Patents by Inventor Joseph Ranish
Joseph Ranish 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).
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Patent number: 9114479Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for treating a substrate. The substrate is positioned on a support in a thermal treatment chamber. Electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to anneal a portion of the substrate. Other electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to preheat a portion of the substrate. The preheating reduces thermal stresses at the boundary between the preheat region and the anneal region. Any number of anneal and preheat regions are contemplated, with varying shapes and temperature profiles, as needed for specific embodiments. Any convenient source of electromagnetic radiation may be used, such as lasers, heat lamps, white light lamps, or flash lamps.Type: GrantFiled: March 28, 2014Date of Patent: August 25, 2015Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.Inventors: Stephen Moffatt, Abhilash J. Mayur, Sundar Ramamurthy, Joseph Ranish, Aaron Hunter
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Publication number: 20140209583Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for treating a substrate. The substrate is positioned on a support in a thermal treatment chamber. Electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to anneal a portion of the substrate. Other electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to preheat a portion of the substrate. The preheating reduces thermal stresses at the boundary between the preheat region and the anneal region. Any number of anneal and preheat regions are contemplated, with varying shapes and temperature profiles, as needed for specific embodiments. Any convenient source of electromagnetic radiation may be used, such as lasers, heat lamps, white light lamps, or flash lamps.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 28, 2014Publication date: July 31, 2014Applicant: Applied Materials, Inc.Inventors: Stephen MOFFATT, Abhilash J. MAYUR, Sundar RAMAMURTHY, Joseph RANISH, Aaron HUNTER
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Patent number: 8314369Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for treating a substrate. The substrate is positioned on a support in a thermal treatment chamber. Electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to anneal a portion of the substrate. Other electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to preheat a portion of the substrate. The preheating reduces thermal stresses at the boundary between the preheat region and the anneal region. Any number of anneal and preheat regions are contemplated, with varying shapes and temperature profiles, as needed for specific embodiments. Any convenient source of electromagnetic radiation may be used, such as lasers, heat lamps, white light lamps, or flash lamps.Type: GrantFiled: September 17, 2008Date of Patent: November 20, 2012Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.Inventors: Stephen Moffatt, Abhilash J. Mayur, Sundar Ramamurthy, Joseph Ranish, Aaron Hunter
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Patent number: 8222574Abstract: Apparatus and methods for achieving uniform heating or cooling of a substrate during a rapid thermal process are disclosed. More particularly, apparatus and methods for controlling the temperature of an edge ring supporting a substrate and/or a reflector plate during a rapid thermal process to improve temperature uniformity across the substrate are disclosed, which include a thermal mass or plate adjacent the edge ring to heat or cool the edge ring.Type: GrantFiled: March 25, 2008Date of Patent: July 17, 2012Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.Inventors: Khurshed Sorabji, Alexander Lerner, Joseph Ranish, Aaron Hunter, Bruce Adams, Mehran Behdjat, Rajesh Ramanujam
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Patent number: 7813895Abstract: Methods for matching semiconductor plasma processing chambers using a calibrated spectrometer are disclosed. In one embodiment, plasma attributes are measured for a process in a reference chamber and a process in a sample chamber. Measuring the plasma attributes during process perturbations allows for the correlation of process parameters to the plasma optical emission spectra. The process parameters can then be adjusted to yield a processed substrate which matches that of the reference chamber. Methods for monitoring the stability of a plasma processing chamber using a calibrated spectrometer are also disclosed.Type: GrantFiled: July 27, 2007Date of Patent: October 12, 2010Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.Inventors: Sairaju Tallavarjula, Aaron Hunter, Joseph Ranish, Johanes Swenberg, Robert M. Haney
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Publication number: 20100068898Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for treating a substrate. The substrate is positioned on a support in a thermal treatment chamber. Electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to anneal a portion of the substrate. Other electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to preheat a portion of the substrate. The preheating reduces thermal stresses at the boundary between the preheat region and the anneal region. Any number of anneal and preheat regions are contemplated, with varying shapes and temperature profiles, as needed for specific embodiments. Any convenient source of electromagnetic radiation may be used, such as lasers, heat lamps, white light lamps, or flash lamps.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 17, 2008Publication date: March 18, 2010Inventors: STEPHEN MOFFATT, Abhilash J. Mayur, Sundar Ramamurthy, Joseph Ranish, Aaron Hunter
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Publication number: 20100065547Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided for treating a substrate. The substrate is positioned on a support in a thermal treatment chamber. Electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to anneal a portion of the substrate. Other electromagnetic radiation is directed toward the substrate to preheat a portion of the substrate. The preheating reduces thermal stresses at the boundary between the preheat region and the anneal region. Any number of anneal and preheat regions are contemplated, with varying shapes and temperature profiles, as needed for specific embodiments. Any convenient source of electromagnetic radiation may be used, such as lasers, heat lamps, white light lamps, or flash lamps.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 17, 2008Publication date: March 18, 2010Inventors: STEPHEN MOFFATT, Abhilash J. Mayur, Sundar Ramamurthy, Joseph Ranish, Aaron Hunter
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Publication number: 20080090309Abstract: A method for rapid thermal annealing is disclosed. As the substrate is inserted into an annealing chamber, it begins to heat due to the heat radiating from chamber components that were heated when a previous substrate was annealed. Thus, the leading edge of the substrate may be at an elevated temperature while the trailing edge of the substrate may be at room temperature while the substrate is inserted causing a temperature gradient is present across the substrate. Once the substrate is completely inserted into the annealing chamber, the temperature gradient may still be present. By compensating for the temperature gradient across the substrate, the substrate may be annealed uniformly.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 20, 2007Publication date: April 17, 2008Inventors: JOSEPH RANISH, Balasubramanian Ramachandran, Ravi Jallepally, Sundar Ramamurthy, Vedapuram Achutharaman, Brian Haas, Aaron Hunter, Wolfgang Aderhold
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Publication number: 20070293058Abstract: A thermal processing apparatus and method in which a first laser source, for example, a CO2 emitting at 10.6 ?m is focused onto a silicon wafer as a line beam and a second laser source, for example, a GaAs laser bar emitting at 808 nm is focused onto the wafer as a larger beam surrounding the line beam. The two beams are scanned in synchronism in the direction of the narrow dimension of the line beam to create a narrow heating pulse from the line beam when activated by the larger beam. The energy of GaAs radiation is greater than the silicon bandgap energy and creates free carriers. The energy of the CO2 radiation is less than the silicon bandgap energy so silicon is otherwise transparent to it, but the long wavelength radiation is absorbed by the free carriers.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 10, 2007Publication date: December 20, 2007Applicant: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.Inventors: Dean JENNINGS, Haifan LIANG, Mark YAM, Vijay PARIHAR, Abhilash MAYUR, Aaron HUNTER, Bruce ADAMS, Joseph RANISH
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Publication number: 20070252500Abstract: A thermal processing chamber with a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) lamp assembly and a method for using the same are provided. In one embodiment, a thermal processing chamber includes a chamber body and a dielectric barrier discharge lamp assembly. The dielectric barrier discharge lamp assembly further comprises a first electrode, a second electrode and a dielectric barrier. The dielectric barrier discharge lamp assembly is positioned between the first electrode and the second electrode. The dielectric barrier defines a discharge space between the dielectric barrier and the second electrode. A circuit arrangement is coupled to the first and second electrodes, and is adapted to operate the dielectric barrier discharge lamp assembly.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 27, 2006Publication date: November 1, 2007Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Kaushal Singh, Bruce Adams
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Publication number: 20070238202Abstract: The present invention generally relates to methods for the rapid thermal processing (RTP) of a substrate. Embodiments of the invention include controlling a thermal process using either a real-time adaptive control algorithm or by using a control algorithm that is selected from a suite of fixed control algorithms designed for a variety of substrate types. Selection of the control algorithm is based on optical properties of the substrate measured during the thermal process. In one embodiment, a combination of control algorithms are used, wherein the majority of lamp groupings are controlled with a fixed control algorithm and a substantially smaller number of lamp zones are controlled by an adaptive control algorithm.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 30, 2006Publication date: October 11, 2007Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Tarpan Dixit, Dean Jennings, Balasubramanian Ramachandran, Aaron Hunter, Wolfgang Aderhold, Bruce Adams, Wen Chang
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Publication number: 20060286776Abstract: Embodiments of the invention generally provide a method for depositing films or layers using a UV source during a photoexcitation process. The films are deposited on a substrate and usually contain a material, such as silicon (e.g., epitaxy, crystalline, microcrystalline, polysilicon, or amorphous), silicon oxide, silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, or other silicon-containing materials. The photoexcitation process may expose the substrate and/or gases to an energy beam or flux prior to, during, or subsequent a deposition process. Therefore, the photoexcitation process may be used to pre-treat or post-treat the substrate or material, to deposit the silicon-containing material, and to enhance chamber cleaning processes.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 20, 2006Publication date: December 21, 2006Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Kaushal Singh
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Publication number: 20060286775Abstract: Embodiments of the invention generally provide a method for depositing films or layers using a UV source during a photoexcitation process. The films are deposited on a substrate and usually contain a material, such as silicon (e.g., epitaxy, crystalline, microcrystalline, polysilicon, or amorphous), silicon oxide, silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, or other silicon-containing materials. The photoexcitation process may expose the substrate and/or gases to an energy beam or flux prior to, during, or subsequent a deposition process. Therefore, the photoexcitation process may be used to pre-treat or post-treat the substrate or material, to deposit the silicon-containing material, and to enhance chamber cleaning processes.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 20, 2006Publication date: December 21, 2006Inventors: Kaushal Singh, Joseph Ranish
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Publication number: 20060234458Abstract: A thermal processing apparatus and method in which a first laser source, for example, a CO2 emitting at 10.6 ?m is focused onto a silicon wafer as a line beam and a second laser source, for example, a GaAs laser bar emitting at 808 nm is focused onto the wafer as a larger beam surrounding the line beam. The two beams are scanned in synchronism in the direction of the narrow dimension of the line beam to create a narrow heating pulse from the line beam when activated by the larger beam. The energy of GaAs radiation is greater than the silicon bandgap energy and creates free carriers. The energy of the CO2 radiation is less than the silicon bandgap energy so silicon is otherwise transparent to it, but the long wavelength radiation is absorbed by the free carriers.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 13, 2005Publication date: October 19, 2006Inventors: Dean Jennings, Haifan Liang, Mark Yam, Vijay Parihar, Abhilash Mayur, Aaron Hunter, Bruce Adams, Joseph Ranish
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Publication number: 20060102605Abstract: Apparatus for thermally processing a semiconductor wafer includes an array of semiconductor laser emitters arranged in plural parallel rows extending along a slow axis, plural respective cylindrical lenses overlying respective ones of the rows of laser emitters for collimating light from the respective rows along a fast axis generally perpendicular to the slow axis, a homogenizing light pipe having an input face at a first end for receiving light from the plural cylindrical lenses and an output face at an opposite end, the light pipe comprising a pair of reflective walls extending between the input and output faces and separated from one another along the direction of the slow axis, and scanning apparatus for scanning light emitted from the homogenizing light pipe across the wafer in a scanning direction parallel to the fast axis.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 20, 2005Publication date: May 18, 2006Inventors: Bruce Adams, Dean Jennings, Abhilash Mayur, Vijay Parihar, Joseph Ranish
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Publication number: 20060066193Abstract: A thermal processing chamber includes a substrate support rotating about a center axis and a lamphead of plural lamps in an array having a predetermined difference in radiance pattern between them. The radiance pattern includes a variation in diffuseness or collimation. In one embodiment, the center lines of all of the lamps are disposed away from the center axis. The array can be an hexagonal array, in which the center axis is located at a predetermined position between neighboring lamps.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 2, 2005Publication date: March 30, 2006Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Corina Tanasa, Sundar Ramamurthy, Claudia Lai, Ravi Jallepally, Ramachandran Balasubramanian, Aaron Hunter, Agus Tjandra, Norman Tam
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Publication number: 20050286243Abstract: A lamp assembly for a substrate processing chamber is described. The lamp assembly comprises a tubular body having first and second ends, a lamp element at least partially seated in the first end having a filament and first electrical connectors, transmission wires attached to the first electrical connectors, and a rigid plug flexibly positioned relative to the second end of the tubular body having second electrical connectors attached to the transmission wires. The flexibly positioned rigid plug is generally capable of a range movement in directions both perpendicular and parallel to a longitudinal axis of the tubular body. In one version, the rigid plug comprises first and second plug elements.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 25, 2004Publication date: December 29, 2005Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Abhijit Desai, Apollo Havelind
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Publication number: 20050102108Abstract: Method and apparatus for obtaining a tailored heat transfer profile in a chamber housing a microprocessor manufacturing process, including estimating heat transfer properties of the chamber; estimating heat absorptive properties of a wafer; adjusting the physical characteristics of the chamber to correct the heat transfer properties; and utilizing the chamber for manufacturing microprocessors.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 24, 2004Publication date: May 12, 2005Inventors: Balasubramanian Ramachandran, Joseph Ranish, Ravi Jallepally, Sundar Ramamurthy, Raman Achutharaman, Brian Haas, Aaron Hunter
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Publication number: 20040058560Abstract: A method for thermally processing a semiconductor substrate comprises: heating the substrate to a target peak temperature while controlling the gas pressure in the processing chamber at a pressure level that is significantly lower than atmospheric pressure; providing a flow of a purge gas between the substrate and a thermal reservoir at or near the time the substrate temperature reaches the target peak temperature while adjusting the gas pressure in the processing chamber to a second pressure level. Preferably, the purge gas has a relatively high thermal conductivity.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 20, 2002Publication date: March 25, 2004Applicant: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.Inventors: Joseph Ranish, Dean Jennings, Brian Haas