Patent ID: 7901545
Filing Date: 2011-03-08
Classification: C23C,H01J,H01L

Abstract:
1. A method of operating an ionized physical vapor deposition system comprising: positioning a substrate on a cooled wafer table in a processing chamber, the substrate having a dielectric layer thereon, the dielectric layer having a field area and a plurality of features formed therein and each of the plurality of features including a sidewall, a bottom surface, and an opening; creating a high-density plasma in the processing chamber, wherein the high-density plasma comprises metal ions in a Low Net Deposition (LND) process gas and a large number of inert gas ions; exposing the substrate to the high-density plasma; performing an LND process step wherein the LND process gas, a target power, or a substrate bias power, or a combination thereof, is adjusted to establish an LND deposition rate; the performing of the LND process step including depositing a barrier layer onto the field area at a deposition rate of greater than zero and not more than 30 nanometers per minute (nm/min) while depositing or etching the deposited barrier layer, or a combination thereof, on the sidewall or the bottom surface, or a combination thereof, by simultaneously directing the metal ions of the LND process gas and the inert gas ions onto the substrate and thereby depositing the barrier layer onto the field area of the dielectric layer while etching the deposited barrier layer from the field area and thereby producing substantially no overhanging material at the feature openings; changing the process from an LND process step to a No Net Deposition (NND) process step, thereby changing the deposition rate from an LND deposition rate to an NND deposition rate; and processing the patterned substrate using an NND process gas during the NND process step by depositing the barrier layer on the sidewall while depositing or etching the barrier layer, or a combination thereof, on the field area or the bottom surface, or a combination thereof at a rate ranging from about −10 nm/min to about 10 nm/min, and wherein a chamber pressure, chamber temperature, substrate temperature, an NND process gas chemistry, an NND process gas flow rate, an ICP power, a substrate position, a target power, or a substrate bias power, or a combination thereof, is adjusted to change the process from the LND process to the NND process; wherein the NND process step is used to deposit the barrier layer onto the barrier layer deposited by the LND process step.