Patent ID: 9460895
Filing Date: 2016-10-04
CPC Classification: H01J,H01L,Y10T

Claim Text:
1. A gas supply method for a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that alternately repeats a first step of performing a plasma process on a workpiece by supplying a first gas into a chamber via a first gas pipe and a diffusion chamber, and a second step of performing a plasma process on the workpiece by supplying a second gas into the chamber via a second gas supply pipe and the diffusion chamber, the gas supply method comprising the steps of: controlling communication between the first gas pipe and a diffusion chamber using a first valve; controlling communication between the second gas pipe and the diffusion chamber using a second valve; controlling discharge of gas within the first gas pipe using a third valve that is provided to a first bypass pipe connected upstream from the first valve of the first gas pipe; controlling discharge of gas within the second gas pipe using a fourth valve that is provided to a second bypass pipe connected upstream from the second valve of the second gas pipe; controlling communication between an exhaust pipe and the diffusion chamber using a fifth valve, said exhaust pipe being not connected to the first gas pipe and said exhaust pipe being not connected to the second gas pipe; a first pressurization step of closing the first valve and closing the third valve before starting the first step, and increasing a pressure within the first gas pipe by the first gas; a second pressurization step of closing the second valve and closing the fourth valve before starting the second step, and increasing a pressure within the second gas pipe by the second gas; and an exhaust step of opening the fifth valve in response to a start of the first step and a start of the second step, and discharging gas within the diffusion chamber via the exhaust pipe, wherein one of the first and second gases is switched to the other of the first and second gases when a sum of the number of moles flowing out toward the exhaust pipe and the number of moles flowing out toward the chamber reaches a volume of the diffusion chamber, and the same number of moles of the other of the first and second gasses flows into the diffusion chamber.