IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,406,843
Granted Patent B2
US 12,406,843 · App. 18/473,625 · Granted Sep 2, 2025

Method of manufacturing semiconductor device, method of processing substrate, substrate processing apparatus, and recording medium

Inventors: Kazuhiro Harada (Toyama, JP); Masayoshi Minami (Toyama, JP); Shintaro Kogura (Toyama, JP); Shogo Otani (Toyama, JP); Yoshitomo Hashimoto (Toyama, JP)
Assignee: Kokusai Electric Corporation
H01L21/022C23C16/308C23C16/325C23C16/345C23C16/36C23C16/46C23C16/52H01L21/0214H01L21/02167H01L21/0217H01L21/0228H01L21/02301H01L21/02323H01L21/02326H01L21/02211
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,406,843
App. No.
18/473,625
Granted
Sep 2, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

There is included (a) loading a substrate where a conductive metal-element-containing film is exposed on a surface of the substrate into a process chamber under a first temperature; (b) supplying a reducing gas to the substrate while raising a temperature of the substrate to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber; (c) forming a first film on the metal-element-containing film, by supplying a first process gas, which does not include an oxidizing gas, to the substrate under the second temperature in the process chamber; and (d) forming a second film on the first film such that the second film is thicker than the first film, by supplying a second process gas, which includes an oxidizing gas, to the substrate under a third temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber.

Claims (68)

1. A method of processing a substrate, comprising:

(a) loading a substrate including a conductive metal-element-containing film on a surface of the substrate into a process chamber under a first temperature;

(b) supplying a reducing gas to the conductive metal-element-containing film while raising a temperature of the substrate to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber, wherein the reducing gas performs a chemical reduction reaction; and

(c) forming a first film, which contains silicon and at least one selected from the group of nitrogen and carbon, on the metal-element-containing film, by supplying a first process gas, which does not include an oxidizing gas, to the substrate under the second temperature in the process chamber.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: (d) forming a second film, which contains silicon, oxygen, carbon, and nitrogen, on the first film, by supplying a second process gas, which includes an oxidizing gas, to the substrate under a third temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first temperature is set to a room temperature or higher and 200 degrees C. or lower.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first temperature is set to a room temperature or higher and 150 degrees C. or lower.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one selected from the group of a hydrogen gas and a deuterium gas is used as the reducing gas.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein in (b), a native oxide film formed on a surface of the metal-element-containing film is removed by the temperature rise under a reducing gas atmosphere.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein in (b), an oxidation of the surface of the metal-element-containing film where the native oxide film has been removed is prevented.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the second temperature is set to 500 degrees C. or higher and 800 degrees C. or lower.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the second temperature is set to 600 degrees C. or higher and 700 degrees C. or lower.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first film includes at least one selected from the group of a silicon nitride film, a silicon carbide film, and a silicon carbonitride film.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the first film is 0.16 nm or more and 1 nm or less.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the first film is 0.16 nm or more and 0.48 nm or less.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the first film is 0.16 nm or more and 0.32 nm or less.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source or a gas serving as a silicon source and a carbon source; and

a gas serving as at least one selected from the group of a nitrogen source and a carbon source, and

wherein in (c), a cycle which includes supplying the respective gases of the first process gas is performed a predetermined number of times.

15. The method of claim 2 , wherein the first process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source or a gas serving as a silicon source and a carbon source; and

a gas serving as at least one selected from the group of a nitrogen source and a carbon source,

wherein in (c), the respective gases of the first process gas are intermittently supplied to the substrate,

wherein the second process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source or a gas serving as a silicon source and a carbon source;

a gas serving as at least one selected from the group of a nitrogen source and a carbon source; and

a gas serving as an oxygen source, and

wherein in (d), the respective gases of the second process gas are intermittently and non-simultaneously supplied to the substrate.

16. The method of claim 2 , wherein in (d), the first film formed in (c) is modified into a film having a dielectric constant lower than a dielectric constant of the first film before performing (d).

17. The method of claim 2 , wherein in (c), a silicon carbonitride film is formed as the first film, and

wherein in (d), a silicon oxycarbonitride film is formed as the second film, and the first film is modified from the silicon carbonitride film into a silicon oxycarbonitride film.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the first process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source;

a gas serving as a carbon source; and

a gas serving as a nitrogen source,

wherein in (c), the respective gases of the first process gas are intermittently supplied to the substrate, and

wherein the second process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source;

a gas serving as a carbon source;

a gas serving as a nitrogen source; and

a gas serving as an oxygen source, and

wherein in (d), the respective gases of the second process gas are intermittently supplied to the substrate.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second temperature and the third temperature are set to be the same temperature.

20. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device comprising the processing method of claim 1 .

21. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:

a process chamber in which a substrate is processed;

a heater configured to heat the substrate in the process chamber;

a reducing gas supply system configured to supply a reducing gas to the substrate in the process chamber;

a first process gas supply system configured to supply a first process gas, which does not include an oxidizing gas, to the substrate in the process chamber;

a transfer system configured to transfer the substrate into the process chamber; and

a controller configured to be capable of controlling the heater, the reducing gas supply system, the first process gas supply system, and the transfer system so as to perform a process including:

(a) loading the substrate including a conductive metal-element-containing film on a surface of the substrate into the process chamber under a first temperature;

(b) supplying the reducing gas to the conductive metal-element-containing film while raising a temperature of the substrate to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber, wherein the reducing gas performs a chemical reduction reaction; and

(c) forming a first film, which contains silicon and at least one selected from the group of nitrogen and carbon, on the metal-element-containing film, by supplying the first process gas to the substrate under the second temperature in the process chamber.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a program that causes, by a computer, a substrate processing apparatus to perform a process comprising:

(a) loading a substrate including a conductive metal-element-containing film on a surface of the substrate into a process chamber under a first temperature;

(b) supplying a reducing gas to the conductive metal-element-containing film while raising a temperature of the substrate to a second temperature higher than the first temperature in the process chamber, wherein the reducing gas performs a chemical reduction reaction; and

(c) forming a first film, which contains silicon and at least one selected from the group of nitrogen and carbon, on the metal-element-containing film, by supplying a first process gas, which does not include an oxidizing gas, to the substrate under the second temperature in the process chamber.

23. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source or a gas serving as a silicon source and a carbon source; and

a gas serving as at least one selected from the group of a nitrogen source and a carbon source.

24. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first process gas includes:

a gas serving as a silicon source;

a gas serving as a carbon source; and

a gas serving as a nitrogen source.

25. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second temperature is set to 500 degrees C. or higher and 800 degrees C. or lower.

26. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second temperature is set to 600 degrees C. or higher and 700 degrees C. or lower.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 25, 2023
From: HARADA, KAZUHIRO; MINAMI, MASAYOSHI; KOGURA, SHINTARO; OTANI, SHOGO; HASHIMOTO, YOSHITOMO
To: KOKUSAI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 065022/0592 →
Continuity (3)
Continuation 17465269 · Sep 2, 2021
Continuation PCTJP2019008550 · Mar 5, 2019
Related Publication 20240014032A1 · Jan 11, 2024
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