Patents by Inventor Eiichi Nishimura

Eiichi Nishimura 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: 9647206
    Abstract: Provided is a method for etching an etching target layer of a workpiece. The workpiece has a mask on the etching target layer. The etching target layer and the mask are formed from respective materials for which etching efficiency by a plasma of a rare gas having an atomic number greater than an atomic number of argon is higher than etching efficiency for the materials by a plasma of argon gas. The mask is formed from a material having a melting point higher than that of the etching target layer. The method includes (a) exposing the workpiece to a plasma of a first process gas containing a first rare gas having an atomic number greater than the atomic number of argon, and (b) exposing the workpiece to a plasma of a second process gas containing a second rare gas having an atomic number less than the atomic number of argon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Mitsuru Hashimoto, Takashi Sone, Eiichi Nishimura, Keiichi Shimoda
  • Publication number: 20160307734
    Abstract: There is provided a method of processing a target object to be processed including a porous film and a mask. The method include supplying a first gas into a processing chamber of a plasma processing apparatus in which the target object including the porous film is accommodated, and generating a plasma of a second gas in the processing chamber to remove the mask. The first gas is a processing gas having a saturated vapor pressure of less than or equal to 133.3 Pa at a temperature of a stage on which the target object is mounted in the processing chamber, or includes the processing gas. In the step of supplying the first gas, no plasma is generated, and a partial pressure of the processing gas supplied into the processing chamber is greater than or equal to 20% of the saturated vapor pressure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2016
    Publication date: October 20, 2016
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Shigeru TAHARA, Eiichi NISHIMURA
  • Publication number: 20160307732
    Abstract: A method of etching a porous film is provided. The method includes supplying a first gas into a processing chamber of a plasma processing apparatus in which an object to be processed including a porous film is accommodated, and generating a plasma of a second gas for etching the porous film in the processing chamber. The first gas is a processing gas having a saturated vapor pressure of less than or equal to 133.3 Pa at a temperature of a stage on which the object is mounted in the processing chamber, or includes the processing gas. In the step of supplying the first gas, no plasma is generated, and a partial pressure of the processing gas which is supplied into the processing chamber is set to be greater than or equal to 20% of the saturated vapor pressure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2016
    Publication date: October 20, 2016
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Shigeru TAHARA, Eiichi NISHIMURA, Mikhaïl BAKLANOV, Liping ZHANG, Jean-Francois de Marneffe
  • Publication number: 20160276582
    Abstract: Provided is a method for etching an etching target layer of a workpiece. The workpiece has a mask on the etching target layer. The etching target layer and the mask are formed from respective materials for which etching efficiency by a plasma of a rare gas having an atomic number greater than an atomic number of argon is higher than etching efficiency for the materials by a plasma of argon gas. The mask is formed from a material having a melting point higher than that of the etching target layer. The method includes (a) exposing the workpiece to a plasma of a first process gas containing a first rare gas having an atomic number greater than the atomic number of argon, and (b) exposing the workpiece to a plasma of a second process gas containing a second rare gas having an atomic number less than the atomic number of argon.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2014
    Publication date: September 22, 2016
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Mitsuru HASHIMOTO, Takashi SONE, Eiichi NISHIMURA, Keiichi SHIMODA
  • Patent number: 9419211
    Abstract: A gas for an etching process and a treatment process of a metal stacked film in which an insulating layer is interposed between two layers of magnetic materials can be optimized. An etching method of etching a multilayered film including a metal stacked film in which an insulating layer is interposed between a first magnetic layer and a second magnetic layer includes etching the metal stacked film with plasma generated by supplying a gas containing at least C, O, and H into a processing chamber; and treating the metal stacked film with plasma generated by supplying a gas containing at least a CF4 gas into the processing chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2016
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Masato Kushibiki, Nao Koizumi, Takashi Sone, Fumiko Yamashita
  • Patent number: 9412618
    Abstract: A pattern forming method of forming a pattern on an underlying layer of a target object includes forming a block copolymer layer, which includes a first polymer and a second polymer and is configured to be self-assembled, on the underlying layer; processing the target object to form a first region containing the first polymer and a second region containing the second polymer in the block copolymer layer; etching the second region partway in a thickness direction thereof in a capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus after the processing of the target object; generating secondary electrons from an upper electrode of the plasma processing apparatus by applying a negative DC voltage to the upper electrode and irradiating the secondary electrons onto the target object, after the etching of the second region; and additionally etching the second region in the plasma processing apparatus after the irradiating of the secondary electrons.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2016
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Shinya Morikita, Eiichi Nishimura, Fumiko Yamashita
  • Patent number: 9340158
    Abstract: An aspect of the present invention is an outer mirror in which an outer mirror main body is attached to an outer mirror attaching part of a vehicle body via an outer mirror base, characterized in that the outer mirror base has a shared base main body configured to support the outer mirror main body, and an exclusive spacer having one end abutting the shared base main body and the other end pressed against the outer mirror attaching part of the vehicle body via a gasket, wherein the exclusive spacer abuts and is fixed to the shared base main body, and an attaching screw passing through the outer mirror attaching part is threadedly attached to the exclusive spacer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: MURAKAMI CORPORATION
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Toru Shimura
  • Publication number: 20160042970
    Abstract: A pattern forming method of forming a pattern on an underlying layer of a target object includes forming a block copolymer layer, which includes a first polymer and a second polymer and is configured to be self-assembled, on the underlying layer; processing the target object to form a first region containing the first polymer and a second region containing the second polymer in the block copolymer layer; etching the second region partway in a thickness direction thereof in a capacitively coupled plasma processing apparatus after the processing of the target object; generating secondary electrons from an upper electrode of the plasma processing apparatus by applying a negative DC voltage to the upper electrode and irradiating the secondary electrons onto the target object, after the etching of the second region; and additionally etching the second region in the plasma processing apparatus after the irradiating of the secondary electrons.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 9, 2014
    Publication date: February 11, 2016
    Inventors: Shinya Morikita, Eiichi Nishimura, Fumiko Yamashita
  • Patent number: 9245764
    Abstract: This semiconductor device manufacturing method is provided with: a film-forming step wherein a silicon nitride layer or a silicon oxide layer is formed such that a side wall portion of a silicon-containing layer, which is formed on a substrate and patterned, is covered with the silicon nitride layer or the silicon oxide layer; and a plasma etching step wherein the silicon-containing layer is selectively removed, and the silicon nitride layer or the silicon oxide layer formed on the side wall portion is left. In the plasma etching step, an etching gas containing SF6 gas is used.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 26, 2016
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Tadashi Kotsugi, Fumiko Yamashita, Kenji Adachi
  • Patent number: 9234083
    Abstract: A method for causing a first polymer and a second polymer of a block copolymer to be self-assembled on an underlayer film and forming a periodic pattern in a guide layer is provided. The method includes a first etching process of etching the second polymer by plasma generated from a first gas, a first film deposition process of depositing a first protective film on surfaces of the first polymer and the guide layer except for an etched portion of the second polymer by plasma generated from a second gas after the first etching process, and a second etching process of further etching the second polymer by the plasma generated from the first gas after the first film deposition process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2016
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Fumiko Yamashita, Satoko Niitsuma
  • Patent number: 9208997
    Abstract: A method of etching a copper layer of a target object including, on the copper layer, a mask having a pattern to be transferred onto the copper layer is provided. The method includes etching the copper layer by using plasma of a first gas containing a hydrogen gas; and processing the target object by using plasma of a second gas containing a hydrogen gas and a gas (hereinafter, referred to as “deposition gas”) that is deposited on the target object. Further, the etching of the copper layer by using plasma of the first gas and the processing of the target object by using plasma of the second gas are repeated alternately.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2015
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Masato Kushibiki, Takashi Sone, Akitaka Shimizu, Fumiko Yamashita
  • Publication number: 20150321608
    Abstract: An aspect of the present invention is an outer mirror in which an outer mirror main body is attached to an outer mirror attaching part of a vehicle body via an outer mirror base, characterized in that the outer mirror base has a shared base main body configured to support the outer mirror main body, and an exclusive spacer having one end abutting the shared base main body and the other end pressed against the outer mirror attaching part of the vehicle body via a gasket, wherein the exclusive spacer abuts and is fixed to the shared base main body, and an attaching screw passing through the outer mirror attaching part is threadedly attached to the exclusive spacer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 14, 2013
    Publication date: November 12, 2015
    Applicant: MURAKAMI CORPORATION
    Inventors: Eiichi NISHIMURA, Toru SHIMURA
  • Patent number: 9177816
    Abstract: One embodiment of the deposit removal method includes: preparing a substrate having a pattern on which a deposit is deposited, the pattern being formed by etching; exposing the substrate to a first atmosphere containing hydrogen fluoride gas; exposing the substrate to oxygen plasma while heating after the step of exposing the substrate to the first atmosphere; and exposing the substrate to a second atmosphere containing hydrogen fluoride gas to remove the deposit on the substrate after the step of exposing the substrate to the oxygen plasma.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2015
    Assignees: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED, KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA
    Inventors: Shigeru Tahara, Eiichi Nishimura, Takanori Matsumoto
  • Patent number: 9177781
    Abstract: A plasma processing method in which performing a plasma etching on metal layers formed on a substrate is conducted to form a pattern having the metal layers in a stacked structure, and then a deposit containing a metal that forms the metal layers and being deposited on a sidewall portion of the pattern is removed, the method includes: forming a protective layer by forming an oxide or chloride of the metal on sidewall portions of the metal layers; removing the deposit by applying a plasma of a gas containing fluorine atoms; and reducing the oxide or chloride of the metal by applying a plasma containing hydrogen after forming the protective layer and removing the deposit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2015
    Assignees: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED, KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA
    Inventors: Shigeru Tahara, Eiichi Nishimura, Fumiko Yamashita, Hiroshi Tomita, Tokuhisa Ohiwa, Hisashi Okuchi, Mitsuhiro Omura
  • Patent number: 9165784
    Abstract: Disclosed is a substrate processing method capable of preventing an etching rate from being deteriorated when a high aspect ratio hole or trench is formed on an oxide film. When a high aspect ratio hole or trench is formed on an oxide film by etching the oxide film formed on a wafer using a hard mask layer having an opening and made of silicon, the oxide film corresponding to the opening is etched using plasma generated from a processing gas containing a C4F6 gas and a methane gas. Subsequently, a reactive product generated by the etching and deposited on an inner surface of the hole of the oxide film is ashed with plasma generated from a processing gas containing an oxygen gas, and the etching and the ashing processes are repeated in sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 20, 2015
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Masato Kushibiki, Fumiko Yamashita
  • Patent number: 9150969
    Abstract: In a method of etching a metal layer of an object to be processed, the metal layer is etched by ion sputtering etching while forming a protective film containing carbon on a surface of a mask of the object. The object is exposed to an oxygen plasma after etching the metal layer. The object is exposed to hexafluoroacetylacetone after exposing the object to the oxygen plasma.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2015
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Eiichi Nishimura, Fumiko Yamashita, Koyumi Sasa
  • Patent number: 9126229
    Abstract: A deposit removal method for removing deposits deposited on the surface of a pattern formed on a substrate by etching, includes an oxygen plasma treatment process for exposing the substrate to oxygen plasma while heating the substrate and a cycle treatment process for, after the oxygen plasma treatment process, repeating multiple cycles of a first period and a second period. In the first period, the substrate is exposed to a mixture of hydrogen fluoride gas and alcohol gas inside a processing chamber and the partial pressure of the alcohol gas is set to the first partial pressure. In the second period, the partial pressure of the alcohol gas is set to the second partial pressure lower than the first partial pressure by exhausting the inside of the processing chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Shigeru Tahara, Eiichi Nishimura, Hiroshi Tomita, Tokuhisa Ohiwa, Hisashi Okuchi, Mitsuhiro Omura
  • Publication number: 20150247235
    Abstract: There is provided a cleaning method for removing a first deposit, formed on an upper electrode through an etching of a metal layer containing a metal, by using a plasma generated between a lower electrode of a lower structure and the upper electrode in a processing chamber of a plasma processing apparatus. The method includes a step of colliding ions with the first deposit formed on the upper electrode and a step of removing a second deposit, which is generated by said colliding and formed on the lower structure. Further, a cycle including the step of colliding and the step of removing is repeated multiple times.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 2, 2015
    Publication date: September 3, 2015
    Applicant: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Hiroki KISHI, Mitsuru HASHIMOTO, Keiichi SHIMODA, Eiichi NISHIMURA, Akitaka SHIMIZU
  • Publication number: 20150214474
    Abstract: An etching method is provided for etching a multilayer film material that includes a metal laminated film having an insulating layer arranged between a first magnetic layer and a second magnetic layer. The etching method includes an etching step of generating a plasma by supplying a first gas to a processing chamber and etching the metal laminated film using the generated plasma. The first gas is a gas containing PF3 gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2015
    Publication date: July 30, 2015
    Inventors: Eiichi NISHIMURA, Akitaka SHIMIZU, Fumiko YAMASHITA
  • Publication number: 20150179408
    Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method can perform a plasma process using a microwave and a heat treatment through irradiation of the microwave on a substrate. A substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a processing vessel 2; a microwave introduction device 3 configured to introduce a microwave into the processing vessel 2; a mounting table 4 configured to support a wafer W thereon within the processing vessel 2. The mounting table 4 is made of a microwave-transmissive material. The processing vessel 2 has therein a plasma processing space S1 in which a plasma process is performed on the wafer W; and a microwave introduction space S2 into which the microwave is directly introduced. The microwave having transmitted the mounting table 4 is first used to heat the wafer W before it reaches the plasma processing space S1 to be consumed by plasma.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 23, 2014
    Publication date: June 25, 2015
    Inventors: Kouji Shimomura, Naotaka Noro, Eiichi Nishimura