Patent ID: 8496799

Claim:
A method depositing a metal layer on a substrate by action of a chemical solution that includes one of an electrolytic and electroless solution of one or more metal ions, the substrate having a front and a back surface and including an array of spaced-apart sections, each of the sections including a first portion in contact with the chemical solution and a second portion coupled with a rail that is not in contact with the chemical solution, the method comprising: depositing a metal layer on the first portion of each of the plurality of sections of the substrate by action of the chemical solution; and annealing the metal layer in-situ during its growth phase as it is being deposited, wherein the annealing comprises locally heating a portion of the rail while moving the rail along the direction of the array of the spaced-apart sections such that at least some sections in the array of the spaced-apart sections of the substrate are heated at different times by thermal conduction from the portion of the rail being heated.