JP4027199B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for etching a surface of a substrate such as a silicon wafer or forming a thin film.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The prior art will be described with reference to FIG.
[0003]
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an apparatus that collectively performs remote plasma processing on a plurality of substrates to be processed. The reaction chamber (reaction tube) 1 is hermetically configured by a reaction chamber wall (reaction tube wall) 3 and a seal flange 12, and a buffer chamber 2 integrated with the reaction chamber wall 3 is provided on the side of the reaction chamber 1. It is. The walls constituting the reaction chamber wall 3 and the buffer chamber 2 are made of a dielectric such as quartz.
[0004]
An electrode 4 for generating plasma 8 is provided in the buffer chamber 2, and the gas introduced from the gas inlet 11 is converted into plasma in the buffer chamber 2, and the substrate to be processed is introduced from the small hole 17 in the buffer chamber 2. The structure is such that active particles are blown out toward 9.
[0005]
The electrode 4 that generates the plasma 8 is connected to the matching unit 15 via the insulating block 13 so that the high-frequency power output from the high-frequency power source 14 can be supplied via the matching unit 15.
[0006]
The active species blown out from the small holes 17 in the buffer chamber 2 reach the surface of the substrate 9 to be processed stacked in multiple stages and are processed.
[0007]
The reaction chamber 1 is heated by supplying power from a power source 19 to a heater 18 provided outside the reaction chamber wall 3.
[0008]
The temperature around the reaction chamber wall 3 measured by the thermocouple 5 is converted into an electric signal by the thermocouple 5 and input to the thyristor control unit (thyristor adjustment unit) 7, and the temperature around the reaction chamber wall 3 is a predetermined value. Thus, the thyristor controller 7 controls the drive of the thyristor 6 to control the power supplied to the heater 18 in a closed loop manner.
[0009]
An exhaust port 16 for exhausting the inside of the reaction chamber 1 is provided below the reaction chamber wall 3. The open end of the reaction chamber 1 is held airtight by a seal flange 12.
[0010]
An electric field shielding shield member 10 is provided between the reaction chamber 1 and the heater 18 so that the high frequency power generated by the electrode 4 is not superimposed on the heater 18 while the plasma 8 is generated in the buffer chamber 2.
[0011]
Next, the operation of the processing apparatus will be described.
[0012]
An elevator mechanism (not shown) lowers the seal flange 12 on which a boat (not shown) for loading the substrate 9 to be processed is lowered and places the substrate 9 on the boat, and then raises the seal flange 12 to raise the reaction chamber 1. Insert inside.
[0013]
Electric power supplied from the power source 19 is applied to the heater 18 to heat the reaction chamber wall 3 and the boat (not shown), the substrate 9 to be processed, and the like to a predetermined temperature. At the same time, the gas inside the reaction chamber (reaction tube) 1 is exhausted from the exhaust port 16 by a pump (not shown).
[0014]
The temperature inside the reaction chamber 1 is measured and detected by the thermocouple 5 provided between the shield member 10 and the heater 18, and the thyristor 6 is controlled by the thyristor controller 7 so as to reach a predetermined temperature according to the result. The electric power supplied to the heater 18 is adjusted.
[0015]
When the substrate 9 to be processed reaches a predetermined temperature, a reaction gas is introduced into the reaction chamber 1 from the gas inlet 11 and the pressure in the reaction chamber 1 is maintained at a constant value by a pressure adjusting mechanism (not shown).
[0016]
The pressure inside the reaction chamber 1 is maintained at a predetermined value by a pressure adjusting mechanism (not shown).
[0017]
When the pressure inside the reaction chamber 1 reaches a predetermined pressure, high-frequency power generated by the high-frequency power source 14 is supplied to the electrode 4 through the matching unit 15, and plasma 8 is generated inside the buffer chamber 2.
[0018]
The gas introduced from the gas inlet 11 is excited by the plasma 8, and active species are blown out from the small holes 17 and supplied to the substrate 9 to be processed.
[0019]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, a problem in the above substrate processing apparatus is that the temperature stabilization time required for raising the temperature of the substrate 9 inserted in the reaction chamber 1 to a predetermined temperature and stabilizing it is relatively long.
[0020]
That is, since there is the shield member 10 between the reaction chamber 1 and the heater 18, when the substrate to be processed 9 inserted into the reaction chamber 1 is heated and heated at room temperature, the shield member 10 transmits heat from the heater 18. Resistors are required, and extra time is required to stabilize the temperature of the substrate 9 to be processed.
[0021]
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the above problems, improve the heat transfer efficiency from the heater by removing the shield member, and shorten the temperature stabilization time after inserting the substrate to be processed. It is in.
[0022]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows.
[0023]
In the present invention, a substrate to be processed placed in a reaction chamber is heated by a heating means disposed outside the reaction chamber, while high-frequency power is supplied to an electrode provided in the reaction chamber to generate plasma, which is introduced by the plasma. In the substrate processing apparatus for supplying the active species obtained by exciting the gas to the substrate to be processed, the substrate heating apparatus is configured such that no shield member is provided between the reaction chamber and the heating means, and power is supplied to the heating means. A substrate processing apparatus comprising a high-frequency noise filter in a control system (claim 1).
[0024]
When the shield member is not disposed between the reaction chamber and the heating means, that is, when the shield member that has conventionally existed is removed, the shield member is not disposed between the reaction chamber and the heating means. Since the heat from the heater is directly transferred to the reaction chamber (reaction tube), the heat transfer efficiency is improved, and the temperature stabilization time after inserting the substrate to be processed can be shortened.
[0025]
However, since plasma is generated by supplying high-frequency power to the electrodes in the buffer chamber in the reaction chamber, when the shield member is removed, the high-frequency power component is superimposed on the heater power system, and the heater power control system That is, high frequency noise is superimposed on the substrate heating control system that supplies power to the heating means. Therefore, a high-frequency noise filter is provided in the substrate heating control system that supplies power to the heating means to prevent malfunction due to high-frequency noise.
[0026]
When the conventional shield member is removed as described above, the high-frequency power component from the plasma source goes out of the substrate processing apparatus as it is and becomes a noise source for various devices. Therefore, in the substrate processing apparatus having the above configuration, it is preferable that a metal cover is further provided so as to cover the outer periphery of the heating unit, and this cover is connected to the ground to prevent electromagnetic radiation to the outside. (Claim 2).
[0027]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus of the present invention used in one step of a semiconductor device manufacturing process will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0028]
FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a reaction chamber portion of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention as seen from the side.
[0029]
The reaction chamber 1 is hermetically configured with a reaction chamber wall 3 and a seal flange 12, and a buffer chamber 2 integrated with the reaction chamber wall 3 is provided at a side portion in the reaction chamber 1. The walls constituting the reaction chamber wall 3 and the buffer chamber are made of a dielectric such as quartz.
[0030]
An electrode 4 for generating plasma 8 is provided in the buffer chamber 2, and the gas introduced from the gas inlet 11 is converted into plasma in the buffer chamber 2, and the substrate to be processed is passed through the small hole 17 in the buffer chamber 2. It has a structure that blows out active particles toward the surface.
[0031]
The electrode 4 for forming the plasma 8 is drawn through the insulating block 13 and connected to the high frequency power source 14 via the matching unit 15, whereby the high frequency power output from the high frequency power source 14 is matched with the matching unit 15. It can be supplied to the electrode 4 via.
[0032]
The active species blown out from the small holes 17 in the buffer chamber 2 reach the surface of the substrate 9 to be processed and are processed.
[0033]
The reaction chamber 1 is heated by a heater 18 provided outside the reaction chamber wall 3. The heater 18 is arranged in an inverted U shape in cross section so as to cover the upper surface and the peripheral surface of the reaction chamber wall 3 in a shape that is folded back at one end side, and its terminal is connected via the thyristor 6. Connected to a power source 19. The thyristor 6 is provided with a thyristor control section 7 for phase control of the conduction angle, and is configured to receive an electric signal (detected temperature signal) from the thermocouple 5 and perform a predetermined temperature control. ing. The thyristor 6, the thyristor control unit 7, and the thermocouple 5 constitute a power adjustment device of a substrate heating control system that supplies power to the heater 18.
[0034]
However, unlike the conventional case of FIG. 2, the shield member 10 for electric field shielding does not exist between the heater 18 and the reaction chamber 1. For this reason, the reaction chamber 1 is heated and controlled by the heater 18 as efficiently as the electric field shielding member 10 does not exist. That is, the reaction chamber 1 is directly heated by the heater 18, and the temperature of the reaction chamber 1 is measured by the thermocouple 5 provided between the reaction chamber 1 and the heater 18, and this electric signal (temperature detection signal). Is input to the thyristor controller 7. Therefore, the thyristor control unit 7 controls the electric power supplied to the heater 18 by adjusting the conduction angle of the thyristor 6 so as to achieve a required set temperature based on this temperature detection signal.
[0035]
However, by omitting the shielding member 10 for electric field shielding that becomes a heating load of the heater 18, the heating control by the heater 18 becomes efficient, but high-frequency noise from the plasma generation system is superimposed on the substrate heating control system of the heater 18. To do. That is, while the plasma 8 is generated in the buffer chamber 2, a part of the high-frequency power generated by the electrode 4 is superimposed on the heater 18, and the high-frequency power propagates to the thyristor 6 and the thyristor control unit 7. Affects accuracy.
[0036]
Therefore, in order to prevent malfunction due to the high frequency noise, a high frequency noise filter is provided in each of the power line and the signal line to remove high frequency components. In this embodiment, a power line noise filter 20 is inserted in the main power supply system from the thyristor 6 to the heater 18, and a signal line noise filter 21 is inserted in the signal system from the thermocouple 5 to the thyristor control unit 7. ing.
[0037]
Further, by omitting the shielding member 10 for electric field shielding, the high-frequency power component is electromagnetically radiated to the outside of the heater 18, and there is a possibility of adversely affecting the surroundings. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown by a dotted line in FIG. 1, a metal cover 22 is provided outside the heater 18 to cover the outer periphery of the heater 18 serving as a heating means, and the cover 22 is connected to the ground. is doing. The cover 22 only covers the outer side (outer peripheral surface) of the inverted U-shaped heater 18 and does not cover the inner side (inner peripheral surface).
[0038]
Next, the operation of the above substrate processing apparatus will be described.
[0039]
An elevator mechanism (not shown) lowers the seal flange 12 on which a boat (not shown) for loading the substrate to be processed is placed, and after the substrate 9 is placed on the boat, the seal flange 12 is raised to raise the inside of the reaction chamber 1. Insert into. The seal flange 12 is provided with an exhaust port 16 for exhausting the inside of the reaction chamber.
[0040]
The heater 18 is turned on to heat the reaction chamber wall 3, the boat (not shown), the substrate 9 to be processed, etc. to a predetermined temperature. At the same time, the inside of the reaction chamber 1 is exhausted from the exhaust port 16 by a pump (not shown).
[0041]
The temperature inside the reaction chamber 1 is measured by the thermocouple 5, and upon receiving the detected temperature detection signal, the thyristor controller 7 controls the phase of the conduction angle of the thyristor 6 so as to reach a predetermined temperature, and the heater 18. Adjust the power supplied to the.
[0042]
When the substrate 9 to be processed reaches a predetermined temperature, a reaction gas is introduced into the reaction chamber 1 from the gas inlet 11 and the pressure in the reaction chamber 1 is maintained at a predetermined value by a pressure adjusting mechanism (not shown).
[0043]
The pressure inside the reaction chamber 1 maintains the temperature inside the pressure adjusting mechanism (not shown) at a predetermined value.
[0044]
When the pressure inside the reaction chamber 1 reaches a predetermined pressure, the high frequency power generated by the high frequency power supply 14 is supplied to the electrode 4 through the matching unit 15 to generate plasma 8 in the buffer chamber.
[0045]
The gas introduced from the gas inlet 11 is excited by the plasma 8, and active species are blown out from the small holes 17 and supplied to the substrate 9 to be processed.
[0046]
In this processing apparatus, since there is no shield member between the reaction chamber (reaction tube) 1 and the heater 18, the temperature in the reaction chamber 1 lowered after the substrate 9 to be processed at room temperature is inserted into the reaction chamber 1. The temperature stabilization time until the temperature is raised to a predetermined temperature and stabilized is greatly reduced.
[0047]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, since a shield member is not required between the reaction chamber (reaction tube) and the heating means (heater), the heat from the heater is efficiently transferred to the reaction chamber. Therefore, the temperature stabilization time required for raising the temperature of the furnace, which has been lowered by the insertion of the substrate to be processed, to a predetermined temperature and stabilizing the furnace can be greatly shortened. Therefore, the throughput for processing the substrate to be processed is improved by reducing the temperature stabilization time. On the other hand, since the high-frequency noise filter is inserted into the substrate heating control system to remove the high-frequency noise, it is possible to eliminate adverse effects due to the absence of the shield member between the reaction chamber and the heating means.
[0048]
Moreover, electromagnetic radiation to the outside can also be prevented by providing a metal cover so as to cover the outer periphery of the heating means and ground.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a substrate processing apparatus of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of a conventional substrate processing apparatus.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 reaction chamber (reaction tube)
2 Buffer chamber 3 Reaction chamber wall (reaction tube wall)
4 Electrode 5 Thermocouple 6 Thyristor 7 Thyristor Control Unit 8 Plasma 9 Processed Substrate 10 Shielding Member 14 for Electric Field Shielding High Frequency Power Supply 15 Matching Unit 18 Heater 19 Power Supply 20 Power Line Noise Filter 21 Signal Line Noise Filter 22 Cover

Claims (1)

A reaction tube made of a dielectric made of quartz is provided, and the substrate to be processed placed in the reaction tube is heated by heating means disposed outside the reaction tube, while high-frequency power is supplied to the electrode provided in the reaction tube A substrate processing apparatus that generates plasma and supplies activated species obtained by exciting an introduced gas with the plasma to a substrate to be processed,
A high-frequency noise filter is interposed in the substrate heating control system for supplying power to the heating means, a metal cover is further provided to cover the outer periphery of the heating means, and the cover is connected to ground. Substrate processing equipment.

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