Patent US4936982A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
Patent US5954887A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US5954887A
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Cleaning processing method of a film forming apparatus
Assignee: Tokyo Electron Ltd
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Filing: 1998-06-17
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Granted: 1999-09-21
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Expires: 2018-06-17
Abstract
Abstract Disclosed herein is a cleaning processing method in which an object to be processed is mounted on a susceptor in a process chamber of a CVD apparatus, a TiCl 4 gas, a H 2 gas, and a Ar gas are introduced, a Ti film is formed on a surface of the object to be processed in a region of a plasma generated, the object to be processed is conveyed out of the process chamber, supply of the H 2 gas and the Ar gas is thereafter stopped without generating a plasma, and the TiCl 4 gas is introduced by means of a carrier gas, to remove unnecessary Ti films sticking to the inside of the film forming apparatus.
Inventors
- 👤 Tatsuo Hatano
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 06:31
CPC Classifications
C; C23; C23C; C23C16/00; C23C16/06; C23C16/08; C23C16/44; C23C16/4401; C23C16/4405; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S438/00; Y10S438/905
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim
60 words
A cleaning processing method for a film forming apparatus for forming a film containing at least Ti on a surface of an object to be processed, the method comprising using a gas consisting essentially of TiCl 4 as a cleaning gas for removing a unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to a process chamber in the film forming apparatus.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
60 words
A cleaning processing method for a film forming apparatus for forming a film containing at least Ti on a surface of an object to be processed, the method comprising using a gas consisting essentially of TiCl 4 as a cleaning gas for removing a unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to a process chamber in the film forming apparatus.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
22 words
A method according to claim 1, further comprising feeding an inactive gas into the process chamber together with the TiCl 4 gas.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
111 words
A cleaning processing method for a film forming apparatus, the method comprising mounting an object to be processed on a susceptor in a process chamber of the film forming apparatus; forming a film of Ti on a surface of the object in a region of a plasma generated in an atmosphere including a TiCl 4 gas a H 2 gas, and an Ar gas; conveying the object out of the process chamber; then removing the H 2 gas and the Ar gas from the atmosphere; and cleaning using the TiCl 4 gas, without generating a plasma, to remove an unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to the film forming apparatus.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
111 words
A cleaning processing method for a film forming apparatus, the method comprising mounting an object to be processed on a susceptor in a process chamber of the film forming apparatus; forming a film of Ti on a surface of the object in a region of a plasma generated in an atmosphere including a TiCl 4 gas a H 2 gas, and an Ar gas; conveying the object out of the process chamber; then removing the H 2 gas and the Ar gas from the atmosphere; and cleaning using the TiCl 4 gas, without generating a plasma, to remove an unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to the film forming apparatus.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein a temperature in the film forming apparatus when forming the Ti film on the object is maintained from about 500° C. to about 700° C.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
62 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein a film forming temperature in the film forming apparatus when forming the Ti film on the object is set in a range of from about 500° C. to about 700° C., and a temperature in the film forming apparatus during the cleaning using the TiCl 4 gas is substantially equal to the film forming temperature.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
35 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning using the TiC1 4 gas is carried out after the forming of the Ti film is sequentially performed on a plurality of objects to be processed.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
32 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning using the TiCl 4 gas is carried out after the forming of the Ti film is performed on one object to be processed.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
29 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning using the TiCl 4 gas comprises introducing the TiCl 4 gas together with an inactive gas into the process chamber.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
28 words
A method according to claim 3, wherein a temperature in the film forming apparatus when forming the Ti film on the object is maintained at about 650° C.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
103 words
A cleaning method for a film forming apparatus, the method comprising a) placing an object to be processed in a process chamber; b) introducing a film forming material gas into the process chamber to form a film containing Ti on a surface of the object, the material gas including at least a TiCl 4 gas and a reducing gas; c) then conveying the object from the process chamber; and d) introducing a cleaning gas consisting essentially of the TiCl 4 gas but no reducing gas, into the process chamber to remove an unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to the process chamber.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
103 words
A cleaning method for a film forming apparatus, the method comprising a) placing an object to be processed in a process chamber; b) introducing a film forming material gas into the process chamber to form a film containing Ti on a surface of the object, the material gas including at least a TiCl 4 gas and a reducing gas; c) then conveying the object from the process chamber; and d) introducing a cleaning gas consisting essentially of the TiCl 4 gas but no reducing gas, into the process chamber to remove an unnecessary portion of the Ti film sticking to the process chamber.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
22 words
A cleaning method according to claim 10, wherein d) is performed after a) through c) are performed for a plurality of times.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
26 words
A cleaning method according to claim 10, wherein b) is performed while applying a high frequency energy, and d) is performed without applying high frequency energy.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
26 words
A cleaning method according to claim 10, wherein b) and d) are performed within a range of temperature from about 500° C. to about 700° C.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
18 words
A cleaning method according to claim 13, wherein b) and d) are performed at a substantially equal temperature.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
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| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2002-09-20 | 2003-03-22 | 2003-09-21 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2006-09-20 | 2007-03-22 | 2007-09-21 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2010-09-20 | 2011-03-22 | 2011-09-21 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |