Patents by Inventor Yoshihide Kihara

Yoshihide Kihara 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: 11961746
    Abstract: A substrate processing method includes (a) forming a recess on a workpiece by partially etching the workpiece; and (b) forming a film having a thickness that differs along a depth direction of the recess, on a side wall of the recess. Step (b) includes (b-1) supplying a first reactant, and causing the first reactant to be adsorbed to the side wall of the recess; and (b-2) supplying a second reactant, and causing the second reactant to react with the first reactant thereby forming a film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2024
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Sho Kumakura, Hironari Sasagawa, Maju Tomura, Yoshihide Kihara
  • Patent number: 11955337
    Abstract: A substrate processing method includes: providing a substrate including a mask; forming a film on the mask; forming a reaction layer on a surface layer of the film; and removing the reaction layer by applying energy to the reaction layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2024
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Toru Hisamatsu, Takayuki Katsunuma, Shinya Ishikawa, Yoshihide Kihara, Masanobu Honda
  • Publication number: 20240112887
    Abstract: A method of processing a substrate that includes: flowing dioxygen (O2) and an adsorbate precursor into a plasma processing chamber that is configured to hold the substrate including an organic layer and a patterned etch mask; sustaining an oxygen-rich plasma while flowing the O2 and the adsorbate precursor, oxygen species from the O2 and the adsorbate precursor reacting under the oxygen-rich plasma to form an adsorbate; and exposing the substrate to the oxygen-rich plasma to form a recess in the organic layer, where the adsorbate forms a sidewall passivation layer in the recess.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2022
    Publication date: April 4, 2024
    Inventors: Du Zhang, Yu-Hao Tsai, Masahiko Yokoi, Yoshihide Kihara, Mingmei Wang
  • Publication number: 20240112888
    Abstract: A method of processing a substrate that includes: flowing an etch gas, O2, and an adsorbate precursor into a plasma processing chamber that is configured to hold the substrate including a silicon-containing dielectric layer and a patterned mask layer, the etch gas including hydrogen and fluorine; generating a plasma in the plasma processing chamber while flowing the etch gas, O2, and the adsorbate precursor, the adsorbate precursor being oxidized to form an adsorbate; and patterning, with the plasma, the silicon-containing dielectric layer on the substrate, where the adsorbate forms a sidewall passivation layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2022
    Publication date: April 4, 2024
    Inventors: Du Zhang, Yu-Hao Tsai, Masahiko Yokoi, Mingmei Wang, Yoshihide Kihara
  • Publication number: 20240112919
    Abstract: A method of processing a substrate that includes: flowing dioxygen (O2) and a hydrogen-containing gas into a plasma processing chamber that is configured to hold the substrate, the substrate including an organic layer and a patterned etch mask, the hydrogen-containing gas including dihydrogen (H2), a hydrocarbon, or hydrogen peroxide (H2O2); generating an oxygen-rich plasma while flowing the gases; maintaining a temperature of the substrate in the plasma processing chamber between ?150° C. and ?50° C.; and while maintaining the temperature, exposing the substrate to the oxygen-rich plasma to form a recess in the organic layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2022
    Publication date: April 4, 2024
    Inventors: Du Zhang, Maju Tomura, Koki Mukaiyama, Tomohiko Niizeki, Yoshihide Kihara, Mingmei Wang
  • Publication number: 20240030010
    Abstract: An etching method includes: (a) providing a substrate including a base film and a mask having an opening and formed on the base film; (b) etching the base film using plasma; and (c) supplying hydrogen fluoride to the substrate under a pressure of 13.3 Pa or higher.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Koki MUKAIYAMA, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Publication number: 20240006168
    Abstract: A substrate processing method includes: (a) disposing a substrate on a substrate support provided in a chamber of a substrate processing apparatus; (b) supplying a processing gas including hydrogen fluoride gas into the chamber; (c) controlling a temperature of the substrate support to a first temperature, and a pressure of the hydrogen fluoride gas in the chamber to a first pressure; and (d) controlling the temperature of the substrate support to a second temperature, and the pressure of the hydrogen fluoride gas in the chamber to a second pressure. In a graph with a horizontal axis indicating a temperature and a vertical axis indicating a pressure, the first temperature and the first pressure are positioned in a first region above an adsorption equilibrium pressure curve of hydrogen fluoride, and the second temperature and the second pressure are positioned in a second region below the adsorption equilibrium pressure curve.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2023
    Publication date: January 4, 2024
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Satoshi OHUCHIDA, Koki MUKAIYAMA, Yusuke WAKO, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Publication number: 20240006152
    Abstract: A method for etching a substrate includes: (a) providing a substrate processing apparatus including a processing chamber that forms a processing space, a substrate support provided inside the processing chamber to hold a substrate, and a power supply that supplies a bias power to at least the substrate support; (b) providing the substrate on the substrate support, the substrate including an underlying layer and an organic material layer on the underlying layer; (c) generating plasma in the processing chamber; and (d) repeating a predetermined cycle including an ON time during which the bias power is supplied to the substrate support and an OFF time during which the bias power is not supplied to the substrate support. The OFF time is 10 msec or longer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2023
    Publication date: January 4, 2024
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Maju TOMURA, Nobuyuki FUKUI, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Publication number: 20230402289
    Abstract: An etching method is implementable with a plasma processing apparatus including a chamber. The method includes (a) providing, in the chamber, a substrate including an etching target film and a mask on the etching target film, and (b) etching the etching target film using plasma generated from a process gas including a hydrogen fluoride gas. The mask contains at least one metal selected from the group consisting of tungsten, molybdenum, ruthenium, titanium, indium, gallium, and zinc.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 9, 2023
    Publication date: December 14, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Kae TAKAHASHI, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA, Noriyoshi ARIMA
  • Publication number: 20230395390
    Abstract: A method including providing a substrate in a process chamber of a substrate processing apparatus, the substrate having a first region containing a silicon oxide film and a second region containing a film other than the silicon oxide film; adsorbing hydrogen fluoride on the substrate; and exposing the substrate with the absorbed hydrogen fluoride to plasma generated from an inert gas to selectively etch the first region with respect to the second region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 24, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Maju TOMURA, Satoshi OHUCHIDA, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Publication number: 20230386800
    Abstract: A substrate processing method includes: providing a substrate processing apparatus including a chamber, a substrate support that supports a substrate in the chamber, an upper electrode facing a center of the substrate, and a plurality of electromagnets arranged radially around the center of the upper electrode; selecting a polarity modification pattern to be used for the plurality of electromagnets during an etching; and generating plasma from a processing gas supplied into the chamber, and etching the substrate based on the polarity modification pattern.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 23, 2023
    Publication date: November 30, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Tomohiko NIIZEKI, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Patent number: 11823903
    Abstract: According to an embodiment, a wafer (W) includes a layer (EL) to be etched, an organic film (OL), an antireflection film (AL), and a mask (MK1), and a method (MT) according to an embodiment includes a step of performing an etching process on the antireflection film (AL) by using the mask (MK1) with plasma generated in a processing container (12), in the processing container (12) of a plasma processing apparatus (10) in which the wafer (W) is accommodated, and the step includes steps ST3a to ST4 of conformally forming a protective film (SX) on the surface of the mask (MK1), and steps ST6a to ST7 of etching the antireflection film (AL) by removing the antireflection film (AL) for each atomic layer by using the mask (MK1) on which the protective film (SX) is formed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2023
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Yoshihide Kihara, Toru Hisamatsu, Tomoyuki Oishi
  • Patent number: 11798793
    Abstract: A substrate processing method includes: (a) disposing a substrate on a substrate support provided in a chamber of a substrate processing apparatus; (b) supplying a processing gas including hydrogen fluoride gas into the chamber; (c) controlling a temperature of the substrate support to a first temperature, and a pressure of the hydrogen fluoride gas in the chamber to a first pressure; and (d) controlling the temperature of the substrate support to a second temperature, and the pressure of the hydrogen fluoride gas in the chamber to a second pressure. In a graph with a horizontal axis indicating a temperature and a vertical axis indicating a pressure, the first temperature and the first pressure are positioned in a first region above an adsorption equilibrium pressure curve of hydrogen fluoride, and the second temperature and the second pressure are positioned in a second region below the adsorption equilibrium pressure curve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Satoshi Ohuchida, Koki Mukaiyama, Yusuke Wako, Maju Tomura, Yoshihide Kihara
  • Publication number: 20230307242
    Abstract: A method of processing a substrate includes patterning a mask over a dielectric layer and etching openings in the dielectric layer. The dielectric layer is disposed over the substrate. The etching includes flowing an etchant, a polar or H-containing gas, and a phosphorus-halide gas. The method may further include forming contacts by filling the openings with a conductive material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 25, 2022
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Inventors: Yu-Hao Tsai, Du Zhang, Mingmei Wang, Takatoshi Orui, Motoi Takahashi, Masahiko Yokoi, Koki Tanaka, Yoshihide Kihara
  • Publication number: 20230307245
    Abstract: A plasma processing method executed by a plasma processing apparatus having a chamber is provided. The method includes: (a) providing a substrate having a silicon containing film and a mask on the silicon containing film; and (b) etching the silicon containing film, the (b) including (b-1) etching the silicon containing film by using a plasma generated from a first processing gas containing a hydrogen fluoride gas and a tungsten containing gas, and (b-2) etching the silicon containing film by using a plasma generated from a second processing gas containing a hydrogen fluoride gas, the second processing gas not containing a tungsten containing gas, or containing a tungsten containing gas at a flow ratio smaller than a flow ratio of the tungsten containing gas in the first processing gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2023
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Koki MUKAIYAMA, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA, Atsushi TAKAHASHI, Takatoshi ORUI
  • Publication number: 20230307243
    Abstract: An etching method includes: (a) providing a substrate having a silicon-containing film and a mask on the silicon-containing film in a chamber of a plasma processing apparatus, and (b) etching the silicon-containing film by generating plasma from a processing gas containing HF gas, and PClaFb gas (each of a and b is an integer of 1 or more) or PCcHdFe gas (c is an integer of 0 or more, and each of d and e is an integer of 1 or more), in the chamber.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 22, 2023
    Publication date: September 28, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Publication number: 20230268191
    Abstract: An etching method includes (a) providing a substrate in a chamber in a plasma processing apparatus. The substrate includes a silicon-containing film. The etching method further includes (b) etching the silicon-containing film with a chemical species in plasma generated from a process gas in the chamber. The process gas contains a hydrogen fluoride gas and a phosphorus-containing gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2023
    Publication date: August 24, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Maju TOMURA, Takatoshi ORUI, Kae KUMAGAI, Ryutaro SUDA, Satoshi OHUCHIDA, Yusuke WAKO, Yoshihide KIHARA
  • Patent number: 11728166
    Abstract: Provided is a method of processing a substrate including an etching target film and a mask having an opening formed on the etching target film. The method includes a) providing the substrate on a stage in a chamber and b) forming a film having a thickness that differs along a film thickness direction of the mask, on a side wall of the opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED
    Inventors: Sho Kumakura, Maju Tomura, Yoshihide Kihara, Hironari Sasagawa
  • Publication number: 20230251567
    Abstract: An etching method comprises (a) providing a substrate in a chamber, the substrate including a silicon-containing film and a mask on the silicon-containing film; and (b) etching the silicon-containing film, including (b-1) etching the silicon-containing film using plasma generated from a first process gas, the first process gas containing a hydrogen fluoride gas and a reaction control gas to control a reaction between hydrogen fluoride and the silicon-containing film, the first process gas containing, as the reaction control gas, at least one of a reaction accelerator gas to accelerate the reaction or a reaction inhibitor gas to inhibit the reaction, and (b-2) etching the silicon-containing film using plasma generated from a second process gas, the second process gas containing a hydrogen fluoride gas, and containing at least one of a reaction accelerator gas to accelerate the reaction or a reaction inhibitor gas to inhibit the reaction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 15, 2023
    Publication date: August 10, 2023
    Applicant: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Ryutaro SUDA, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA, Taiki MIURA, Jaeyoung PARK, Yusuke FUKUNAGA
  • Publication number: 20230245898
    Abstract: Provided is a plasma processing method performed with a plasma processing apparatus including a chamber. The method includes: (a) providing a substrate in the chamber, the substrate having an organic film and a mask on the organic film, the mask including a silicon-containing film and a carbon-containing film on the silicon-containing film; and (b) forming a plasma from a processing gas in the chamber, the processing gas including an oxygen-containing gas and a gas containing Si or W and a halogen. (b) includes: (b1) forming a protective film on at least the carbon-containing film of the mask; and (b2) etching the organic film through the mask having the protective film formed thereon.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2023
    Publication date: August 3, 2023
    Inventors: Tomohiko NIIZEKI, Maju TOMURA, Yoshihide KIHARA