Abstract: The silicon surface of a wafer is cleaned at room temperature in a separate pre-clean chamber prior to epitaxial deposition. Fluorine atoms generated, for example, from NF.sub.3 gas, enter the pre-clean chamber, contact the silicon surface, and etch away native oxide, contaminated silicon, and other damage incurred from prior wafer processes. The cleaned wafer is then transferred in an oxygen-free environment to a deposition chamber, for epitaxial deposition. By cleaning at reduced temperatures, autodoping, slip, and other stress-related problems are alleviated. By using a separate chamber for cleaning, system throughput is increased when compared to prior systems using conventional cleaning methods.

Abstract: Disclosed is an inductively-coupled plasma reactor that is useful for anisotropic or isotropic etching of a substrate, or chemical vapor deposition of a material onto a substrate. The reactor has a plasma-generation chamber with a conically-shaped plasma-generating portion and coils that are arranged around the plasma-generating portion in a conical spiral. The chamber and coil may be configured to produce a highly uniform plasma potential across the entire surface of the substrate to promote uniform ion bombardment for ion enhanced processing. In addition, a conical chamber and coil configuration may be used to produce activated neutral species at varying diameters in a chamber volume for non-ion enhanced processing. Such a configuration promotes the uniform diffusion of the activated neutral species across the wafer surface.

Abstract: System and method for determining thermal characteristics, such as temperature, temperature uniformity and emissivity, during thermal processing using shielded pyrometry. The surface of a semiconductor substrate is shielded to prevent interference from extrinsic light from radiant heating sources and to form an effective black-body cavity. An optical sensor is positioned to sense emitted light in the cavity for pyrometry. The effective emissivity of the cavity approaches unity independent of the semiconductor substrate material which simplifies temperature calculation. The shield may be used to prevent undesired backside deposition. Multiple sensors may be used to detect temperature differences across the substrate and in response heaters may be adjusted to enhance temperature uniformity.

Abstract: Means for increasing the selectivity of photoresist stripping to oxide etching are disclosed. A plasma of an oxidizing gas, a fluoride-containing compound, and a hydrocarbon contains reactive species that preferentially strip photoresist from a substrate with little etching of oxide on the substrate's surface when the reactive species contact the substrate. The reactor, compositions, and methods disclosed are particularly useful in processes for etching silicon wafers to form semiconductor or microelectromechanical devices.

Abstract: A plasma reactor and methods for processing semiconductor wafers are described. Gases are introduced into a reactor chamber. An induction coil surrounds the reactor chamber. RF power is applied to the induction coil and is inductively coupled into the reactor chamber causing a plasma to form. A split Faraday shield is interposed between the induction coil and the reactor chamber to substantially block the capacitive coupling of energy into the reactor chamber which may modulate the plasma potential. The configuration of the split Faraday shield may be selected to control the level of modulation of the plasma potential. For etch processes, a separate powered electrode may be used to accelerate ions toward a wafer surface. For isotropic etching processes, charged particles may be filtered from the gas flow, while a neutral activated species passes unimpeded to a wafer surface.

Abstract: A plasma reactor with rf power inductively coupled into the reactor chamber to produce an rf magnetic field substantially perpendicular to a pedestal on which a wafer is placed for processing. Said pedestal is a powered electrode to which power is coupled to control the sheath voltage of the pedestal. This reactor is particularly suitable for soft etches and processes in which it is advantageous to couple much more power into ion production than into free radical production.