Patents Assigned to Applied Materials, Inc.
  • Publication number: 20240136197
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are approaches for modifying patterned features using a directional etch. In one approach, a method may include providing a stack of layers of a semiconductor device, forming an opening through the stack of layers, the opening defined by a first sidewall and a second sidewall, and delivering ions into the first sidewall in a reactive ion etching process. The ions maybe delivered at a first non-zero angle relative to a perpendicular extending from the substrate, wherein the reactive ion etching process removes a first portion of the stack of layers from just a lower section of the first sidewall.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2022
    Publication date: April 25, 2024
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Tassie Andersen, Shurong Liang
  • Publication number: 20240136194
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are approaches for device modification, namely, trench elongation. In one approach, a method may include providing a substrate including a plurality of surface features defining a plurality of trenches, wherein a first trench has a first trench length extending in a first direction, wherein a second trench connected to the first trench has a second trench length extending in a second direction, and wherein the first direction and the second direction are non-parallel. The method may further include delivering ions into the substrate in a reactive ion etching process, wherein the ions are delivered at a non-zero angle relative to a perpendicular extending from the substrate, and wherein the reactive ion etching process increases the first trench length of the first trench without increasing the second trench length of the second trench.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 18, 2022
    Publication date: April 25, 2024
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Tassie Andersen, Shurong Liang
  • Publication number: 20240134151
    Abstract: A reflector and processing chamber having the same are described herein. In one example, a reflector is provided that includes cylindrical body, a cooling channel, and a reflective coating. The cylindrical body has an upper surface and a lower surface. The lower surface has a plurality of concave reflector structures disposed around a centerline of the cylindrical body. The cooling channel disposed in or on the cylindrical body. The reflective coating is disposed on the plurality of concave reflector structures.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 20, 2022
    Publication date: April 25, 2024
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Ala MORADIAN, Amir H. TAVAKOLI, Peter REIMER, Shu-Kwan LAU
  • Patent number: 11967524
    Abstract: Exemplary methods of forming a semiconductor structure may include forming a first silicon oxide layer overlying a semiconductor substrate. The methods may include forming a first silicon layer overlying the first silicon oxide layer. The methods may include forming a silicon nitride layer overlying the first silicon layer. The methods may include forming a second silicon layer overlying the silicon nitride layer. The methods may include forming a second silicon oxide layer overlying the second silicon layer. The methods may include removing the silicon nitride layer. The methods may include removing the first silicon layer and the second silicon layer. The methods may include forming a metal layer between and contacting each of the first silicon oxide layer and the second silicon oxide layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Praket Prakash Jha, Shuchi Sunil Ojha, Jingmei Liang, Abhijit Basu Mallick, Shankar Venkataraman
  • Patent number: 11968856
    Abstract: Exemplary subpixel structures include a directional light-emitting diode structure characterized by a full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) of emitted light having a divergence angle of less than or about 10°. The subpixel structure further includes a lens positioned a first distance from the light-emitting diode structure, where the lens is shaped to focus the emitted light from the light-emitting diode structure. The subpixel structure still further includes a patterned light absorption barrier positioned a second distance from the lens. The patterned light absorption barrier defines an opening in the barrier, and the focal point of the light focused by the lens is positioned within the opening. The subpixels structures may be incorporated into a pixel structure, and pixel structures may be incorporated into a display that is free of a polarizer layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Chung-Chih Wu, Po-Jui Chen, Hoang Yan Lin, Guo-Dong Su, Wei-Kai Lee, Chi-Jui Chang, Wan-Yu Lin, Byung Sung Kwak, Robert Jan Visser
  • Patent number: 11967516
    Abstract: Embodiments of the disclosure include methods and apparatus for electrostatically coupling a mask to a substrate support in a deposition chamber. In one embodiment, a substrate support is disclosed that includes a substrate receiving surface, a recessed portion disposed about a periphery of the substrate receiving surface, an electrostatic chuck disposed below the substrate receiving surface, and a plurality of compressible buttons disposed within a respective opening formed in the recessed portion that form an electrical circuit with the electrostatic chuck.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Jrjyan Jerry Chen, Sanjay D. Yadav, Tae Kyung Won, Jun Li, Shouqian Shao, Surendra Kanimihally Setty
  • Patent number: 11967483
    Abstract: Embodiments provided herein generally include apparatus, plasma processing systems and methods for generation of a waveform for plasma processing of a substrate in a processing chamber. One embodiment includes a waveform generator having a voltage source selectively coupled to an output node, where the output node is configured to be coupled to an electrode disposed within a processing chamber, and where the output node is selectively coupled to a ground node. The waveform generator may also include a radio frequency (RF) signal generator, and a first filter coupled between the RF signal generator and the output node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yang Yang, Yue Guo, Kartik Ramaswamy
  • Patent number: 11964068
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an oxygen cleaning chamber with UV radiation generator temperature control and a method of atomic oxygen cleaning a substrate. The atomic oxygen cleaning chamber includes a process chamber and a cooling chamber coupled to the process chamber and a divider sealingly separating the process chamber from the cooling chamber. An ultraviolet (UV) radiation generator is disposed in the cooling chamber and provides UV radiation through the divider into the process chamber. A gas distribution assembly distributes ozone over an upper surface of a pedestal in the process chamber and a coolant distribution assembly distributes cooling gas into the cooling chamber to cool the UV radiation generator. By actively cooling the UV radiation generator, a higher intensity UV radiation at a stable wavelength is produced, i.e., without wavelength drift normally associated with high power UV radiation generator outputs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Banqiu Wu, Eli Dagan
  • Patent number: 11964359
    Abstract: Implementations described herein generally relate to polishing articles and methods of manufacturing polishing articles used in polishing processes and cleaning processes. More particularly, implementations disclosed herein relate to composite polishing articles having graded properties. In one implementation, a polishing article is provided. The polishing article comprises one or more exposed first regions formed from a first material and having a first zeta potential and one or more second exposed regions formed from a second material and having a second zeta potential, wherein the first zeta potential is different from the second zeta potential.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Ashwin Chockalingham, Mahendra C. Orilall, Mayu Yamamura, Boyi Fu, Rajeev Bajaj, Daniel Redfield
  • Patent number: 11967527
    Abstract: Methods of forming fully aligned vias connecting two metal lines extending in two directions are described. The fully aligned via is aligned with the first metal line and the second metal line along both directions. A third metal layer is patterned on a top of a second metal layer in electrical contact with a first metal layer. The patterned third metal layer is misaligned from the top of the second metal layer. The second metal layer is recessed to expose sides of the second metal layer and remove portions not aligned sides of the third metal layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: He Ren, Hao Jiang, Mehul Naik
  • Patent number: 11964343
    Abstract: A process of producing optical devices is provided including transferring a first substrate comprising one or more devices to a laser dicing tool, the laser dicing tool including a filamentation stage and a singulation stage. One or more device contours are created on the first substrate in the filamentation stage. The optical devices are singulated from the first substrate along the one or more device contours in the singulation stage. The devices are transferred to storage or for further backend processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Mahendran Chidambaram, Shmuel Erez, Wei-Sheng Lei, John Rusconi
  • Patent number: 11967523
    Abstract: Methods for selectively depositing on metallic surfaces are disclosed. Some embodiments of the disclosure utilize a hydrocarbon having at least two functional groups selected from alkene, alkyne, ketone, alcohol, ester, or combinations thereof to form a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on metallic surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Xiangjin Xie, Kevin Kashefi
  • Patent number: 11965236
    Abstract: Methods for forming a nickel silicide material on a substrate are disclosed. The methods include depositing a first nickel silicide seed layer atop a substrate at a temperature of about 15° C. to about 27° C., annealing the first nickel silicide seed layer at a temperature of 400° C. or less such as over 350° C.; and depositing a second nickel silicide layer atop the first nickel silicide seed layer at a temperature of about 15° C. to about 27° C. to form the nickel silicide material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Minrui Yu, He Ren, Mehul Naik
  • Patent number: 11965241
    Abstract: In one aspect, a process operation is conducted at a first pressure in a process chamber, and an epitaxial deposition operation is conducted at an atmospheric pressure in an epitaxial deposition chamber. The atmospheric pressure is greater than the first pressure. The process chamber is mounted to a first mainframe that operates at the first pressure (a reduced pressure), and the epitaxial deposition chamber is mounted to a second mainframe that operates at the atmospheric chamber. In one aspect, the process chamber is a cleaning chamber (such as a pre-clean chamber) and the process operation is a cleaning operation. In one aspect, the process chamber is an atmospheric pressure epitaxial deposition chamber and the process operation is an atmospheric pressure epitaxial deposition operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Saurabh Chopra, Martin Jeffrey Salinas, Masato Ishii, Sheng-Chen Twan, Srividya Natarajan
  • Patent number: 11965798
    Abstract: An endpoint detection system for enhanced spectral data collection is provided. An optical bundle is coupled to a light source configured to generate incident light. The optical bundle includes two or more sets of optical fibers that each include an emitting optical fiber and a receiving optical fiber. The receiving optical fibers are disposed within the optical bundle at a pairing angle relative to a respective emitting optical fiber. The optical bundle is also coupled to a collimator assembly that includes an achromatic lens. The achromatic lens receives a first light beam of incident light from a first emitting optical fiber and directs spectral components of the first light beam to a first and second portion of a surface of a substrate. The first portion of the substrate surface is substantially the same as the second portion. The achromatic lens collects reflected spectral components that are produced by the spectral components directed to the first and second portions of the substrate surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Pengyu Han, Lei Lian
  • Patent number: 11965103
    Abstract: A formulation, system, and method for additive manufacturing of a polishing pad. The formulation includes monomer, dispersant, and nanoparticles. A method of preparing the formulation includes adding a dispersant that is a polyester derivative to monomer, adding metal-oxide nanoparticles to the monomer, and subjecting the monomer having the nanoparticles and dispersant to sonication to disperse the nanoparticles in the monomer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yingdong Luo, Sivapackia Ganapathiappan, Ashwin Murugappan Chockalingam, Daihua Zhang, Uma Sridhar, Daniel Redfield, Rajeev Bajaj, Nag B. Patibandla, Hou T. Ng, Sudhakar Madhusoodhanan
  • Patent number: 11967498
    Abstract: Exemplary methods of forming a silicon-and-carbon-containing material may include flowing a silicon-oxygen-and-carbon-containing precursor into a processing region of a semiconductor processing chamber. A substrate may be housed within the processing region of the semiconductor processing chamber. The methods may include forming a plasma within the processing region of the silicon-and-carbon-containing precursor. The plasma may be formed at a frequency less than 15 MHz (e.g., 13.56 MHz). The methods may include depositing a silicon-and-carbon-containing material on the substrate. The silicon-and-carbon-containing material as-deposited may be characterized by a dielectric constant below or about 3.5 and a hardness greater than about 3 Gpa.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Bo Xie, Kang S. Yim, Yijun Liu, Li-Qun Xia, Ruitong Xiong
  • Patent number: 11966212
    Abstract: A method of processing a substrate includes subjecting a substrate to processing that modifies a thickness of an outer layer of the substrate, measuring a spectrum of light reflected from the substrate during processing, reducing the dimensionality of the measured spectrum to generate a plurality of component values, generating a characterizing value using an artificial neural network, and determining at least one of whether to halt processing of the substrate or an adjustment for a processing parameter based on the characterizing value. The artificial neural network has a plurality of input nodes to receive the plurality of component values, an output node to output the characterizing value, and a plurality of hidden nodes connecting the input nodes to the output node.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventor: Benjamin Cherian
  • Patent number: D1023987
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric Kihara Shono, Vishwas Kumar Pandey, Christopher S. Olsen, Hansel Lo, Agus Sofian Tjandra, Taewan Kim, Tobin Kaufman-Osborn
  • Patent number: D1024149
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Martin Lee Riker, Luke Vianney Varkey, Xiangjin Xie