Patent ID: 8187679
Filing Date: 2012-05-29
Classification: C23C

Abstract:
1. A method for depositing a thin film on a substrate, comprising: establishing a continuous flow of a purge gas through a reaction chamber; maintaining a gaseous reactive radical species in a radicals zone within the reaction chamber while introducing a precursor gas into a precursor zone within the reaction chamber, the precursor zone being spaced apart from the radicals zone to define a deactivation zone therebetween, the purge gas flowing through the radicals zone, the deactivation zone, and the precursor zone such that flow and pressure conditions within the reaction chamber substantially prevent the precursor gas from flowing into the radicals zone and cause the radical species to flow from the radical zone and into the deactivation zone; deactivating the radical species in the deactivation zone to form a deactivated species therefrom and to substantially prevent the reactive radical species from mixing with the precursor gas, at least some of the deactivated species flowing into the precursor zone; and alternately transporting a substrate between the radicals zone and the precursor zone repeatedly to thereby alternately expose the substrate to the radical species and the precursor gas multiple times, each exposure of the substrate to the precursor gas resulting in some of the precursor gas adsorbing on the substrate as an adsorbed precursor, and each subsequent exposure of the substrate to the radical species resulting in some of the radical species converting at least a portion of the adsorbed precursor to an element or compound, whereby a thin film is formed on the substrate.