Patents by Inventor Clifford Stow

Clifford Stow has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 8021743
    Abstract: A substrate processing chamber component is capable of being exposed to an energized gas in a process chamber. The component has an underlying structure and first and second coating layers, the first coating layer comprising a first material having a first thermal expansion coefficient and a first surface having an average surface roughness of less than about 25 micrometers. The second coating layer is over the first surface of the first coating layer, the second coating layer comprising a second material having a second thermal expansion coefficient that differs by less than 5% from the first thermal expansion coefficient of the first material and a second surface having an average surface roughness of at least about 50 micrometers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2011
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Daijiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Patent number: 7910218
    Abstract: A component of a process chamber is refurbished and cleaned to remove an intermetallic compound from the component. The component has a structure having a coating that includes a first metal layer over the intermetallic compound. To refurbish the component, the first metal layer is removed to form an exposed surface that at least partially includes the intermetallic compound. The exposed surface is bead blasted in a penetrative bead blasting step by propelling blasting beads having a bead diameter of less than about 180 micrometers with a gas that is pressurized to a pressure of less than about 310 kPa (45 psi), towards the exposed surface, thereby removing the intermetallic compound from the exposed surface of the structure to form a cleaned surface. A second metal layer is then formed over the cleaned surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20100086805
    Abstract: A substrate processing chamber component is capable of being exposed to an energized gas in a process chamber. The component has an underlying structure and first and second coating layers, the first coating layer comprising a first material having a first thermal expansion coefficient and a first surface having an average surface roughness of less than about 25 micrometers. The second coating layer is over the first surface of the first coating layer, the second coating layer comprising a second material having a second thermal expansion coefficient that differs by less than 5% from the first thermal expansion coefficient of the first material and a second surface having an average surface roughness of at least about 50 micrometers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2009
    Publication date: April 8, 2010
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Patent number: 7579067
    Abstract: A substrate processing chamber component is capable of being exposed to an energized gas in a process chamber. The component has an underlying structure and first and second coating layers. The first coating layer is formed over the underlying structure, and has a first surface with an average surface roughness of less than about 25 micrometers. The second coating layer is formed over the first coating layer, and has a second surface with an average surface roughness of at least about 50 micrometers. Process residues can adhere to the surface of the second coating layer to reduce the contamination of processed substrates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2009
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20060110620
    Abstract: A substrate processing chamber component is capable of being exposed to an energized gas in a process chamber. The component has an underlying structure and first and second coating layers. The first coating layer is formed over the underlying structure, and has a first surface with an average surface roughness of less than about 25 micrometers. The second coating layer is formed over the first coating layer, and has a second surface with an average surface roughness of at least about 50 micrometers. Process residues can adhere to the surface of the second coating layer to reduce the contamination of processed substrates.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 24, 2004
    Publication date: May 25, 2006
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20050238807
    Abstract: A component of a process chamber is cleaned and refurbished. The component has a structure with an overlying coating having of a first layer. To refurbish the component, the first layer is removed to form an exposed surface on the structure. During or after the removal of the coating, the exposed surface is cleaned with a cleaning fluid, which deposits cleaning residue on the exposed surface. The exposed surface is heated in a substantially non-oxidizing atmosphere to a temperature that is sufficiently high to vaporize the cleaning residue from the surface, thereby forming a cleaned surface. A second layer is formed over the cleaned surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 27, 2004
    Publication date: October 27, 2005
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Robert Haney, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20050089699
    Abstract: A component of a process chamber is refurbished and cleaned to remove an intermetallic compound from the component. The component has a structure having a coating that includes a first metal layer over the intermetallic compound. To refurbish the component, the first metal layer is removed to form an exposed surface that at least partially includes the intermetallic compound. The exposed surface is bead blasted in a penetrative bead blasting step by propelling blasting beads having a bead diameter of less than about 180 micrometers with a gas that is pressurized to a pressure of less than about 310 kPa (45 psi), towards the exposed surface, thereby removing the intermetallic compound from the exposed surface of the structure to form a cleaned surface. A second metal layer is then formed over the cleaned surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 22, 2003
    Publication date: April 28, 2005
    Inventors: Yixing Lin, Dajiang Xu, Clifford Stow
  • Patent number: 6656535
    Abstract: A method of fabricating a process chamber component that has a ceramic form with grains and grain boundary regions. In the method, the component is bead blasted to provide a surface having a relatively low roughness average of less than about 150 microinches. The component is dipped into a solution having a concentration that is sufficiently low to reduce etching of grain boundary regions of the ceramic form. A metal coating is formed over at least a portion of the ceramic form. The component fabricated by this method can tolerate thicker deposits of sputtered material in a sputtering process without the sputtered deposit accumulates causing spalling of the coating of the component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2003
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc
    Inventors: Yongxiang He, Hong Wang, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20030188685
    Abstract: A substrate processing chamber has a component having a surface that is exposed inside the chamber. The exposed surface can have a pattern of recesses that are spaced apart from one another, each recess having an opening, sidewalls, and a bottom wall. The recesses are formed by directing a pulsed laser beam onto a position on a surface of the structure for a time sufficiently long to vaporize a portion of the structure at that position. The component can also be a gas distributor having an enclosure with plurality of laser drilled gas outlets having first and second openings with different diameters to reduce an ingress of a plasma into the enclosure. The laser drilled gas outlets can also have rounded edges.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 8, 2002
    Publication date: October 9, 2003
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Hong Wang, Yongxiang He, Yixing Lin, Edwin C. Weldon, Clifford Stow
  • Publication number: 20030118731
    Abstract: A method of fabricating a process chamber component that has a ceramic form with grains and grain boundary regions. In the method, the component is bead blasted to provide a surface having a relatively low roughness average of less than about 150 microinches. The component is dipped into a solution having a concentration that is sufficiently low to reduce etching of grain boundary regions of the ceramic form. A metal coating is formed over at least a portion of the ceramic form. The component fabricated by this method can tolerate thicker deposits of sputtered material in a sputtering process without the sputtered deposit accumulates causing spalling of the coating of the component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 21, 2001
    Publication date: June 26, 2003
    Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Yongxiang He, Hong Wang, Clifford Stow
  • Patent number: 6565984
    Abstract: We have discovered that the formation of particulate inclusions at the surface and the interior of an aluminum alloy article interferes with the performance of the article when a surface of the article is protected by an anodized coating. We have also discovered that the formation of such particulate inclusions can be controlled to a large extent by controlling the concentration of particular impurities present in the alloy used to fabricate the aluminum alloy article.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2003
    Assignee: Applied Materials Inc.
    Inventors: Shun Wu, Clifford Stow, Hong Wang, Yixing Lin