阅读说明：本技术 用于处理腔室的涂覆材料 (Coating material for processing chamber ) 是由 元泰景 崔寿永 崔金贤 崔毅 古田学 于 2019-08-19 设计创作，主要内容包括：本文描述的实施方式涉及控制沉积在大基板上的SiN膜的均匀性的方法。当通过向腔室施加射频(RF)功率来激励所述腔室中的前驱物气体或气体混合物时,流过等离子体的RF电流在电极间间隙中产生驻波效应(SWE)。当基板或电极尺寸接近RF波长时,SWE变得显著。工艺参数,诸如工艺功率、工艺压力、电极间距和气体流量比都会影响所述SWE。这些参数可以更改,以便最小化SWE问题和实现可接受的厚度和性质均匀性。在一些实施方式中,在实现各种等离子体密度的同时在各种工艺功率范围下、在各种工艺压力范围下、在各种气体流率下在大基板上方沉积介电膜的方法将用于减小所述SWE,以产生更大等离子体稳定性。(Embodiments described herein relate to a method of controlling uniformity of a SiN film deposited on a large substrate. When a precursor gas or gas mixture in a chamber is excited by applying Radio Frequency (RF) power to the chamber, the RF current flowing through the plasma creates a Standing Wave Effect (SWE) in the inter-electrode gap. As the substrate or electrode size approaches the RF wavelength, the SWE becomes significant. Process parameters such as process power, process pressure, electrode spacing, and gas flow ratio all affect the SWE. These parameters can be altered to minimize SWE problems and achieve acceptable thickness and property uniformity. In some embodiments, methods of depositing dielectric films over large substrates at various process power ranges, at various process pressure ranges, at various gas flow rates while achieving various plasma densities will be used to reduce the SWE to produce greater plasma stability.)

1. One kind has a diameter greater than about 9m²A method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (a), comprising:

depositing the dielectric film in a process chamber at a process power, wherein the process power is at about 0.25W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²A power density supply in between;

depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.0 torr and about 1.5 torr; and

from the inclusion of N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 1.5 and about 9, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 6.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.4 and about 2.0.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the electrode spacing in the process chamber is between about 900 mils and about 1000 mils.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the process pressure is between about 1.3 torr and about 1.5 torr.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the power density is at about 0.25W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²In the meantime.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate is at a temperature range between about 120 degrees celsius and about 340 degrees celsius.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the temperature is between about 240 degrees Celsius and about 320 degrees Celsius.

7. One kind has a diameter greater than about 9m²A method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (a), comprising:

depositing the dielectric film in a process chamber at a process power, wherein the process power is at about 0.25W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²A power density supply in between;

depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.3 torr and about 1.5 torr; and

from the inclusion of N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄Flow ratio between about 1.5 and about 7.0, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 5.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.4 and about 2.0.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrode spacing in the process chamber is between about 900 mils and about 1000 mils.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the power density is at about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²In the meantime.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the substrate is at a temperature between about 120 degrees Celsius and about 340 degrees Celsius.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the temperature is between about 240 degrees celsius and about 320 degrees celsius.

12. One kind has a diameter greater than about 9m²A method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (a), comprising:

depositing the dielectric film in a process chamber at a process power, wherein the process power is at 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Power density betweenProviding;

depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.3 torr and about 1.5 torr; and

from the inclusion of N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 4.5, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio between about 2.0 and about 4.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.6 and about 2.0.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the electrode spacing in the process chamber is between about 900 mils and about 1000 mils.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the power density is at about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²In the meantime.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the substrate is at a temperature range between about 120 degrees celsius and about 340 degrees celsius.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the temperature is between about 240 degrees celsius and about 320 degrees celsius.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the NH is₃/SiH₄The flow ratio is between about 4.0 and about 4.5.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein said N is₂/SiH₄The flow ratio is between about 2.4 and about 2.6.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein said N is₂/SiH₃The flow ratio is between about 1.0 and about 2.0.

Technical Field

Embodiments described herein relate generally to methods of controlling uniformity of a dielectric film deposited over a substrate, and more particularly to SiN films deposited over large substrates.

Background

Liquid crystal displays or flat panel displays are commonly used for active matrix displays such as computer and television monitors. Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) is generally used to deposit thin films on substrates such as transparent substrates for flat panel displays, or semiconductor wafers. PECVD is generally accomplished by introducing a precursor gas or gas mixture into a vacuum chamber containing the substrate. The precursor gas or gas mixture is typically directed downwardly through a distribution plate disposed near the top of the chamber. A precursor gas or gas mixture in the chamber is excited (e.g., excited) into a plasma by applying Radio Frequency (RF) power to the chamber from one or more RF sources coupled to the chamber. The excited gas or gas mixture reacts to form a layer of material on a surface of a substrate positioned on a temperature controlled substrate support. Volatile by-products produced during the reaction are pumped out of the chamber through an exhaust system.

The plates processed by PECVD techniques are typically large. With the ever-increasing substrate size in the TFT-LCD industry, control of film thickness and film property uniformity of large area PECVD becomes an issue. For example, differences in deposition rate and/or film properties (such as film stress) between the center and edge of the substrate become significant. As substrate sizes continue to grow in the TFT-LCD industry, film thickness and property uniformity of large area PECVD becomes more problematic. Examples of significant uniformity issues for some high deposition rate SiN films include higher deposition rates and more compressive film in the center region of large substrates. The thickness uniformity across the substrate is "domed" or "center thick," with the film in the center region being thicker than the edge regions. Larger substrates have worse center thickness uniformity problems.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art to improve the film deposition thickness and film property uniformity of thin films, particularly SiN films deposited on large substrates in PECVD chambers.

Disclosure of Invention

One or more embodiments described herein relate to a method of depositing a SiN film on a large substrate.

In one embodiment, a polymer having a molecular weight greater than about 9m²The method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (1) comprises: depositing the dielectric film in a process chamber at a power from about 0.25W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Power density in between; depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.0 torr and about 1.5 torr; and from including N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 1.5 and about 9, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 6.0, N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.4 and about 2.0.

In another embodiment, a polymer having a molecular weight greater than about 9m²The method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (1) comprises: depositing the dielectric film at a process power density of about 0.25W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²To (c) to (d); depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.3 torr and about 1.5 torr; and from including N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄Flow ratio between about 1.5 and about 7.0, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 5.0, N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.4 and about 2.0.

In another embodiment, a polymer having a molecular weight greater than about 9m²The method of depositing a dielectric film over a surface area substrate of (1) comprises: depositing the dielectric film at a process power density of 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²To (c) to (d); depositing the dielectric film at a process pressure between about 1.3 torr and about 1.5 torr; and from including N₂、NH₃And SiH₄The dielectric film is deposited from a precursor of (1), wherein NH₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 4.5, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 4.0, N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.6 and about 2.0.

Drawings

So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the disclosure, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments.

Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a system according to at least one embodiment described in this disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the exemplary diffuser plate according to FIG. 1; and

fig. 3 is a flow chart of a method according to at least one embodiment described in this disclosure.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements and/or features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation.

Detailed Description

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a more thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without one or more of these specific details. In other instances, well-known features have not been described in order to avoid obscuring one or more of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

Embodiments described herein relate generally to methods of controlling uniformity of a dielectric film deposited over a substrate, and more particularly to SiN films deposited over large area substrates. When a PECVD system deposits a thin film on a substrate, a precursor gas or gas mixture is typically directed downward through a distribution plate disposed near the top of the chamber. When a precursor gas or gas mixture in a large area substrate processing chamber is excited by applying RF power to the chamber from one or more RF sources coupled to a biasable chamber component, the RF current flowing through the plasma creates a Standing Wave Effect (SWE) in the inter-electrode gap. The SWE itself is clearly represented as a dome or an increase in film thickness at the center of the substrate. As the substrate or electrode size approaches the RF wavelength, the SWE becomes significant. Increasing the wavelength by lowering the RF frequency is undesirable because higher plasma potentials (as indicated by the peak-to-peak voltage) cause ion bombardment, which can damage the substrate and film. For other reasons, such as but not limited to increasing the deposition rate, the RF frequency may be increased, thus only exacerbating the standing wave effect. Therefore, a reliable solution to the SWE problem and the large substrate problem must be found.

If process parameters such as process power, process pressure, electrode spacing and gas flow ratio have been found to affect the SWE. These parameters can be altered to minimize SWE problems and achieve acceptable thickness and property uniformity. In some embodiments, methods of depositing dielectric films over large substrates at various process power ranges, at various process pressure ranges, at various gas flow rates while achieving various plasma densities will be used to reduce the SWE to produce greater plasma stability. Using these process parameters will help alleviate or eliminate the problem of having a higher film thickness at the center region of the substrate than at the edge regions due to SWE and result in a more uniform film thickness across the entire substrate. These parameters and ranges will be discussed in more detail herein.

Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a system 100 according to at least one embodiment described in this disclosure. System 100 is typically a PECVD system, but may be other suitable systems. The system 100 generally includes a process chamber 102 coupled to a gas source 104. The process chamber 102 has walls 106 and a bottom 108 that partially define a process volume 110. The process volume 110 is typically accessed through a port (not shown) in the wall 106 that facilitates movement of the substrate 112 into and out of the processing chamber 102. The walls 106 and bottom 108 may be made of a unitary block of aluminum or other material compatible with the process. The walls 106 support a lid assembly 114, the lid assembly 114 containing a pumping plenum 116 (which includes various pumping components, not shown)) that couples the process volume 110 to an exhaust port. Alternatively, the exhaust port (not shown) is located in the floor of the process chamber 102 and the process volume 110 does not require the pumping chamber 116.

A temperature controlled support assembly 118 is centrally disposed within the process chamber 102. The support assembly 118 supports the substrate 112 during processing. In one embodiment, the support assembly 118 includes a body 120, the body 120 encapsulating at least one embedded heater 122. A heater 122, such as a resistive element, disposed in the support assembly 118 is coupled to an optional power source 128 and controllably heats the support assembly 118 and the substrate 112 positioned thereon to a predetermined temperature. Typically, in a CVD process, the heater 122 maintains the substrate 112 at a uniform temperature between about 120 degrees celsius to at least about 460 degrees celsius, depending on the deposition process parameters of the material being deposited.

Generally, the support assembly 118 has an upper side 124 and a lower side 126. The upper side 124 supports the substrate 112. The lower side 126 has a stem 127 attached thereto. The pins 127 couple the support assembly 118 to a lift system (not shown) that moves the support assembly 118 between a raised processing position (as shown) and a lowered position that facilitates transfer of substrates to and from the process chamber 102. The stem 127 additionally provides a conduit for electrical and thermocouple leads between the support assembly 118 and other components of the system 100.

The support assembly 118 is generally grounded such that RF power supplied by a power source 128 to a gas distribution plate assembly 130 positioned between the lid assembly 114 and the substrate support assembly 118 (or other electrode positioned within or near the lid assembly of the chamber) may excite gases present in the process volume 110 between the support assembly 118 and the gas distribution plate assembly 130. The RF power from the power source 128 is typically selected to drive the CVD process based on the size of the substrate.

The lid assembly 114 provides an upper boundary for the process volume 110. In one embodiment, the lid assembly 114 is made of aluminum (Al). The lid assembly 114 includes a pumping plenum 116 formed therein, the plenum 116 being coupled to an external pumping system (not shown). The pumping plenum 116 serves to uniformly draw the channel gases and processing byproducts out of the process volume 110 and out of the processing chamber 102. The lid assembly 114 typically includes an inlet port 132 through which the process gas provided by the gas source 104 is introduced into the processing chamber 102. The inlet port 132 is also coupled to a cleaning source 134. The cleaning source 134 typically provides a cleaning agent, such as dissociated fluorine, that is introduced into the process chamber 102 to remove deposition byproducts and films from the process chamber hardware, including the gas distribution plate assembly 130.

The gas distribution plate assembly 130 is coupled to an interior surface 136 of the lid assembly 114. The shape of the gas distribution plate assembly 130 is typically configured to substantially conform to the perimeter of the substrate 112, e.g., polygonal for large area flat panel substrates and circular for wafers. The gas distribution plate assembly 130 includes a perforated region 138 through which process and other gases supplied from the gas source 104 are delivered to the process volume 110. The perforated area 138 of the gas distribution plate assembly 130 is configured to provide uniform distribution of gases passing through the gas distribution plate assembly 130 into the processing chamber 102. The gas distribution plate assembly 130 typically includes a diffuser plate 140 suspended from a hanger plate 142. Diffuser plate 140 and hanger plate 142 may alternatively comprise a single unitary member. A plurality of gas passages 144 are formed through the diffuser plate 140 to allow a predetermined distribution of gases to pass through the gas distribution plate assembly 130 and into the process volume 110. An air chamber 146 is formed between the hanger plate 142, the diffuser plate 140, and the inner surface 136 of the lid assembly 114. The plenum 146 allows gas flowing through the lid assembly 114 to be uniformly distributed across the width of the diffuser plate 140 such that gas is provided uniformly over the perforated area 138 and flows through the gas passages 144 in a uniform distribution.

The diffuser plate 140 is typically made of stainless steel, aluminum (Al), nickel (Ni), or other RF conductive material. The diffuser plate 140 may be cast, brazed, forged, hot isostatic pressed, or sintered. In one embodiment, the diffuser plate 140 is made of bare, non-anodized aluminum. It has been shown that the non-anodized aluminum surface for the diffuser plate 140 reduces the formation of particles thereon, which may then contaminate substrates processed in the system 100. In addition, when anodization is not performed, the manufacturing cost of the diffusion plate 140 is reduced. The diffuser plate 140 may be circular for semiconductor wafer fabrication or polygonal, such as rectangular, for flat panel display fabrication.

Typically, it is standard practice in the art for the diffuser plate 140 to be configured to be substantially flat and parallel to the base plate 112, and for the distribution of the same gas passages 144 to be substantially uniform across the surface of the diffuser plate 140. This configuration of the diffuser plate 140 provides sufficient gas flow and plasma density uniformity in the process space 110 to deposit films on smaller substrates. However, as the substrate size increases, the uniformity of the deposited film, particularly the SiN film, becomes more difficult to maintain. A uniformly distributed diffuser plate 140 having uniformly sized and shaped gas passages 144 is generally not capable of depositing films with acceptable thickness and film property uniformity onto large area substrates. It has been shown that for SiN films deposited on larger substrates, film thickness and film property uniformity can be improved by using a Hollow Cathode Gradient (HCG) as described below.

Fig. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of a portion of the diffuser plate 140 of fig. 1 including HCGs. The diffuser plate 140 includes a first or upstream side 202 facing the lid assembly 114 and an opposite second or downstream side 204 facing the support assembly 118. Each gas passage 144 is defined by a first bore 206, the first bore 206 being coupled to a second bore 210 by an orifice 208, which combine to form a fluid path through the gas distribution plate assembly 130. The first bore 206 extends a first depth 212 from the upstream side 202 of the gas distribution plate assembly 130 to a bottom 214. The bottom 214 of the first bore 206 may be tapered, sloped, chamfered, or rounded to minimize flow restriction as gas flows from the first bore into the orifice 208. The diameter of the first bore 206 is generally about 0.093 to about 0.218 inches, and in one embodiment about 0.156 inches.

The second bore 210 is formed in the diffuser plate 140 and extends from the downstream side (or end) 204 to a depth 216 of about 0.10 inches to about 2.0 inches. Preferably, the depth 216 is between about 0.1 inches and about 1.0 inches. The opening diameter 218 of the second bore 210 is generally about 0.1 inches to about 1.0 inches and may open at a flare angle 220 of about 10 degrees to about 50 degrees. Preferably, the opening diameter 218 is between about 0.1 inches and about 0.5 inches and the flare angle 220 is between 20 degrees and about 40 degrees. The surface area of the second bore 210 is between about 0.05 square inches and about 10 square inches, and preferably between about 0.05 square inches and about 5 square inches. The diameter of the second bore 210 refers to the diameter that intersects the downstream surface 204. An example of a diffuser plate 140 for processing large substrates has a second bore 210 with a diameter of 0.302 inches and a flare angle 220 of about 22 degrees. The distance 228 between the rims 222 of adjacent second bores 210 is between about 0 inches and about 0.6 inches, preferably between about 0 inches and about 0.4 inches. The diameter of the first bore 206 is typically, but not limited to, at least equal to or less than the diameter of the second bore 210. The bottom 224 of the second bore 210 may be tapered, sloped, chamfered, or rounded to minimize pressure loss of gas flowing out of the orifice 208 and into the second bore 210. Furthermore, since the proximity of the apertures 208 to the downstream side 204 serves to minimize the second bore 210 and exposed surface area of the downstream side 204 facing the substrate, the downstream area of the diffuser plate 140 exposed to fluorine provided during chamber cleaning is reduced, thereby reducing the occurrence of fluorine contamination of the deposited film.

The aperture 208 generally couples the bottom 214 of the first bore 206 and the bottom 224 of the second bore 210. The orifice 208 generally has a diameter of about 0.01 inch to about 0.3 inch, preferably about 0.01 inch to about 0.1 inch, and typically has a length 226 of about 0.02 inch to about 1.0 inch, preferably about 0.02 inch to about 0.5 inch. The length 226 and diameter (or other geometric properties) of the apertures 208 are the primary sources of backpressure in the plenum 146, which promotes even distribution of gases across the upstream side 202 of the gas distribution plate assembly 130. The orifices 208 are typically uniformly configured among the plurality of gas passages 144, however, the restriction through the orifices 208 may be configured differently among the gas passages 144 to facilitate more gas flow through one region of the gas distribution plate assembly 130 relative to another. For example, the apertures 208 may have a larger diameter and/or a shorter length 226 in those gas passages 144 of the gas distribution plate assembly 130 that are closer to the wall 106 of the process chamber 102, such that more gas flows past the edges of the perforated region 138 to increase the deposition rate at the perimeter of the substrate. The diffuser plate 140 has a thickness of between about 0.8 inches and about 3.0 inches, preferably between about 0.8 inches and about 2.0 inches.

Using the design of fig. 2 as an example, the volume of the second bore 210 may be varied by varying the opening diameter 218, the depth 216, and/or the opening angle 220. Changing the diameter, depth, and/or angle of opening will also change the surface area of the second bore 210. It is believed that the higher plasma density may be responsible for the higher deposition rate at the center of the substrate 112 (as shown in fig. 1). By decreasing the drilling depth 216, diameter, flare angle 220, or a combination of these three parameters from the edge to the center of the diffuser plate 140, the plasma density can be reduced in the center region of the substrate to improve film thickness and film property uniformity. For example, one way to improve film properties is to design the downstream surface 204 of the diffuser plate 140 to have a concave shape. In this case, the apex may be located approximately above the center point of the substrate 112, with the electrode spacing increasing from the edge to the center of the diffuser plate 140.

Although the HCG design as described in fig. 2 also helps to improve film uniformity, greater improvements are achieved by carefully controlling the process parameters used in SiN gate dielectric film production, especially on large substrates. Using the following processing parameters will help alleviate or reduce the problem of higher film thickness at the center region than at the edge regions of the substrate 112 and result in a more uniform edge thickness across the entire substrate 112 up to the edge of the substrate.

For example, it is believed that using phase contrast N₂By higher NH flow rate₃Gases are useful because of the NH₃The weak N-H bond strength in the gas allows lower power to be applied to dissociate the nitrogen and hydrogen elements. Lower process power helps to improve plasma stability and mitigate SWE. The following table contains processing parameters that may be applied in a process for depositing a SiN film on a large area substrate.

Table 1:

fig. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a method 300 in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. It has been found that each of the boxes present in method 300 is particularly well suited for use in a device having a width greater than about 9m²The dielectric film is deposited over the substrate of surface area, however other substrate sizes having a larger or smaller surface area may be used.

In block 302, a dielectric film is deposited at a particular process power range. As shown in Table 1, the process power density may range from about 0.25 Watts (W)/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Preferably between 0.30W/cm²To 0.35W/cm²But other ranges are possible. The power at these ranges may provide greater uniformity to the film substrate when compared to various gases at various flow rates, as will be discussed in greater detail in block 306.

In block 304, a dielectric film is deposited at a process pressure. As also shown in table 1, the process pressure may be in a range between about 1.0 torr and about 1.5 torr, preferably between 1.3 torr and 1.5 torr, although other ranges are possible. Much like the power, the pressure at these ranges may provide greater uniformity to the film substrate when compared to various gases at various flow rates, as will be discussed in greater detail in block 306.

In block 306, a dielectric film is deposited from the precursor gas. In some embodiments, the precursor gas comprises N₂、NH₃And SiH₄However, other precursor gases are also possible. As shown in table 1, the precursor gases have various flow rate ranges. When combined with other process parameters in the process range, various gases provided at various flow rates may be used to provide the desired film results. E.g. N₂/NH₃、NH₃/SiH₄、N₂/SiH₄May be combined at various process powers and pressures to produce the desired results. Changing either parameter can change the undesirable film outcome to the desired film outcome. In some embodiments, the precursor provided during processing comprises N₂、NH₃And SiH₄In which NH₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 1.5 and about 9, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 6.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.4 and about 2.0. In another embodiment, the precursor provided during processing includes N₂、NH₃And SiH₄Wherein at least one of the flow ratios is selected from: NH (NH)₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.0 and about 4.5, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio between about 2.0 and about 4.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.6 and about 2.0. In yet another embodiment, the precursor provided during processing includes N₂、NH₃And SiH₄Wherein at least one of the flow ratios is selected from: NH (NH)₃/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.3 and about 4.4, N₂/SiH₄A flow ratio of between about 2.6 and about 4.0, and N₂/NH₃The flow ratio is between about 0.6 and about 1.0.

For example, in one embodiment, SiH₄The flow rate may be about 0.05sccm/cm²To about 0.07sccm/cm²Within a range of; the process power density may be about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Change in between; and the process pressure may vary from about 1.3 torr to about 1.5 torr to achieve the desired results. In another embodiment, the process power density may be about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Within the range of (1); the process pressure may vary from about 1.3 torr to about 1.5 torr; and the temperature in the process chamber 102 may vary between about 240 degrees celsius to about 320 degrees celsius to achieve the desired results. In another embodiment, SiH₄The flow rate may be about 0.05sccm/cm²To about 0.07sccm/cm²Within a range of; the process power density may be about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Change in between; the process pressure may vary from about 1.3 torr to about 1.5 torr; and the temperature in the process chamber 102 is between about 240 degrees celsius and about 320 degrees celsius to achieve the desired results. In another embodiment, the process power density may be about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Within a range of; the process pressure may vary from about 1.3 torr to about 1.5 torr; the temperature in the process chamber 102 may vary between about 240 degrees celsius to about 320 degrees celsius; and the electrode spacing from the diffuser plate 140 at the center of the substrate 112 may vary from about 900 mils to about 1000 mils to achieve the desired results. In another embodiment, SiH₄The flow rate may be about 0.05sccm/cm²To about 0.07sccm/cm²Within a range of; the process power density may be about 0.30W/cm²To about 0.35W/cm²Change in between; the process pressure may vary from about 1.3 torr to about 1.5 torr; the temperature in the process chamber 102 may vary between about 240 degrees celsius to about 320 degrees celsius; and the electrode spacing from the diffuser plate 140 at the center of the substrate 112 may vary from about 900 mils to about 1000 mils to achieve the desired results. The above embodiments represent only some of the many examples of process parameters within the ranges provided in table 1 that may be used to form films having desired properties. In one embodiment, the desired result achieved in these examples and block 306 is to alleviate or eliminate the problem of the film thickness being higher at the center region than at the edge regions of the substrate 112, and to produce a more uniform film thickness across the entire substrate 112.

Each block in method 300 is used to improve film uniformity while also maintaining plasma stability and helping to mitigate SWE. More specifically, the method 300 helps to alleviate or eliminate the problem of higher film thickness at the center region than at the edge region of the substrate 112, and results in a more uniform film thickness across the entire substrate 112 from the center region to the edge due to SWE. This is especially important for large substrates and processing chambers.

While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.