead for diffusion bonded, multi-zone gas dispersion

A showerhead for a substrate processing chamber configured to perform bulk deposition includes a faceplate, a backplate, and a faceplate. The faceplate defines a first plenum corresponding to center and middles zones and a second plenum corresponding to an edge zone. The faceplate includes a first plurality of holes distributed throughout the center zone and the middle zone and a second plurality of holes distributed throughout the edge zone. The middle plate is disposed between the faceplate and the backplate. The faceplate is configured to receive a first gas mixture supplied to the center zone via a center inlet, receive a second gas mixture supplied to the middle zone via a middle inlet, blend the first gas mixture and the second gas mixture within the first plenum, and receive a third gas mixture supplied to the edge zone via an edge inlet.

Feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Provided herein are methods of filling features with metal including inhibition of metal nucleation. Also provided are methods of enhancing inhibition and methods of reducing or eliminating inhibition of metal nucleation.

Methods and apparatuses for void-free tungsten fill in three-dimensional semiconductor features

METHODS AND APPARATUSES FOR VOID-FREE TUNGSTEN FILL IN THREE-DIMENSIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR Disclosed herein are methods of filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten-containing material. The 3-D structure may include sidewalls, a plurality of openings in the sidewalls leading to a plurality of features having a plurality of interior regions. The methods may include depositing a first layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure such that the first layer partially fills a plurality of interior regions of the 3-D structure, etching vertically and horizontally after depositing the first layer, and depositing a second layer of the tungsten-containing material within the 3-D structure after the vertical and horizontal etching such that the second layer fills at least a portion of the interior regions left unfilled by the first layer. Also disclosed herein are apparatuses for filling a 3-D structure of a semiconductor substrate with a tungsten- containing material having a controller with instructions for etching vertically and horizontally. FIG. 4C 52

Tungsten feature fill with nucleation inhibition

Described herein are methods of filling features with tungsten, and related systems and apparatus, involving inhibition of tungsten nucleation. In some embodiments, the methods involve selective inhibition along a feature profile. Methods of selectively inhibiting tungsten nucleation can include exposing the feature to ammonia vapor in a non-plasma process. Process parameters including exposure time, substrate temperature, and chamber pressure can be used to tune the inhibition profile. Also provided are methods of filling multiple adjacent lines with reduced or no line bending. The methods involve selectively inhibiting the tungsten nucleation to reduce sidewall growth during feature fill.

用於控制各種材料的蝕刻選擇性的系統及方法

一種填充基板凹陷區域的方法，包括：(a)利用化學氣相沉積(CVD)與原子層沉積(ALD)其中至少一種方法，將一含鎢薄膜部分填充於基板上至少一該凹陷區域；(b)在一預定溫度下，使用一包含有活化氟物種的蝕刻劑選擇性地蝕刻該含鎢薄膜，使該含鎢薄膜的蝕刻移除多於該凹陷區域內的一下層，但不移除該凹陷區域底部所有該含鎢薄膜；以及(c)利用化學氣相沉積與原子層沉積其中至少一種方法填充該凹陷區域。

Ex situ coating of chamber components for semiconductor processing

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

Edge exclusion control

Provided herein are methods and apparatuses for controlling uniformity of processing at an edge region of a semiconductor wafer. In some embodiments, the methods include exposing an edge region to treatment gases such as etch gases and/or inhibition gases. Also provided herein are exclusion ring assemblies including multiple rings that may be implemented to provide control of the processing environment at the edge of the wafer.

Ex situ coating of chamber components for semiconductor processing

Forming a protective coating ex situ in an atomic layer deposition process to coat one or more chamber components subsequently installed in a reaction chamber provides a number of benefits over more conventional coating methods such as in situ deposition of an undercoat. In certain cases the protective coating may have a particular composition such as aluminum oxide, aluminum fluoride, aluminum nitride, yttrium oxide, and/or yttrium fluoride. The protective coating may help reduce contamination on wafers processed using the coated chamber component. Further, the protective coating may act to stabilize the processing conditions within the reaction chamber, thereby achieving very stable/uniform processing results over the course of processing many batches of wafers, and minimizing radical loss. Also described are a number of techniques that may be used to restore the protective coating after the coated chamber component is used to process semiconductor wafers.

３次元半導体フィーチャ内での空隙を含まないタングステン充填のための方法および装置

【課題】垂直および水平にエッチングするための命令を備える制御装置を有する半導体基板の３Ｄ構造を、タングステン含有材料で充填する方法を提供する。 【解決手段】３Ｄ構造は、側壁１０７を含むことがあり、側壁にある複数の開口１０５が、複数の内部領域１１０を有する複数のフィーチャに通じている。３Ｄ構造内部にタングステン含有材料の第１の層を堆積するステップであって、それにより、第１の層が、３Ｄ構造の複数の内部領域を部分的に充填するステップと、第１の層を堆積した後に垂直および水平にエッチングするステップと、垂直および水平エッチング後に３Ｄ構造内部にタングステン含有材料の第２の層を堆積するステップであって、それにより、第２の層が、第１の層によって充填されていない内部領域の少なくとも一部を充填するステップとを含む。 【選択図】図１Ｄ

Feature fill using inhibition

Provided herein are methods of filling features with metal including inhibition of metal nucleation

Systems and methods for controlling etch selectivity of various materials

A method for filling a recessed feature of a substrate includes a) at least partially filling a recessed feature of a substrate with tungsten-containing film using at least one of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and atomic layer deposition (ALD); b) at a predetermined temperature, using an etchant including activated fluorine species to selectively etch the tungsten-containing film more than an underlying material of the recessed feature without removing all of the tungsten-containing film at a bottom of the recessed feature; and c) filling the recessed feature using at least one of CVD and ALD.

Void free low stress fill

Provided herein are methods of depositing low stress and void free metal films in deep features and related apparatus. Embodiments of the methods include treating the sidewalls of the holes to inhibit metal deposition while leaving the feature bottom untreated. In subsequent deposition operations, metal precursor molecules diffuse to the feature bottom for deposition. The process is repeated with subsequent inhibition operations treating the remaining exposed sidewalls. By repeating inhibition and deposition operations, high quality void free fill can be achieved. This allows high temperature, low stress deposition to be performed.

エッジエクスクルージョン制御

【課題】半導体ウエハのエッジ領域における処理の均一性を制御するための装置および方法を提供する。【解決手段】公称径Ｄの半導体ウエハの処理において用いるように構成された排除リングアセンブリ９００であって、Ｄより小さい内径、および外径を有する上部環状リングと、Ｄより小さい内径、および外径を有する下部環状リングと、を備え、前記上部環状リングは、前記上部環状リングと前記下部環状リングとの間に環状ガス流路を規定するように前記下部環状リングの上に配置される、排除リングアセンブリ９００を備える、装置とする。【選択図】図９Ａ

Backside reactive inhibition gas

Provided herein are methods and apparatuses for controlling uniformity of processing at an edge region of a semiconductor wafer. In some embodiments, the methods include providing a backside inhibition gas as part of a deposition-inhibition-deposition (DID) sequence.

Tungsten feature fill with inhibition control

Atomic layer etching of tungsten for enhanced tungsten deposition fill

Process gas ramp during semiconductor processing

Provided herein are systems and methods for semiconductor processing including feature fill processes. The methods comprise providing a substrate having a feature to be filled with a metal in a chamber, and flowing a metal precursor and a reducing agent into the chamber to deposit metal in the feature in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) operation, wherein the CVD operation comprises a ramp down stage in which the flow rate of the metal precursor into the chamber is ramped down from a first flow rate to a second flow rate. or a ramp up stage in which the flow rate of the metal precursor into the chamber is ramped up from the first flow rate to the second flow rate.