US 12,421,608 B2
RPCVD apparatus and methods for forming a film
Joshua David Brown, Silverwater (AU); Satyanarayan Barik, Silverwater (AU); Stephen Richard O'Farrell, Silverwater (AU); and Ian Mann, Silverwater (AU)
Assigned to Gallium Enterprises Pty Ltd, Silverwater (AU)
Appl. No. 17/640,017
Filed by Gallium Enterprises Pty Ltd, Silverwater (AU)
PCT Filed Sep. 4, 2020, PCT No. PCT/AU2020/050931
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 3, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/042170, PCT Pub. Date Mar. 11, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 2019903264 (AU), filed on Sep. 4, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0316063 A1, Oct. 6, 2022
Int. Cl. C23C 16/50 (2006.01); C23C 16/30 (2006.01); C23C 16/44 (2006.01); C23C 16/452 (2006.01); C23C 16/455 (2006.01); C23C 16/458 (2006.01); C23C 16/52 (2006.01); H01J 37/32 (2006.01)
CPC C23C 16/50 (2013.01) [C23C 16/303 (2013.01); C23C 16/4408 (2013.01); C23C 16/452 (2013.01); C23C 16/45565 (2013.01); C23C 16/4584 (2013.01); C23C 16/52 (2013.01); H01J 37/32357 (2013.01); H01J 37/3244 (2013.01); H01J 37/32449 (2013.01); H01J 37/32715 (2013.01); H01J 2237/20214 (2013.01); H01J 2237/3321 (2013.01)] 24 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An RPCVD apparatus for forming a film comprising:
one or more plasma generators to generate a plasma from a source comprising nitrogen;
a reaction chamber in which to react a metal organic reagent with a reactive nitrogen species derived from the nitrogen plasma so as to deposit a film on one or more substrates;
a showerhead having:
at least one gas chamber;
one or more plasma inlets to deliver plasma from the one or more plasma generators into the reaction chamber; and
a plurality of gas inlets to deliver gas from the at least one gas chamber into the reaction chamber;
a susceptor for supporting one or more substrates in the reaction chamber at a surface of the susceptor between a central region and an outer region of the susceptor, the susceptor being configured to rotate relative to the showerhead around an axis of rotation;
wherein at least one of the one or more plasma inlets is located at a position that is between a central region and an outer region of the showerhead and off-centre from the axis of rotation;
wherein the gas inlets are distributed in one or more augmented spiral patterns at a surface of the showerhead between the central region and the outer region of the showerhead;
wherein the gas inlets each direct gas having a respective spatial distribution of gas at the surface of the susceptor;
wherein the one or more plasma generators generate plasma in line of sight of the susceptor and wherein the one or more plasma inlets each have an opening with an area that is at least 500× larger than an area of the openings of the each of the gas inlets; and
wherein the one or more augmented spiral patterns of gas inlets includes clustering of gas inlets where the average distance between gas inlets and their respective closest adjacent gas inlet is lower than the average distance between closest adjacent gas inlets across the entire showerhead, and wherein the clustering of gas inlets is more prevalent in areas of the surface of the showerhead where gas inlets are at the same radial distances from the centre of the showerhead as the one or more plasma inlets than at areas of the surface of the showerhead where gas inlets are at different radial distances from the centre of the showerhead than the one or more plasma inlets such that a combination of all of the spatial distributions of gas from the gas inlets provides a uniform distribution of gas density on the surface of the susceptor between a central region and an outer region of the susceptor, for a full rotation of the susceptor.