Utilizing Plasma With Other Nonionizing Energy Sources Patents (Class 427/570)
  • Patent number: 6383554
    Abstract: There is provided a process and its system for fabricating plasma with feedback control on plasma density. This process uses a heterodyne millimeter wave interferometer as a sensor to measure the plasma density in the process container and the plasma density that is needed in the plasma fabricating process, and then provides real-time information of the measurements to a digital control device which makes numerical calculations and then drives the RF power generator to change the RF output power so as to enable the plasma density in the plasma fabricating process to be close to the expected plasma density. The conventional operation parameter method is to control air pressure, RF power, gas flow quantity, temperature and so on. However, it does not control the plasma parameter that has the most direct influence on the process. Therefore, this method cannot guarantee that, in the process of fabricating wafers, different batches of wafers will be operated under similar process plasma conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2000
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2002
    Assignee: National Science Council
    Inventors: Cheng-Hung Chang, Keh-Chyang Leou, Chaung Lin, Yi-Mei Yang, Chuen-Horng Tsai, I. G. Chen
  • Patent number: 6375860
    Abstract: The occurrence of internally-formed contaminants or negatively-charged particulates within a plasma is minimized by preventing such from becoming trapped in the plasma. The plasma is formed in a plasma chamber having control electrodes and reference electrodes. The control electrodes are biased with a negative potential. The plasma assumes a potential more positive than the control electrodes. The reference electrodes are then biased to be more positive than the plasma. Hence, negative ions or negatively-charged particulates in the plasma are attracted to the more positive reference electrodes, and thus escape the plasma without being trapped therein, and are not available to serve as nucleation or agglomeration points for contaminants. A pair of Helmholtz coils produce a magnetic field having magnetic field lines that run longitudinally between the control electrodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 1995
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2002
    Assignee: General Atomics
    Inventors: Tihiro Ohkawa, Stanley I. Tsunoda
  • Patent number: 6372303
    Abstract: A method is proposed for vacuum-coating a substrate using a plasma-CVD method. In order to control ion bombardment during the vacuum coating, a substrate voltage produced independently from a coating plasma is applied to the substrate. The substrate voltage is modified during the coating. The substrate voltage is a direct voltage that is pulsed in bipolar fashion with a frequency of 0.1 kHz to 10 MHz. A wear-resistant and friction-reducing multilayer structure of alternating hard material individual layers and carbon or silicon individual layers is proposed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2002
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Kurt Burger, Thomas Weber, Johannes Voigt, Susanne Lucas
  • Patent number: 6365495
    Abstract: A process for chemical vapor deposition of titanium nitride film using thermal decomposition of a metal-organic compound is disclosed. In particular, the deposition of titanium nitride film from tetrakis dimethylamino-titanium (TDMAT) is performed at a temperature preferably below 350° C. in the presence of helium and nitrogen. The process is performed at a total pressure of about 5 torr, a nitrogen dilutant gas flow of at least 500 sccm, preferably about 1000 sccm, and an edge purge gas flow of at least 500 sccm. These process parameters, coupled with an improved thermal conduction between the wafer and the heated pedestal, lead to a conformal deposition of titanium nitride film at a rate of at least 6 Å/sec.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2002
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Shulin Wang, Huan Luo, Keith K. Koai, Ming Xi, Mei Chang, Russell C. Ellwanger
  • Patent number: 6358569
    Abstract: A method of applying a thin film to a body comprising exposing the body to pulsed-gas cold-plasma polymerization of an unsaturated-carboxylic acid monomer thereby forming a polymer film on a surface of the body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 25, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2002
    Assignee: Mupor Limited
    Inventors: Jas Pal S Badyal, Simon J. Hutton
  • Patent number: 6348237
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for the formation of an organic coating on a substrate. The method includes: providing a substrate in a vacuum; providing at least one vaporized organic material comprising at least one component from at least one source, wherein the vaporized organic material is capable of condensing in a vacuum of less than about 130 Pa; providing a plasma from at least one source other than the source of the vaporized organic material; directing the vaporized organic material and the plasma toward the substrate; and causing the vaporized organic material to condense and polymerize on the substrate in the presence of the plasma to form an organic coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2001
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2002
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Gunter A. Kohler, William H. Esswein, Seth M. Kirk, Brian J. Gates
  • Patent number: 6348238
    Abstract: A thin film is fabricated while causing ions in a plasma P to be incident by effecting biasing relative to the space potential of the plasma P by imparting a set potential to the surface of a substrate 9. A bias system 6 causes the substrate surface potential Vs to vary in pulse form by imposing an electrode imposed voltage Ve in pulse form on a bias electrode 23 which is in a dielectric block 22. The pulse frequency is lower than the oscillation frequency of ions in the plasma P, and the pulse period T, pulse width t and pulse height h are controlled by a control section 62 in a manner such that the incidence of ions is optimized. The imposed pulses are controlled in a manner such that the substrate surface potential Vs recovers to a floating potential Vf at the end of a pulse period T, and that the ion incidence energy temporarily crosses a thin film sputtering threshold value in a pulse period T.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2002
    Assignee: Anelva Corporation
    Inventors: Shigeru Mizuno, Makoto Satou, Manabu Tagami, Hideki Satou
  • Patent number: 6344419
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for achieving conformal step coverage of one or more materials on a substrate using sputtered ionized material. A target provides a source of material to be sputtered by a plasma and then ionized by an inductive coil, thereby producing electrons and ions. In one embodiment, one or both of the signals to the substrate and the target are modulated. Preferably, the modulated signal to the substrate includes a negative voltage portion and a zero voltage portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2002
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: John Forster, Praburam Gopalraja, Bradley O. Stimson, Liubo Hong
  • Patent number: 6340505
    Abstract: A hydrogenated or fluorinated carbon protective film is formed on a disk through a plasma CVD method by use of a hydrocarbon-containing reaction gas as a raw material, where the disk comprises a non-magnetic substrate on which a non-magnetic undercoat film and a magnetic film are successively formed, wherein the protective film has a thickness of 2.2 g/cm3 or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 22, 2002
    Assignee: Showa Denko Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Mikio Suzuki, Noriyuki Miyamoto, Emi Shimaoka, Kimie Takagi
  • Patent number: 6316062
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a magnetic recording medium comprising the steps of forming a carbon protective film onto a disc, the non-magnetic substrate of which is layered with a non-magnetic base film and magnetic film, using a reactant gas containing carbon atoms as a starting material, according to a plasma CVD method, wherein a mixed gas of hydrocarbon and hydrogen, in which the mixing ratio of hydrocarbon to hydrogen is in the range of 2 to 1˜1 to 100 by volume, is used as a reactant gas, during bias applying to said disc. In addition, the present invention provides a magnetic recording medium comprising a carbon protective film formed onto a disc, the non-magnetic substrate of which is layered with a non-magnetic base film and magnetic film, wherein said carbon protective film is formed according to a plasma CVD method, while applying bias.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2000
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2001
    Assignee: Showa Denko K.K.
    Inventors: Ryuji Sakaguchi, Kazuo Kobayashi, Hiroshi Sakai, Mikio Suzuki, Kenichi Yoneyama, Kazunori Ohnami
  • Publication number: 20010032781
    Abstract: A method for chemical vapor deposition for producing a thin film. The method includes the steps of: introducing a reactive gas into a reaction chamber wherein a substrate is supported in the reaction chamber; combining charged particles with a component of the reactive gas for ionizing the component; and electrostatically depositing the ionized component onto the substrate in an electric field. Charged particles may be photoelectrons or positive or negative ions produced by discharge. The reactive gas may be solely an ingredient gas containing a component for a thin film or a mixture of the ingredient gas and an oxidizing or reducing gas.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 26, 1998
    Publication date: October 25, 2001
    Inventors: TOSHIAKI FUJII, MOTOAKI ADACHI, KIKUO OKUYAMA
  • Patent number: 6241858
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for uniformly depositing a coating material from a vaporization source onto a powdered substrate material to form a thin coalescence film of the coating material that smoothly replicates the surface microstructure of the substrate material. The coating material is uniformly deposited on the substrate material to form optical interference pigment particles. The thin film enhances the hiding power and color gamut of the substrate material. Physical vapor deposition processes are used for depositing the film on the substrate material. The apparatus and systems employed in forming the coated particles utilize vibrating bed coaters, vibrating conveyor coaters, or coating towers. These allow the powdered substrate material to be uniformly exposed to the coating material vapor during the coating process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: June 5, 2001
    Assignee: Flex Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Roger W. Phillips, Vladimir Raksha
  • Patent number: 6228228
    Abstract: A display as for images and/or information comprises a plurality of light-emitting fibers disposed in side-by-side arrangement to define a viewing surface. Each light-emitting fiber includes a plurality of light-emitting elements disposed along its length, each having two electrodes between which are applied electrical signals to cause the light-emitting element to emit light to display a pixel or sub-pixel of the image and/or information. The light-emitting fiber includes an electrical conductor disposed along its length to serve as a first electrode, a layer of light-emissive material disposed thereon, and a plurality of electrical contacts disposed on the light-emissive material to serve as the second electrodes of the light-emitting elements, and are formed in a continuous process wherein a transparent fiber passes through a plurality of processing chambers for receiving the electrical conductor, the light-emissive layer and the plurality of electrical contacts thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 1999
    Date of Patent: May 8, 2001
    Assignee: Sarnoff Corporation
    Inventors: Bawa Singh, William Ronald Roach, William Chiang
  • Patent number: 6221493
    Abstract: According to the present invention there is now provided a body of cemented carbide or cermets coated with at least one diamond layer. The diamond layer is smooth on all sides of the body with an Ra<1 &mgr;m. According to the present invention there is also provided a method for reactive ion etching of a diamond layer on a complex shape body where the etching is efficient at all sides of the body exposed to the plasma. The etching is made using a C— or oxygen-containing plasma with the possibility of etching of a diamond layer covered by an outer layer of preferably a Si containing material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2001
    Assignee: Sandvik AB
    Inventors: Ingrid Reineck, Bengt Edholm, Christian Strondl
  • Patent number: 6218320
    Abstract: A method for improving the uniformity of wafer-to-wafer film thicknesses. Before depositing films, shower heads in a PECVD system is heated to production temperature to make the entire system (including the shower heads) reach a stable temperature in coordination with heating of a heater block. Subsequently, a gas source, output via the shower heads, is provided, and then a plasma of the gas source is generated to form a film on the wafer due to the temperatures of the shower heads remain constant during wafers deposition. Therefore, the problem of the uneven thicknesses of films among wafers is resolved. Moreover, if the heating of the shower heads by use of a plasma (which can also be used to heat the heater block) and the heater block is concurrently performed after the preventive maintenance (PM) or open chamber cleaning of the PECVD system, the heating time of the heater block can be further shortened.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2001
    Assignee: United Microelectronics Corp.
    Inventors: Tsung-Lin Lu, Ping-Chung Chung, Yun-Sueng Liou, Yung-Chun Wen, Tsang-Jung Lin
  • Patent number: 6214479
    Abstract: This invention provides a covered member which possesses a high bond strength of a base material and a covering film, and has a smooth surface. The covered member comprises a base material and a covering film and the surface of the base material to be covered with the covering film is characterized by an uneven surface having projections with an average height in the range from 10 to 100 nm and an average width of not more than 300 nm. The uneven surface can be formed by ion impacting. A surface of a covering film formed on that is smooth since the unevenness of the surface is extremely fine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2001
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toyota Chuo Kenkyusho
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Mori, Hideo Tachikawa
  • Patent number: 6203862
    Abstract: A substrate processing system includes a processing chamber, a substrate holder positioned in the chamber, a gas source for supplying a process gas to the chamber, first and second ion sources located in the chamber, and a power source for energizing the first and second ion sources. Each ion source ionizes the process gas to produce ions for processing a substrate disposed on the substrate holder. The first and second ion sources include first and second anodes, respectively. The power source energizes the first and second anodes in a time multiplexed manner, such that only one of the first and second ion sources is energized at any time and interactions between ion sources are eliminated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2001
    Assignee: Intevac, Inc.
    Inventors: Terry Bluck, James H. Rogers, Sean P. McGinnis
  • Patent number: 6200675
    Abstract: The invention relates to an improved diamond-like nanocomposite composition comprising networks of a-C:H and a-Si:O wherein the H-concentration is between 40% and 80% of the C-concentration and having a coefficient of friction against steel which is smaller than 0.1 in air with a relative humidity up to 90%, or in water. The invention relates also to a process for depositing the composition on a substrate in a vacuum chamber. The composition comprises preferably 30 to 70 at % of C, 20 to 40 at % of H, 5 to 15 at % of Si and 5 to 15 at % of O and can be doped with transition metals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2001
    Assignee: N.V. Bekaert S.A.
    Inventors: Dominique Neerinck, Arvind Goel
  • Patent number: 6197386
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for applying a coating by means of plasma spraying to a substrate, in which method the beam of a laser is additionally used, it being possible to coat a very wide variety of substrates in order, in particular, to improve the properties on the substrate surface. Moreover, the method according to the invention is to achieve a high coating rate and, in addition to advantageous adhesion and density of the layer, also to influence in a controlled manner the layer structure which is being formed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2001
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Forderung der Angewandten Forschung E.V.
    Inventors: Eckhard Beyer, Steffen Nowotny
  • Patent number: 6197234
    Abstract: To increase the anti-wettability of a body vis a vis a fluid the body is subjected in a treatment enclosure to a post-discharge nitrogen plasma. A fluorinated vapor is fed into the plasma on the input side or on the output side of the discharge cavity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2001
    Assignee: Conte SA
    Inventors: Pierre Goudmand, Odile Dessaux, Jean-Denis Quensierre, Vincent Bedhome, Philippe Chavatte, José Duez
  • Patent number: 6153063
    Abstract: In a phase-change recording medium, a recording medium is provided with a barrier layer including Ge--N, Ge--N--O between a recording layer and a dielectric protective layer in order to prevent a chemical reaction and an atom diffusion between the recording layer and the dielectric protective layer. A barrier material can be also applied to the protective layer itself. Thereby, it is possible to considerably suppress a reduction of a reflectivity and a reduction of a signal amplitude due to the repeat of recording and erasing, such reductions being observed in a conventional phase-change optical information recording medium, and thereby the number of overwriting times can be increased.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1998
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2000
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Noboru Yamada, Mayumi Otoba, Kenichi Nagata, Katsumi Kawahara
  • Patent number: 6124003
    Abstract: A film is deposited on a target object by exposing the target object to film deposition plasma of a film deposition material gas while irradiating the target object with ion beams. An ion source is used for the irradiation with the ion beams. The ion source has a plasma container and an ion beam producing electrode system formed of four electrodes. The plasma container and the first electrode located in an inner position nearest to the plasma container carry a positive potential. The second electrode carries a negative potential or a lower potential than the film deposition plasma. The third electrode carries a positive potential or a higher potential than the film deposition plasma. The fourth electrode in the outer position remotest from the plasma container carries a ground potential.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2000
    Assignee: Nissin Electric Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Mikami, Hiroshi Murakami
  • Patent number: 6106737
    Abstract: A plasma treatment method comprising exhausting a process chamber so as to decompress the process chamber, mounting a wafer on a suscepter, supplying a process gas to the wafer through a shower electrode, applying high frequency power, which has a first frequency f.sub.1 lower than an inherent lower ion transit frequencies of the process gas, to the suscepter, and applying high frequency power, which has a second frequency f.sub.2 higher than an inherent upper ion transit frequencies of the process gas, whereby a plasma is generated in the process chamber and activated species influence the wafer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2000
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Masayuki Tomoyasu, Akira Koshiishi, Kosuke Imafuku, Shosuke Endo, Kazuhiro Tahara, Yukio Naito, Kazuya Nagaseki, Keizo Hirose, Mitsuaki Komino, Hiroto Takenaka, Hiroshi Nishikawa, Yoshio Sakamoto
  • Patent number: 6083360
    Abstract: A method of reducing particle generation from the thin coating deposited on the internal surfaces of a deposition chamber which undergoes temperature variation greater than 100.degree. C. comprising maintaining the temperature variation of the internal surfaces low enough during the process cycle to keep thermal expansion stresses between the coating and the surfaces under 500 MPa. For titanium nitride deposited on stainless steel, this means keeping temperature variations under approximately 70.degree. C. in a chamber that may be heated to over 350.degree. C. during a typical processing operation. Preferably, a supplemental heater is mounted behind the upper shield and controlled by a temperature sensitive element which provides feedback control based on the temperature of the upper shield.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2000
    Assignee: Sandia Corporation
    Inventors: James A. Ohlhausen, Diane E. Peebles, John A. Hunter, Kenneth H. Eckelmeyer
  • Patent number: 6071572
    Abstract: In a vapor deposition chamber which holds a substrate for processing, a method including the steps of forming a layer of material on the surface of the substrate, wherein the layer of material is made of Ti atoms; remotely activating a source gas containing nitrogen so as to produce activated nitrogen gas species; and while forming the layer of material on the substrate, injecting the activated nitrogen species into the processing chamber to increase the population of activated nitrogen species that is incorporated into the layer of material that is being formed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2000
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Roderick C. Mosely, Jim Van Gogh, Karl A. Littau
  • Patent number: 6060131
    Abstract: A substrate to be coated with a thin film is placed inside a vacuum chamber, an ECR plasma is generated and introduced into the vacuum chamber by means of a specified magnetic field generated inside the vacuum chamber and a reaction gas, as well as an inert gas, is introduced into the vacuum chamber while a negative DC voltage superposed with a high-frequency pulse with frequency 25-250 kHz is applied to the substrate by a voltage applying device such that the voltage of the substrate reaches a positive value instantaneously. The frequency of the superposed pulse is selected by using an ammeter to determine an optimum frequency for minimizing the load current of the voltage-applying circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2000
    Assignee: Shimadzu Corporation
    Inventors: Masayasu Suzuki, Noritaka Akita, Yoshihiro Hashimoto
  • Patent number: 6045916
    Abstract: DLC film formed on at least one surface of a plastic film, and this DLC film has a composition comprising 75 to 55 mol% of carbon and 25 to 45 mol% of hydrogen. And this DLC film is formed by a plasma deposition process while the plastic film is loaded with a tensile force in a biaxial direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2000
    Assignee: Kirin Beer Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Eihaku Shimamura, Chiori Ito, Akira Shirakura
  • Patent number: 5997962
    Abstract: A wafer is subjected to a plasma process, using plasma generated while a process gas is fed into a process room, and a plus DC voltage is applied to an electrostatic chuck in order to attract and hold the wafer on the electrostatic chuck by an electrostatic force. A minus DC voltage is applied to the electrostatic chuck while nitrogen gas is fed into the process room in order to cause DC discharge after the processed wafer is separated from the electrostatic chuck and before a next wafer is attracted and held on the electrostatic chuck. By doing so, plus electric charge in the gas is attracted to the electrostatic chuck, so that the surface of the electrostatic chuck is charged with plus electric charge, thereby preventing its attracting function from being deteriorated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 1996
    Date of Patent: December 7, 1999
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Masahiro Ogasawara, Ryo Nonaka, Yoshiyuki Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 5980999
    Abstract: A first reactive gas is introduced into a vacuum chamber and a plasma of the thus introduced reactive gas is produced. A second reactive gas is introduced into a radical generating chamber and is dissociated to generate radicals whose density and composition are well controlled. Then, the thus generated radicals are injected into the plasma generated within the vacuum chamber such that an amount of a desired kind of radicals within the plasma is selectively increased or decreased. In this manner, a thin film having an excellent property can be deposited on a substrate placed in the vacuum chamber. Alternatively, a surface of a substrate placed in the vacuum chamber can be processed precisely and selectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 1996
    Date of Patent: November 9, 1999
    Assignee: Nagoya University
    Inventors: Toshio Goto, Masaru Hori, Mineo Hiramatsu, Masahito Nawata
  • Patent number: 5948704
    Abstract: A vacuum processing chamber having a substrate support removably mounted therein. The chamber includes an opening in a sidewall thereof and the opening is large enough to allow the substrate support to be removed from the chamber through the opening. A modular mounting arrangement extends through the opening and removably supports the substrate support in the interior of the chamber at a position located inwardly of an inner sidewall of the chamber. The mounting arrangement includes a mounting flange and a support arm. The mounting flange is attached to an exterior surface of the chamber and the support arm extends between the substrate support and the mounting flange. The chamber includes a single vacuum port in a central portion of an endwall of the chamber spaced from the substrate support. The vacuum port is connected to a vacuum pump which removes gases from the interior of the chamber and maintains the chamber at a pressure below atmospheric pressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 7, 1999
    Assignee: LAM Research Corporation
    Inventors: Neil Benjamin, Jon Hylbert, Stefano Mangano
  • Patent number: 5925420
    Abstract: Amorphously crosslinked aromatic polymeric low .kappa. materials and methods for their fabrication are provided. The subject materials are prepared by a modified transport polymerization process, in which aromatic precursors are pyrolyzed to produce radical comprising aromatic monomeric precursors which are then allowed to polymerize by deposition onto a substrate surface, where during and/or after deposition the growing polymer chain is exposed to a high energy crosslinking agent, such as high energy photons or plasma. The subject crosslinked materials find use in a variety of applications, particularly as low .kappa. dielectrics in the manufacture of integrated circuits.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 20, 1999
    Assignee: WJ Semiconductor Equipment Group, Inc.
    Inventor: Chung Lee
  • Patent number: 5888591
    Abstract: Provided are methods for forming a fluorocarbon polymer thin film on the surface of a structure. In one method, a monomer gas is exposed to a source of heat having a temperature sufficient to pyrolyze the monomer gas and produce a source of reactive CF.sub.2 species in the vicinity of the structure surface. The structure surface is maintained substantially at a temperature lower than that of the heat source to induce deposition and polymerization of the CF.sub.2 species on the structure surface. In another method for forming a fluorocarbon polymer thin film, the structure is exposed to a plasma environment in which a monomer gas is ionized to produce reactive CF.sub.2 species. The plasma environment is produced by application to the monomer gas of plasma excitation power characterized by an excitation duty cycle having alternating intervals in which excitation power is applied and in which no excitation power is applied to the monomer gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 1996
    Date of Patent: March 30, 1999
    Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Karen K. Gleason, Scott J.H. Limb, Edward F. Gleason, Herbert H. Sawin, David J. Edell
  • Patent number: 5866213
    Abstract: A method for depositing a film on a substrate by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition at temperatures substantially lower than conventional thermal CVD temperatures comprises placing a substrate within a reaction chamber and exciting a first gas upstream of the substrate to generate activated radicals of the first gas. The substrate is rotated within the deposition chamber to create a pumping action which draws the gas mixture of first gas radicals to the substrate surface. A second gas is supplied proximate the substrate to mix with the activated radicals of the first gas and the mixture produces a surface reaction at the substrate to deposit a film. The pumping action draws the gas mixture down to the substrate surface in a laminar flow to reduce recirculation and radical recombination such that a sufficient amount of radicals are available at the substrate surface to take part in the surface reaction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 2, 1999
    Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
    Inventors: Robert F. Foster, Joseph T. Hillman, Rene E. LeBlanc
  • Patent number: 5858471
    Abstract: A deposition process provides selective areal deposition on a substrate surface having separate areas of different materials comprises forming a plasma over the substrate, injecting coating species into the plasma by either of sputtering or gaseous injection, adding a reactive gas for altering surface binding energy at the coating surface, and biasing the substrate during deposition to bombard the substrate with ionic species from the plasma. Surface binding energy is altered, in the general case, differently for the separate areas, enhancing selectivity. Bias power is managed to exploit the alteration in surface binding energy. In the case of gaseous injection of the coating species, and in some cases of sputtering provision of the coating material, the temperature of the substrate surface is managed as well. In an alternative embodiment, selectivity is to phase of the coating material rather than to specific areas on the substrate, and a selected phase may be preferentially deposited on the substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 1996
    Date of Patent: January 12, 1999
    Assignee: Genus, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark A. Ray, Gary E. McGuire
  • Patent number: 5846608
    Abstract: A process an device for ion-supported vacuum coating.The process and the affiliated device is intended to permit the high-rate ating of large-surfaced, electrically conductive and electrically insulating substrates with electrically insulating and electrically conductive coatings with relatively low expenditure. The substrates are predominantly band-shaped, in particular plastic sheets with widths of over a meter.According to the invention, in an intrinsically known device for vacuum coating, alternating negative and positive voltage pulses are applied to the electrically conductive substrate or in electrically insulating substrates, to an electrode disposed directly behind them, e.g. the cooling roller, relative to the plasma or to an electrode that is disposed almost at plasma potential. The form, the voltage, and the duration of the pulses are adapted to the coating task and the material.The process is used particularly for depositing abrasion protection, corrosion protection, and barrier coatings.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 1996
    Date of Patent: December 8, 1998
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft Zur Forderung Der Angewandten Forschung E.V.
    Inventors: Manfred Neumann, Klaus Goedicke, Siegfried Schiller, Jonathan Reschke, Henry Morgner, Falk Milde, Fred Fietzke
  • Patent number: 5846612
    Abstract: Provided is a process for efficiently forming a high-quality deposited film at a high deposition rate in the quality equivalent to or higher than that of films formed by the RF plasma CVD process. A stock gas is introduced under a reduced pressure into a reaction container provided with a cathode electrode inside and a high-frequency power in the range of 50 to 300 MHz is supplied to the cathode electrode, whereby ions of the stock gas with energy of 40 or more eV are made to hit against a substrate, thereby forming a deposited film thereon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 1996
    Date of Patent: December 8, 1998
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoshi Takaki, Atsushi Yamagami, Nobuyuki Okamura
  • Patent number: 5780118
    Abstract: A transparency for ink jet printing is enhanced for use as an ink jet recording medium by increasing the hydrophilicity of the coating formed on a transparent substrate. In one embodiment, the coating is subjected to a corona plasma discharge exposure to create changes in oxygen functionality at the coating surface resulting in increases in surface hydrophilicity. In another embodiment, the surface is exposed with UV radiation and ozone exposure for controlled periods of time. In both cases, the surface hydrophilicity is increased by generating highly reactive free radical oxygen (O.sup.-) which results primarily in increases in the oxygen functional groups C.dbd.O and COO.sup.-.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 1, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 14, 1998
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Mark D. Tracy, Dale R. Ims
  • Patent number: 5721021
    Abstract: A method of depositing a titanium-containing conductive thin film, which is capable of depositing a high-quality thin film having a low chlorine content by grounding, through a capacitor, a terminal of a plasma generating electrode disposed in a processing chamber. In the method, one of the introduction terminals of the plasma generating electrode is connected to a radio-frequency power source, the other terminal being grounded through the capacitor. Titanium tetrachloride, hydrogen gas, and nitrogen gas are introduced into the processing chamber at flowrates of 20 ml/min, 30 ml/min and 10 ml/min, respectively. The pressure in the processing chamber is set to about 1 Pa, and the temperature of the substrate is set to 450.degree. to 600.degree. C. A low-pressure, high-density plasma is generated with an output of the radio-frequency power source of 2.5 kW to deposit a titanium nitride film at a rate of about 30 nm/min.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 1996
    Date of Patent: February 24, 1998
    Assignee: Anelva Corporation
    Inventors: Ryoki Tobe, Masao Sasaki, Atsushi Sekiguchi, Ken-ichi Takagi
  • Patent number: 5711866
    Abstract: A metallic composite solid, containing alloys and/or intermetallics, is formed by compacting at moderate pressure a mixture of powder particles, foils or sheets at a temperature close to room temperature, well below the melting temperature of the constituent components and without the addition of low melting metals such as mercury, indium or gallium acting as a sintering agent. This low temperature consolidation of the powder mixture is enhanced by having the surface oxide of the powder particles removed, prior to consolidation, and/or by coating the particles with an oxide-replacing metal such as silver or gold. The coating process may be replacement reactions, autocatalytic reduction or electrolytic reduction. The composite formation is assisted by the addition of a liquid acid such as fluoroboric acid, sulfuric acid, fluoric acid, adipic acid, ascorbic acid, or nitric acid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 1995
    Date of Patent: January 27, 1998
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Commerce
    Inventors: David S. Lashmore, Moshe P. Dariel, Christian E. Johnson, Menahem B. Ratzker, Anthony A. Giuseppetti, Frederick C. Eichmiller, Glenn L. Beane, David R. Kelley
  • Patent number: 5693376
    Abstract: Uniform ion implantation and deposition onto cylindrical surfaces is achieved by placing a cylindrical electrode in coaxial and conformal relation to the target surface. For implantation and deposition of an inner bore surface the electrode is placed inside the target. For implantation and deposition on an outer cylindrical surface the electrode is placed around the outside of the target. A plasma is generated between the electrode and the target cylindrical surface. Applying a pulse of high voltage to the target causes ions from the plasma to be driven onto the cylindrical target surface. The plasma contained in the space between the target and the electrode is uniform, resulting in a uniform implantation or deposition of the target surface. Since the plasma is largely contained in the space between the target and the electrode, contamination of the vacuum chamber enclosing the target and electrodes by inadvertent ion deposition is reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 2, 1997
    Assignee: Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
    Inventors: Robert P. Fetherston, Muhammad M. Shamim, John R. Conrad
  • Patent number: 5648175
    Abstract: A method of and apparatus for depositing a silicon oxide layer onto a wafer or substrate is provided. The present method includes introducing into a processing chamber a process gas including silicon, oxygen, boron, phosphorus and germanium to form a germanium doped BPSG oxide layer having a reflow temperature of less than 800.degree. C. Preferred embodiments of the present method are performed in either a subatmospheric CVD or a plasma enhanced CVD processing apparatus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 1996
    Date of Patent: July 15, 1997
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Inc.
    Inventors: Kathleen Russell, Stuardo Robles, Bang C. Nguyen, Visweswaren Sivaramakrishnan
  • Patent number: 5614248
    Abstract: Certain non-optical characteristics and, in particular, mechanical characteristics are not measurable in situ in the industrial production of layers using plasma-assisted reactive electron beam vaporization, particularly if high demands are made on the hardness, wear resistance and barrier action, so as to be able to reproducibly apply the layers. The values of the optical layer characteristics are to be used as a control signal. In this method, immediately after the substrate has passed through the vaporizing zone, the reflection and/or transmission and absorption capacity are measured in the wavelength range .DELTA..sub.k =150 to 800 nm and from this are determined the refractive index and optical absorption coefficient. These determined values are compared with an experimentally determined desired value. A control signal obtained therefrom, in the case of a constant reactive gas partial pressure, controls the plasma and maintains constant the optical characteristics of the layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 30, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 25, 1997
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventors: Siegfried Schiller, Manfred Neumann, Volker Kirchhoff, Gerhard Zeissig, Nicolas Schiller, Klaus Goedicke
  • Patent number: 5595792
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing a magnetic recording medium in which production of flakes in a film-forming process and the occurrence of arc discharge in the film-forming surface of a substrate are prevented to thereby attain improvement in the quality of the resulting film and in producing efficiency. A web-like substrate is made to run in a vacuum chamber while the substrate is arranged opposite to a sheet-shaped plasma stream. At the same time, a reactive gas is supplied to the plasma stream while an electric field is generated in a direction crossing the plasma stream and the substrate, which are arranged opposite to each other to thereby form a thin film on the plasma stream side surface of the substrate. Accordingly, the production of flakes is prevented, so that the occurrence of arc discharge in the film-forming surface of the substrate is prevented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 1995
    Date of Patent: January 21, 1997
    Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Makoto Kashiwaya, Junji Nakada
  • Patent number: 5585147
    Abstract: A surface treatment of a glass fabric used for a fiber reinforced composite such as multilayer circuit boards comprises the steps of exposing the glass fabric to an atmospheric pressure plasma of a mixture gas to obtain a plasma-treated surface of the glass fabric, and coating an organosilane compound on the plasma-treated surface. The mixture gas contains as a reaction gas at least one of an oxidative gas and a fluorine-containing gas, and a rare gas as a carrier of the reaction gas. The mixture gas is pre-heated prior to the plasma excitation thereof. When the glass fabric includes an organic compound as a sizing agent, the organic compound can be efficiently removed from the glass fabric by the exposing step. For example, the organosilane compound can be coated on the plasma-treated surface by exposing the plasma-treated surface to a second atmospheric pressure plasma of a second mixture gas containing an organosilane monomer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 17, 1996
    Assignee: Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd.
    Inventors: Satoru Ogawa, Yasushi Sawada, Masahiro Matsumura, Yoshihiko Nakamura
  • Patent number: 5569502
    Abstract: A process and apparatus for depositing a film as desired on the surface of a substrate yet at a low temperature, said process comprising introducing a product gas into a film deposition chamber having provided therein a substrate being mounted on a support, and depositing a film on the surface of said substrate by activating said product gas inside said film deposition chamber while applying ultrasonic oscillation to said substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 1993
    Date of Patent: October 29, 1996
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideomi Koinuma, Masashi Kawasaki, Masatomo Sumiya
  • Patent number: 5518780
    Abstract: This invention is directed to a process for providing a hard, transparent, hydrophobic film of hydrogenated boron nitride on a substrate and the film so made. The process comprises depositing the film condensation from a flux of ions generated from gaseous precursors comprising borazine, the kinetic energy of the ions being between 50 and 300 electron volts per ion. Preferably the process is plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition carried out in a radio frequency plasma system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 21, 1996
    Assignee: Ford Motor Company
    Inventors: Michael A. Tamor, William C. Vassell
  • Patent number: 5464665
    Abstract: Broadly, the present invention is directed to improving a chemical vapor phase deposition (CVD) method for synthesis of diamond wherein a hydrocarbon/hydrogen gaseous mixture is subjected to a combustion flame in the presence of oxygen to at least partially decompose the gaseous mixture to form CVD diamond. The improvement in process comprises subjecting said combustion flame to one or more of dielectric heating, d.c. discharge, or a.c. discharge. Dielectric heating can be accomplished by subjecting the combustion flame to microwave (MW) frequency discharge or radiofrequency (RF) discharge. By superimposing dielectric heating or d.c./a.c. discharge plasma generation on combustion flame process, the carbon utilization rate of the combustion flame process should improve substantially.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 1993
    Date of Patent: November 7, 1995
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Thomas R. Anthony, James F. Fleischer
  • Patent number: 5458919
    Abstract: A thin film forming method which comprises the steps of supporting a substrate to be treated, having a trench or an unevenness thereon, in a reaction vessel; introducing a reactive gas into the reaction vessel; activating the reactive gas to form a deposit species, the deposit species characterized by a phase diagram including a liquid phase region defined by a melting curve and an evaporation curve that intersect at a triple point; and forming a thin film containing at least a part of the deposit species on the substrate while retaining a pressure in the reaction vessel higher than the triple point of the phase diagram of the deposit species, and retaining a temperature of the substrate within the liquid phase region of the phase diagram of the deposit species.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 1994
    Date of Patent: October 17, 1995
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Haruo Okano, Sadahisa Noguchi
  • Patent number: 5453305
    Abstract: A plasma reactor and method for forming a dense plasma from a gas is described incorporating a housing, a gas inlet to the housing, a pump for evacuating the housing, a magnetic coil to generate a magnetic field in the housing, a radio frequency power supply, an electrode or induction coil in the housing, a microwave power supply. The invention overcomes the problem of an upper plasma density limit independent of increases in microwave power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 1993
    Date of Patent: September 26, 1995
    Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
    Inventor: Young H. Lee
  • Patent number: 5424103
    Abstract: A method for making a semiconductor, without using a vacuum pump or vacuum chamber, using corona discharge, which comprises the steps or: supplying a reactive gas to, at least, one electrode capable of generating corona discharge above a substrate with an RF power source under the atmosphere; irradiating ions or radicals resulted from the decomposition of said reactive gas by said corona discharge to said substrate; allowing said ions or radicals to be chemically reacted with said substrate or be diffused in said substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 13, 1995
    Assignee: Goldstar Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Byung C. Ahn