Method for forming a high quality low temperature silicon nitride film

1. A method of forming a silicon nitride film comprising:

heating a substrate to a temperature of 550° C. or less;

thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas using only thermal energy to form a silicon nitride film on said substrate while heating said substrate to a temperature of 550° C. or less, wherein said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or said silicon containing source gas includes a first silicon atom bonded to a second silicon atom by a single bond, wherein a chlorine (Cl) atom or a nitrogen (N) atom is bonded to said first silicon atom, and wherein a chlorine atom or a nitrogen atom is bonded to said second silicon atom; and

treating said silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said hydrogen radicals are formed by plasma decomposition of a hydrogen containing source gas.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas comprises ammonia (NH 3 ).

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas further comprises hydrogen gas (H 2 ).

5. The method of claim 2 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas comprises H 2 .

6. The method of claim 5 wherein an inert gas selected from the group consisting of nitrogen gas (N 2 ), argon (Ar) and helium (He) is provided with said hydrogen containing source gas.

7. The method of claim 2 wherein said plasma decomposition of said source gas occurs in a chamber remote from the chamber in which said silicon nitride film is treated with hydrogen radicals.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said treatment of said silicon nitride film with said hydrogen radicals occurs at a pressure between 100 mTorr and 5 Torr.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film has a chlorine concentration of greater than 1.0 atomic percent prior to treating said film and less than 1 . 0 atomic percent after treating said film.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film has a carbon concentration of greater than 10 atomic percent prior to treating said film and a carbon concentration of less than 5 atomic percent after treating said film.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein said thermal decomposition temperature is less than 500° C.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film is formed at a deposition rate of greater than 100 Å/per minute.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film is formed to a thickness of less than 150 Å prior to treating with said hydrogen radicals.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of greater than 15 atomic percent prior to said hydrogen radical treatment.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein after treating said silicon nitride film, said silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of less than 10 atomic percent.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the other three bonds of each of said silicon atoms are bonded to either a nitrogen atom or a chlorine atom.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon source gas or said silicon/nitrogen source gas includes an organo group bonded to a nitrogen atom bonded to the first silicon atom.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon containing source gas or said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas includes a chlorinated or non-chlorinated organo amino-di or mono-silane R 2 N—Si(R′ 2 )—Si x (R′ 2 ) y —NR 2 (x=y=0 or 1; R,R′=any combination of Cl, or methyl, or ethyl, or iso=propyl, or other alkyl groups, or another alkyamino group, or cyclic group containing N, or a silyl group).

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said silicon containing source gas or said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas is selected from the group consisting of 1,2-diethyl-tetrakis (diethylamino) disilane, 1,2-dichloro-tetrakis (diethylamino) disilane, and hexakis (N-pyrrolidinio) disilane.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon containing source gas is hexachlorodisilane (HCD).

21. The method of claim 1 further comprising forming a second silicon nitride film onto said treated silicon nitride film by thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas; and

treating said second silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising forming a third silicon nitride film on said second treated silicon nitride film by thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas; and

treating said third silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals.

23. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride film is treated with hydrogen radicals at a flux between 5×10 15 atoms/cm 2–1×10 17 atoms/cm 2 .

24. The method of claim 23 wherein the pressure while treating said silicon nitride film with said hydrogen radicals is between 100 mTorr–5 Torr.

25. The method of claim 1 wherein the pressure in said chamber while forming said silicon nitride film is between 10–350 Torr.

26. The method of claim 1 wherein said deposited silicon nitride film is treated for between 15–120 seconds.

27. The method of claim 1 wherein said silicon nitride deposited film is treated with hydrogen radicals at a temperature between 450–600° C.

28. The method of claim 1 wherein prior to treating said silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said silicon nitride film having a refractive index of less than 1.85.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein after treating said silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said silicon nitride film having a refractive index of greater than or equal to 1.90.

30. The method of claim 1 wherein prior to treating said silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said silicon nitride film has an etch rate of more than two times that of silicon oxide utilizing a buffered oxide etch.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein after treating said silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said silicon nitride film has an etch rate of approximately the same as the etch rate of silicon oxide utilizing a buffered oxide etch.

32. A method of forming a silicon nitride film comprising:

depositing a silicon nitride film by thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas using only thermal energy at a temperature of less than 550° C. and at a deposition rate of greater than 100 Å/minute to a thickness of less than 150 Å, wherein said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or said silicon containing source gas includes a first silicon atom bonded to a second silicon atom by a single bond, wherein a chlorine (Cl) atom or a nitrogen (N) atom is bonded to said first silicon atom, and wherein a chlorine atom or a nitrogen atom is bonded to said second silicon atom; and

treating said deposited silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals formed by plasma decomposition of a hydrogen containing gas to form a treated silicon nitride film.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein said silicon containing source gas or said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas is selected from the group consisting of organo-di-silane, organo-mono-silane, organoamino-di-silane, organoamino-mono-silane.

34. The method of claim 32 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas comprises ammonia (NH 3 ).

35. The method of claim 32 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas comprises hydrogen gas (H 2 ).

36. The method of claim 32 wherein said hydrogen containing source gas comprises ammonia (NH 3 ) and hydrogen (H 2 ).

37. The method of claim 32 wherein said deposited silicon nitride film is treated with hydrogen radicals having a flux of between 5×10 15 atoms/cm 2–1×10 17 atoms/cm 2 .

38. The method of claim 32 wherein prior to treating said deposited silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of greater than 15 atomic percent significantly in Si—H forms and wherein after treating said deposited silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals, said treated silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of less than 10% and substantially reduced Si—H bonds.

39. The method of claim 32 wherein said plasma decomposition occurs in a chamber remote from said chamber in which said silicon nitride film is treated with hydrogen radicals.

40. The method of claim 32 wherein said silicon nitride film is treated within the same chamber in which it is deposited.

41. A method of forming a silicon nitride film comprising:

depositing a silicon film by thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas using only thermal energy wherein said silicon containing source or said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas includes chlorine and carbon; and

treating said deposited silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals formed by plasma decomposition of a hydrogen containing gas to form a treated silicon nitride film.

42. A method for forming a silicon nitride film comprising:

depositing a silicon nitride film by thermally decomposing a silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or a silicon containing source gas and a nitrogen containing source gas using only thermal energy, wherein said silicon/nitrogen containing source gas or said silicon containing source includes carbon and wherein after depositing said silicon nitride film said silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of greater 15 atomic percent and a carbon concentration of greater than 10 atomic percent; and

treating said deposited silicon nitride film with hydrogen radicals until said silicon nitride film has a hydrogen concentration of less than 10 atomic percent and a carbon concentration of less than 5 atomic percent.

43. The method of claim 42 wherein said silicon nitride film has chlorine concentration of greater than 1.0 atomic percent prior to treating said film and less than 1.0 atomic percent after treating said film.