| Patent Number |
Title Of Patent |
Date Issued |
| 6607425 |
Pressurized membrane platen design for improving performance in CMP applications |
August 19, 2003 |
| An invention is disclosed for improved performance in a CMP process using a pressurized membrane as a replacement for a platen air bearing. In one embodiment, a platen for improving performance in CMP applications is disclosed. The platen includes a membrane disposed above the platen, an |
| 6607072 |
Wheel and conveyor system for transporting semiconductor wafers |
August 19, 2003 |
| A wheel for a conveyor system for transporting semiconductor wafers includes a first section for supporting a semiconductor wafer at a first level and a second section for supporting the wafer at a second level, with the first level being higher than the second level. In one embodime |
| 6602381 |
Plasma confinement by use of preferred RF return path |
August 5, 2003 |
| A confinement assembly for confining a discharge within an interaction space of a plasma processing apparatus comprising a stack of rings and at least one electrically conductive member. The rings are spaced apart from each other to form slots therebetween and are positioned to surround |
| 6601824 |
Single shaft, dual cradle vacuum slot valve |
August 5, 2003 |
| A single slot valve shaft is in a vacuum body between adjacent vacuum chambers, such as a process module and a transport module. Separate valves are provided on the single shaft actuator for each of two valve body slots, each body slot being closed or opened according to the position of |
| 6599765 |
Apparatus and method for providing a signal port in a polishing pad for optical endpoint detecti |
July 29, 2003 |
| A method and apparatus for providing a substantially constant environment in the cavity surrounding the optical pathway during the chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) operation is provided. In one embodiment, a system for planarizing the surface of a substrate is provided. The system |
| 6594847 |
Single wafer residue, thin film removal and clean |
July 22, 2003 |
| A system is provided for use in semiconductor wafer cleaning operations. The cleaning system has a top cap and a bottom cap. The top cap seals on a top surface contact ring of a wafer, and the bottom cap seals on a bottom surface contact ring of the wafer. The wafer is held between the t |
| 6593282 |
Cleaning solutions for semiconductor substrates after polishing of copper film |
July 15, 2003 |
| A cleaning solution, method, and apparatus for cleaning semiconductor substrates after chemical mechanical polishing of copper films is described. The present invention includes a cleaning solution which combines deionized water, an organic compound, and an ammonium compound in an ac |
| 6592710 |
Apparatus for controlling the voltage applied to an electrostatic shield used in a plasma genera |
July 15, 2003 |
| An apparatus for controlling the voltage applied to a shield interposed between an induction coil powered by a power supply via a matching network, and the plasma it generates, comprises a shield, a first feedback circuit, and a second feedback circuit. The power supply powers the sh |
| 6592437 |
Active gimbal ring with internal gel and methods for making same |
July 15, 2003 |
| A chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) system having a polishing pad, a carrier plate and a wafer plate is provided with an active gimbal. The active gimbal is defined by a circular hollow ring having a wall thickness and a diameter. The circular hollow ring is configured by an elasto |
| 6588043 |
Wafer cascade scrubber |
July 8, 2003 |
| A cascaded wafer scrubbing system and method are provided. The cascaded wafer scrubbing system includes an array of rows of brush pairs. Each row includes a plurality of counter-rotating brush pairs that are arranged horizontally and longitudinally, and configured to receive and process |
| 6585579 |
Chemical mechanical planarization or polishing pad with sections having varied groove patterns |
July 1, 2003 |
| A CMP polishing pad improves overall material removal rate uniformity by combining multiple polishing pad sections in a serially linked manner, where the polishing pad sections are characterized by at least two different material removal rate profiles. The polishing pad is designed by |
| 6585572 |
Subaperture chemical mechanical polishing system |
July 1, 2003 |
| A chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) system is provided. A carrier has a top surface and a bottom region. The top surface of the carrier is designed to hold and rotate a wafer having a one or more formed layers to be prepared. A preparation head is also included and is designed to be |
| 6583572 |
Inductive plasma processor including current sensor for plasma excitation coil |
June 24, 2003 |
| An inductive plasma processor includes an RF plasma excitation coil having plural windings, each having a first end connected in parallel to be driven by a single RF source via a single matching network. Second ends of the windings are connected to ground by termination capacitors, in tu |
| 6583064 |
Low contamination high density plasma etch chambers and methods for making the same |
June 24, 2003 |
| A plasma processing chamber having a chamber liner and a liner support, the liner support including a flexible wall configured to surround an external surface of the chamber liner, the flexible wall being spaced apart from the wall of the chamber liner. The apparatus can include a heater |
| 6582619 |
Methods and apparatuses for trench depth detection and control |
June 24, 2003 |
| An inventive method for optically detecting a trench depth in a wafer is disclosed. The method includes detecting a first maxima in the intensity of a multi-wavelength light source, a portion of the light being reflected from the top trench surface of a wafer. A second maxima is then det |
| 6579407 |
Method and apparatus for aligning and setting the axis of rotation of spindles of a multi-body s |
June 17, 2003 |
| A method and apparatus is disclosed for polishing a semiconductor wafer. A polishing pad including a first surface and a semiconductor wafer including a second surface are aligned to each other. To allow alignment of an axis of rotation of the surfaces, at least one of the first and |
| 6579157 |
Polishing pad ironing system and method for implementing the same |
June 17, 2003 |
| A method for smoothing a surface of a polishing pad previously used in planarizing a surface of a substrate in a chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) system is provided. The method starts by conditioning the surface of the polishing pad so as to create a post-conditioned surface h |
| 6578853 |
Chuck assembly for use in a spin, rinse, and dry module and methods for making and implementing |
June 17, 2003 |
| A chuck assembly for use in a substrate spin, rinse, and dry (SRD) module is provided. The chuck assembly includes a wedge, a chuck body, and a plurality of grippers. The wedge has a sidewall and is designed to move from a lower position to an upper position and from the upper position t |
| 6578423 |
Acoustic detection of dechucking and apparatus therefor |
June 17, 2003 |
| In a vacuum processing chamber, a monitoring arrangement for detecting when a substrate is sufficiently dechucked by an electrostatic clamp to allow safe movement thereof by a transfer mechanism such as a pin lifter. The monitoring arrangement includes an acoustic generator which outputs |
| 6577915 |
Applications of a semi-empirical, physically based, profile simulator |
June 10, 2003 |
| A method and an apparatus for a semi-empirical process simulation using a calibrated profile simulator to create a reactor model which can predict neutral and ion flux distributions on a substrate as a function of the reactor settings include providing a set of conditions characterized b |
| 6567258 |
High temperature electrostatic chuck |
May 20, 2003 |
| A hot electrostatic chuck having an expansion joint between a chuck body and a heat transfer body. The expansion joint provides a hermetic seal, accommodates differential thermal stresses between the chuck body and the heat transfer body, and/or controls the amount of heat conducted from |
| 6564818 |
Methods of implementing a single shaft, dual cradle vacuum slot valve |
May 20, 2003 |
| A single slot valve shaft is in a vacuum body between adjacent vacuum chambers, such as a process module and a transport module. Separate valves are provided on the single shaft actuator for each of two valve body slots, each body slot being closed or opened according to the position of |
| 6563076 |
Voltage control sensor and control interface for radio frequency power regulation in a plasma re |
May 13, 2003 |
| A plasma reactor system with controlled DC bias for manufacturing semiconductor wafers and the like. The reactor system includes a plasma chamber, a plasma generating coil and a chuck including a chuck electrode. The chuck supports a workpiece within the chamber. The plasma reactor s |
| 6562190 |
System, apparatus, and method for processing wafer using single frequency RF power in plasma pro |
May 13, 2003 |
| The present invention provides a system, apparatus, and method for processing a wafer using a single frequency RF power in a plasma processing chamber. The plasma processing system includes a modulated RF power generator, a plasma processing chamber, and a match network. The modulate |
| 6562187 |
Methods and apparatus for determining an etch endpoint in a plasma processing system |
May 13, 2003 |
| Methods and apparatus for ascertaining the end of an etch process while etching through a target layer on a substrate in a plasma processing system which employs an electrostatic chuck. The end of the etch process is ascertained by monitoring the electric potential of the substrate to |
| 6561889 |
Methods for making reinforced wafer polishing pads and apparatuses implementing the same |
May 13, 2003 |
| As one of many embodiments of the present invention, a seamless polishing apparatus for utilization in chemical mechanical polishing is provided. The seamless polishing apparatus includes a polishing pad where the polishing pad is shaped like a belt and has no seams. The seamless pol |
| 6561870 |
Adjustable force applying air platen and spindle system, and methods for using the same |
May 13, 2003 |
| An adjustable platen is provided. The adjustable platen includes a platen body having a top region and a bottom region. The platen body is oriented under a linear polishing pad of a CMP system. An air bearing is integrated with the platen body at the top region, and the air bearing is co |
| 6559049 |
All dual damascene oxide etch process steps in one confined plasma chamber |
May 6, 2003 |
| The present invention reveals a semiconductor dual damascene etching process, which uses a confined plasma etching chamber to integrate all dual damascene steps such as via hole etching, photoresist stripping and barrier layer removal which originally performed in various reactors as a |
| 6558964 |
Method and apparatus for monitoring a semiconductor wafer during a spin drying operation |
May 6, 2003 |
| In one method for monitoring a semiconductor wafer during a spin drying operation, a capacitance value between a capacitance sensor and the wafer is measured as the wafer is being spun to dry a surface thereof. When it is determined that the measured capacitance value has reached a s |
| 6558474 |
Method for rinsing the backside of a semiconductor wafer |
May 6, 2003 |
| A method for rinsing the backside of a semiconductor wafer includes the operations of forming a wafer transport truck into a nozzle, and spraying a liquid from the nozzle onto the backside of the wafer. The nozzle may be disposed in a brush station, e.g., before an exit from a first brus |
| 6557202 |
Wafer scrubbing brush core having an internal motor and method of making the same |
May 6, 2003 |
| A brush core and method of making a brush core are provided. The brush core is configured to be implemented in substrate preparation systems. The brush core is connected between a first end and a second end of a non-rotating shaft. A motor is contained within the brush core for rotat |
| 6554952 |
Method and apparatus for etching a gold metal layer using a titanium hardmask |
April 29, 2003 |
| Disclosed is an inventive method for etching a gold metallization in a plasma processing chamber. The method includes introducing a substrate having a gold layer and an overlying titanium hardmask layer into the plasma processing chamber. The hardmask is first etched using conventional |
| 6554688 |
Method and apparatus for conditioning a polishing pad with sonic energy |
April 29, 2003 |
| A method and apparatus for conditioning a polishing pad is described, wherein the polishing pad has a polishing surface for polishing the semiconductor wafer, and a back surface opposed to the polishing surface. The method includes positioning a sonic energy generator adjacent to the |
| 6553853 |
Plasma probe and method for making same |
April 29, 2003 |
| A probe for measuring properties of plasma includes a shell, a contact extending through the shell and having a first connecting portion positioned in the shell, and a connector guide attached to a second connecting portion, the second connecting portion being detachably coupled to t |
| 6552812 |
Method and system for measuring threshold length |
April 22, 2003 |
| A method and system for measuring threshold length of a planarization process, and for comparing the planarization abilities of such processes. The method and system measure a thickness profile of a film on a blanket wafer, and from the thickness profile, a threshold length is calculated |
| 6550091 |
Double-sided wafer edge scrubbing apparatus and method for using the same |
April 22, 2003 |
| A substrate cleaning system incorporating an edge scrubbing roller is disclosed. The system includes a cleaning station having a first brush and a second brush. The second brush is oriented relative to the first brush so as to receive a flat circular substrate therebetween. The first bru |
| 6544887 |
Polycide etch process |
April 8, 2003 |
| A method for etching contact openings into a polycide layer including a metal silicide layer and a polysilicon layer comprises providing a substrate that includes a polycide layer, forming a patterned photoresist mask, and etching with a series of plasmas. The etches include a silicide |
| 6543084 |
Wafer scrubbing brush core |
April 8, 2003 |
| A brush core and the method for making a brush core for use in substrate scrubbing are provided. The substrate can be any substrate that may need to undergo a scrubbing operation to complete a cleaning operation, etching operation, or other preparation. For instance, the substrate can be |
| 6540587 |
Infrared end-point detection system |
April 1, 2003 |
| A chemical mechanical planarization system and methods for implementing infrared detection of process state and substrate surface composition are provided. In one example, the chemical mechanical planarization system includes a substrate chuck to hold and rotate a substrate, a preparatio |
| 6537429 |
Diamond coatings on reactor wall and method of manufacturing thereof |
March 25, 2003 |
| A corrosion resistant component of semiconductor processing equipment such as a plasma chamber includes a diamond containing surface and process for manufacture thereof. |
| 6537381 |
Method for cleaning and treating a semiconductor wafer after chemical mechanical polishing |
March 25, 2003 |
| A method is provided for cleaning a surface of a semiconductor wafer after a CMP operation. In one example, an improved cleaning chemical (ICC) is applied to the surface of the wafer. The ICC is configured to transform a copper film on the surface of the wafer into a water soluble form. |
| 6536777 |
Sealing techniques suitable for different geometries and constrained spaces |
March 25, 2003 |
| The invention relates to a fluid connector for sealing an interface between first and second fluid passages in a plasma processing apparatus. The fluid connector includes a first end member having a first geometry. The first geometry is arranged to substantially seal a first mating regio |
| 6533910 |
Carbonitride coated component of semiconductor processing equipment and method of manufacturing |
March 18, 2003 |
| A corrosion resistant component of semiconductor processing equipment such as a plasma chamber includes a carbonitride containing surface and process for manufacture thereof. |
| 6533646 |
Polishing head with removable subcarrier |
March 18, 2003 |
| A polishing head for performing chemical-mechanical polishing on a linear polisher has a dual stage wafer carrier assembly that incorporates a removable subcarrier. When in use, a main pressure chamber exerts a downforce on the subcarrier housing, while a separate secondary pressure |
| 6531029 |
Vacuum plasma processor apparatus and method |
March 11, 2003 |
| 200 mm and 300 mm wafers are processed in vacuum plasma processing chambers that are the same or have the same geometry. Substantially planar excitation coils having different geometries for the wafers of different sizes excite ionizable gas in the chamber to a plasma by supplying el |
| 6528949 |
Apparatus for elimination of plasma lighting inside a gas line in a strong RF field |
March 4, 2003 |
| The present invention is directed to a plasma processor, and more specifically, to an apparatus to reduce or eliminate plasma lighting inside a gas line in a strong RF field in the plasma processor. More particularly, the present invention uses shielding and gas flow restricting to r |
| 6528427 |
Methods for reducing contamination of semiconductor substrates |
March 4, 2003 |
| Methods for reducing contamination of semiconductor substrates after processing are provided. The methods include heating the processed substrate to remove adsorbed chemical species from the substrate surface by thermal desorption. Thermal desorption can be performed either in-situ o |
| 6527912 |
Stacked RF excitation coil for inductive plasma processor |
March 4, 2003 |
| A radio frequency excitation coil of an inductive plasma processor includes a planar turn connected in series with a segment of the coil stacked above a portion of the planar turn. The stacked segment is placed around a region having weak radio frequency coupling to plasma due to azimuth |
| 6527911 |
Configurable plasma volume etch chamber |
March 4, 2003 |
| A plasma processing chamber is provided. The plasma processing chamber includes a bottom electrode configured to support a substrate and a top electrode located over the bottom electrode. The plasma processing chamber further includes a plasma confinement assembly designed to transition |
| 6527870 |
Wafer cleaning module and method for cleaning the surface of a substrate |
March 4, 2003 |
| In a method for cleaning a surface of a substrate an amount of a solution is applied on a surface of the substrate. After the solution is applied on the surface, crystallization of the solution is initiated to form a liquid-crystal mixture. Once the liquid-crystal mixture is formed, |
