Patent ID: 7435684
Filing Date: 2008-10-14
Classification: C23C,H01L

Abstract:
1. A deposition/etch method performed in a single reaction chamber for filling gaps in a semiconductor substrate comprising the following steps: providing a semiconductor substrate having a gap to be filled in a high density plasma chemical vapor deposition (HDP CVD) reaction chamber; introducing a dielectric process gas into the chamber; depositing a dielectric in the substrate gap using a HDP CVD process; after the dielectric deposition in the substrate gap step, introducing hydrogen into the reaction chamber and forming a hydrogen plasma and maintaining the plasma for a sufficient time to treat the chamber and the dielectric in the substrate gap; after the hydrogen treatment step, introducing an etchant into the reaction chamber and forming an etchant plasma to etch the dielectric in the substrate gap; after the etchant step, introducing hydrogen into the reaction chamber and forming a hydrogen plasma and maintaining the plasma for a sufficient time to scavenge residual etchant and treat the chamber and the dielectric in the substrate gap; and repeating the above steps starting with introducing a dielectric process gas into the chamber until the substrate gap is filled with dielectric and removing the substrate gap filled semiconductor substrate from the reaction chamber.