Abstract: An apparatus and method for depositing plural layers of materials on a substrate within a single vacuum chamber allows high-throughput deposition of structures such as these for GMR and MRAM application. An indexing mechanism aligns a substrate with each of plural targets according to the sequence of the layers in the structure. Each target deposits material using a static physical-vapor deposition technique. A shutter can be interposed between a target and a substrate to block the deposition process for improved deposition control. The shutter can also preclean a target or the substrate and can also be used for mechanical chopping of the deposition process. In alternative embodiments, plural substrates may be aligned sequentially with plural targets to allow simultaneous deposition of plural structures within the single vacuum chamber.

Abstract: Rapid thermal cycling of substrates in low-pressure processing environments is achieved by movable temperature conditioners located outside the processing environments. The substrates are mounted on thermally conductive pedestals for processing in the low-pressure environment. The temperature conditioners are movable both into and out of thermal contact with the pedestals outside the low-pressure environment to regulate transfers of heat through the pedestals between the substrates and the temperature conditioners. A translatable cooler block with a high thermal mass and a large interface area with the pedestal can be used as a temperature conditioner for more rapidly withdrawing heat from the substrate.

Abstract: A low-pressure processor for processing substrates includes a chuck that engages the substrates' peripheries for purposes of clamping, sealing, and centering the substrates on chuck bodies. For accomplishing all three purposes, a mechanical clamp can be arranged with two sealing regions. One of the sealing regions seals the clamp to a chuck body or an extension of the chuck body, and another of the sealing regions engages a peripheral edge surface of a substrate for sealing the clamp to the substrate. The second sealing region includes an inclined seating surface that engages a front edge of the substrate's peripheral edge surface and divides a clamping force into a first component that presses the substrate against the chuck body and a second component that centers the substrate on the chuck body.

Abstract: An electromagnet having one or more coils wrapped around a plate-shaped core produces a uniaxial magnetic field in the vicinity of a substrate surface for orienting a magnetic film deposited onto the substrate surface. Variations in the magnetic mass of the plate-shaped core or in the magnetic permeability of the core mass are made to reduce angular skew and to improve uniformity of the uniaxial magnetic field. The variations generally involve a reduction in magnetic mass or permeability near a center of the core with respect to a periphery of the core. Cavities of various sizes and shapes but having symmetry with a magnetic axis can be formed in the core for this purpose.

Abstract: Material is deposited from an active shutter onto a substrate located in a processing chamber housing with a shutter target coupled to a shutter target assembly. A first target assembly located in the housing supports a target for physical-vapor deposition of a first material onto the substrate. A shutter is selectively moveable to extend into a closed or activated position and to retract into an open position. The shutter target assembly is coupled to the shutter such that when the shutter is in the closed position, the shutter target assembly is positioned to allow deposition of material from the shutter target onto the substrate. When the shutter is in the open position, the first target is positioned to deposit material onto the substrate. Alternating layers of materials may be deposited by the shutter target and first target by cycling the shutter between an open position and a closed position.

Abstract: A magnetron sputtering system is provided that uses cooling channels in the magnetron assembly to cool the target. The magnetron sputtering system also generates low pressure region in the magnetron assembly such that the backing plate sees a pressure differential much lower than atmospheric pressure. In one embodiment, the backing plate includes a center post to support the backing plate during operation. The backing plate is reduced in thickness and provides less of a barrier to the generated magnetic field.

Abstract: An electromagnet assembly magnetically orients a thin magnetic film deposited onto a surface of a substrate. The magnetic orientation can take place in a low-pressure processing environment such as during the deposition of the thin magnetic film or during a subsequent operation such as annealing. The electromagnet assembly includes a plate-shaped core located adjacent to the substrate and two or more electromagnetic coils that are wrapped in different directions around the core. Electrical currents conveyed through the electromagnetic coils are controlled for orienting a substantially uniaxial magnetic field throughout a range of angular positions in a plane of the substrate surface.

Abstract: An electromagnet having one or more coils wrapped around a plate-shaped core produces a uniaxial magnetic filed in the vicinity of a substrate surface for orienting a magnetic film deposited onto the substrate surface. Variations in the magnetic mass of the plate-shaped core or in the magnetic permeability of the core mass are made to reduce angular skew and to improve uniformity of the uniaxial magnetic field. The variations generally involve a reduction in magnetic mass or permeability near a center of the core with respect to a periphery of the core. Cavities of various sizes and shapes but having symmetry with a magnetic axis can be formed in the core for this purpose.

Abstract: A low-pressure processor for processing substrates includes a chuck that engages the substrates' peripheries for purposes of clamping, sealing, and centering the substrates on chuck bodies. For accomplishing all three purposes, a mechanical clamp can be arranged with two sealing regions. One of the sealing regions seals the clamp to a chuck body or an extension of the chuck body, and another of the sealing regions engages a peripheral edge surface of a substrate for sealing the clamp to the substrate. The second sealing region includes an inclined seating surface that engages a front edge of the substrate's peripheral edge surface and divides a clamping force into a first component that presses the substrate against the chuck body and a second component that centers the substrate on the chuck body.

Abstract: An electromagnet assembly magnetically orients a thin magnetic film deposited onto a surface of a substrate. The magnetic orientation can take place in a low-pressure processing environment such as during the deposition of the thin magnetic film or during a subsequent operation such as annealing. The electromagnet assembly includes a plate-shaped core located adjacent to the substrate and two or more electromagnetic coils that are wrapped in different directions around the core. Electrical currents conveyed through the electromagnetic coils are controlled for orienting a substantially uniaxial magnetic field throughout a range of angular positions in a plane of the substrate surface.

Abstract: A magnetron sputtering system is provided that uses a backing plate assembly having an insulating spacer ring coupled between and hermetically sealed to the backing plate and an extender ring. The insulating spacer ring can be constructed from a ceramic material, and the extender ring can be constructed from a metal material. The use of this backing plate assembly allows the backing plate assembly to be coupled directly to the chamber walls with a metal-to-metal contact, while the backing plate remains electrically isolated from the chamber walls. This allows the sealing of a vacuum chamber in the magnetron sputtering system using a seal suitable for creating an ultra-high vacuum in the vacuum chamber.

Abstract: This is a curing method of low-k dielectric material in a semiconductor device and system for such. The method may comprise: depositing metal interconnection lines; depositing the low-k dielectric material layer over the lines; and curing the low-k dielectric material layer with a heating lamp for less than 10 minutes, wherein the heating lamp provides optical radiation energy in the infrared spectral range of about 1 micron to 3.5 microns in wavelength. The heating lamp may be a tungsten-halogen lamp.

Abstract: A magnetron sputtering system is provided that uses cooling channels in the magnetron assembly to cool the target. The magnetron sputtering system also generates low pressure region in the magnetron assembly such that the backing plate sees a pressure differential much lower than atmospheric pressure. The backing plate is reduced in thickness and provides less of a barrier to the generated magnetic field.

Abstract: A glass heating and sealing system (10, 30, 60) and method for manufacturing a flat panel display including anode and cathode glass panels with a vacuum compartment between them includes a plurality of vacuum chambers (12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 32, 34, 36, 38, 61, 76) for processing glass panels (39, 63, 74). Transfer of glass panels (39, 63, 74) between chambers (12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 32, 34, 36, 38, 61, 76) is accomplished by a transfer mechanism (24, 42, 68, 72) located within a central vacuum chamber (22, 40, 70) commonly connected to the other chambers. System (10, 30, 60) may include a rapid thermal processing (RTP) chamber (14, 34, 38, 76) for quick and even heating of the panels (39, 63, 74). System (10) includes an e-beam bombardment chamber (16) for preconditioning the anode glass panels, and a heating chamber (18) for fusing anode glass panels to cathode glass panels. Different levels of vacuum may be established in different chambers.

Abstract: A plasma processing chamber 10 having an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source 12 mounted therein. The ICP source 12 comprises an antenna 14 encapsulated in epoxy 16 and surrounded by housing 18. The antenna 14 and epoxy 16 are hermetically sealed from plasma formation region 30. The antenna 14 is powered by at least one RF power supply 40 through at least one RF matching network 42. Dielectric capping plate 28 separates ICP source 12 from the plasma formation region 30 and may have a plurality of holes therein to provide a uniform showerhead distribution of process gases.

Abstract: A plasma processing chamber 10 having an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) source 12 mounted therein. The ICP source 12 comprises an antenna 14 encapsulated in epoxy 16 and surrounded by housing 18. The antenna 14 and epoxy 16 are hermetically sealed from plasma formation region 30. The antenna 14 is powered by at least one RF power supply 40 through at least one RF matching network 42. Dielectric capping plate 28 separates ICP source 12 from the plasma formation region 30 and may have a plurality of holes therein to provide a uniform showerhead distribution of process gases.

Abstract: A multi-electrode plasma processing system (10) provides flexible plasma processing capabilities for semiconductor device fabrication. The plasma processing equipment (10) includes a gas showerhead assembly (52) a radio-frequency chuck (24), and screen electrode (66). The screen electrode (66) includes base (68) for positioning within process chamber (10) and is made of an insulating material such as a ceramic or teflon. A perforated screen (70) is integral to base (68) and generates a plasma from a plasma-producing gas via a radio-frequency power source (104). The screen (70) has numerous passageways (78) to allow interaction of plasma and the process chamber walls. The screen (70) surrounds showerhead assembly (52) and semiconductor wafer (22) and can influence the entire semiconductor wafer plasma processing environment (62) including the plasma density and uniformity.

Abstract: A programmable multizone fluids injector for use in single-wafer semiconductor processing equipment including an injector having a plurality of orifices therein which are divided into a number of separate zones or areas. These zones or areas are connected by means of appropriate passageways and conduits to a source of process fluids. Each of the separate conduits has at least one flow control device located therein for independently controlling the amounts and ratios of process fluids flowing into each zone. The fluid control devices are responsive to input signals so that the fluid flow rates from the orifices can maintain a desired flow pattern within the process chamber to suit the individual needs of a particular fabrication processs.

Abstract: A high-performance multi-zone illuminator module (130) for directing optical energy onto a semiconductor wafer (60) in a device fabrication reactor to improve overall semiconductor wafer processing uniformity comprises a housing connectable to the wafer processing reactor and having a bottom side and a reflector mounted to the bottom side. The reflector comprises a plurality of concentric circular zones (190, 192, 194 or 270, 262, 266, 264) for reflecting optical energy that include a plurality of circularly distributed lamp sockets (185). Engaged within the lamp sockets (185) are a plurality of point-source lamps (196) for directing optical energy to the semiconductor wafer (60) surface. The point-source lamps (196) are associated with the reflector (184 and 186 or 276 and 277) for directing light toward the wafer. The lamps are associated within each circular zone to provide an approximately continuous and diffused light ring at the semiconductor wafer (60).

Abstract: A chilling system (12) has a container (20) filled with a coolant (22). A pipe (16) traverses within the container (20) and the coolant (22) to a housing (18). Fluid flows within the pipe (16) and becomes chilled through the pipe (16) upon entering the container (20) and the coolant (22). The chilled fluid enters the housing (18) chilling the housing (18) through the pipe (16). In turn, semiconductor substrate (19) in contact with the housing (18) also is chilled.