Sublimation bed employing carrier gas guidance structures

Abstract

Preferred embodiments of the present invention provides a sublimation system employing guidance structures including certain preferred embodiments having a high surface area support medium onto which a solid source material for vapor reactant is coated. Preferably, a guidance structure is configured to facilitate the repeated saturation of the carrier gas with the solid source for a vapor reactant. Methods of saturating a carrier gas using guidance structures are also provided.

1 . A method of employing a vapor reactant for substrate processing comprising: 
 introducing a carrier gas into a vessel through an inlet port;    guiding the carrier gas to contact sufficient vapor reactant from a solid source material in order to repeatedly saturate the carrier gas with the vapor reactant, the saturation of the carrier gas continuing for greater than 100,000 pulses of carrier gas, each pulse lasting for greater than about 0.1 seconds; and    pulsing the carrier gas out of the vessel through an outlet port, wherein time between successive pulses is no more than about 30 seconds.    
   
   
       2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein guiding comprises flowing the carrier gas through a support medium coated with the solid source material.  
   
   
       3 . The method according to  claim 2 , further comprising inserting the support media into a substantially stationary position within the sublimation vessel.  
   
   
       4 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein guiding the carrier gas comprises guiding the carrier gas in a generally helical contact path as defined by a flow guide.  
   
   
       5 . The method according to  claim 4 , wherein the solid source material is in the form of a solid powder.  
   
   
       6 . The method according to  claim 4 , wherein a plurality of stacked trays partially define levels of the helical contact path, the plurality of stacked trays being configured to ensure contact of the carrier gas with the vapor reactant along the helical contact path.  
   
   
       7 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising channeling the carrier gas carrying the solid source vapor to a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactor.  
   
   
       8 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising: 
 pulsing the carrier gas carrying the vapor reactant to an atomic layer deposition (ALD) reaction chamber;    removing any excess vapor reactant from the reaction chamber;    pulsing a second reactant into the reaction chamber; and    removing any excess second reactant from the reaction chamber.    
   
   
       9 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising pouring a plurality of support elements through a fill port in the sublimation vessel, the support elements being coated with the solid source material.  
   
   
       10 . A method for processing a substrate comprising: 
 producing a pulse of a carrier gas substantially saturated with a precursor vapor by contacting the carrier gas with a solid precursor source;    injecting the pulse of the carrier gas substantially saturated with precursor vapor into a reaction chamber;    purging the pulse from the chamber with an inert gas; and    depositing the precursor onto the substrate so that the substrate is substantially saturated with the precursor,    wherein injecting, purging, and depositing comprise a cycle which is repeated for at least 5 cycles with no greater than 30 seconds between the successive injecting of the pulses of the carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor.    
   
   
       11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein producing the pulse of the carrier gas substantially saturated with precursor comprises affecting a vapor pressure between 0.1 and 100 Torr.  
   
   
       12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein producing the pulse of the carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor comprises contacting the carrier gas with the solid precursor along a carrier gas contact pathway which is at least twice as long as the distance between a carrier gas inlet and a carrier gas outlet of a vessel containing the solid precursor source.  
   
   
       13 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein producing the pulse of carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor comprises contacting the carrier gas with the solid precursor along a segregated and winding gas contact pathway.  
   
   
       14 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein producing the pulse of carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor comprises contacting the carrier gas with a solid precursor coating of a support medium.  
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein producing the pulse comprises isolating the solid source after each injection by temporarily preventing the carrier gas substantially saturated with precursor vapor from exiting a vessel containing the solid precursor source.  
   
   
       16 . A method for performing an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process to deposit a layer on a substrate surface comprising: 
 contacting a carrier gas with a precursor vapor from a solid precursor source in a sublimation vessel so that the carrier gas is substantially saturated with the precursor vapor;    channeling the substantially saturated carrier gas from the vessel and through a conduit to a substrate processing chamber;    pulsing the substantially saturated carrier gas into the substrate processing chamber;    stopping the flow of substantially saturated carrier gas from the vessel; and    purging the substantially saturated carrier gas from the chamber with a substantially inert gas,    wherein pulsing, stopping, and purging comprise a cycle, the cycle being repeated at least twice during the deposition of the layer.    
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 16 , further comprising contacting a second carrier gas with a second precursor vapor from a second solid precursor source so that the carrier gas is substantially saturated with the second precursor vapor.  
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein a recharge period of the sublimation vessel is greater than 0.400 seconds and less than 30 seconds between stopping the flow and a next pulsing of the substantially saturated carrier gas into the substrate processing chamber.  
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein stopping the flow comprises isolating the sublimation vessel from the processing chamber for greater than 0.400 and less than 10 seconds between pulses.  
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein a duration of each pulsing in a cycle comprises at least 0.1-10 seconds.  
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein each pulse is substantially saturated for at least 100,000 cycles.  
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein each pulse is substantially saturated for at least 500,000 cycles.  
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein after no more than each cycle is completed, the substrate surface is substantially saturated with adsorbed species of the precursor vapor.  
   
   
       24 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein about one monolayer of the precursor is deposited per cycle.  
   
   
       25 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein each cycle deposits about 1-5 Å.  
   
   
       26 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein channeling the substantially saturated carrier gas from the vessel comprises flowing a substantial plug flow through the vessel to a vessel outlet.  
   
   
       27 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein contacting a carrier gas with a precursor vapor from a solid precursor source in a sublimation vessel comprises producing a substantial plug flow residence time distribution of flow in the vessel.  
   
   
       28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein pulsing the substantially saturated carrier gas into the substrate processing chamber further comprises flowing the substantial plug flow through the chamber  
   
   
       29 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein producing the pulse of the carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor comprises contacting the carrier gas with the solid precursor source along a convoluted carrier gas contact pathway.  
   
   
       30 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein producing the pulse of the carrier gas substantially saturated with the precursor vapor comprises contacting the carrier gas with the solid precursor source that coats a support medium.