Chamber for patterning non-volatile metals

Abstract

Apparatuses suitable for etching substrates at various pressure regimes are described herein. Apparatuses include a process chamber including a movable pedestal capable of being positioned at a raised position or a lowered position, showerhead, and optional plasma generator. Apparatuses are capable of forming a pressure differential between an upper chamber region and lower chamber region by varying the position of the movable pedestal. Apparatuses also include a sidewall region adjacent to the showerhead such that an adjustable gap is formed between an edge of the movable pedestal and the sidewall region, the distance of which can be varied to form a pressure differential.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An apparatus for processing semiconductor substrates, the apparatus comprising:
 a process chamber enclosing a process region, the process chamber comprising:
 a showerhead for distributing process gases to the process region, 
 a movable pedestal having a surface and an edge,
 the movable pedestal capable of holding a semiconductor substrate on the surface, and being positioned in a raised position or a lowered position, 
 wherein the movable pedestal in the raised position forms an upper chamber region between the movable pedestal and the showerhead and a lower chamber region beneath the movable pedestal, and 
 
 a region adjacent to the showerhead, the region capable of aligning with the edge of the movable pedestal when the movable pedestal is moved to the raised position to form an adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region adjacent to the showerhead; 
   inlets coupled to the showerhead;   a plasma generator for igniting a plasma in the process region; and   a controller for controlling operations of the apparatus, the controller comprising machine-readable instructions for moving the movable pedestal to the raised position or lowered position,   
       wherein a pressure differential is formed between the upper chamber region and the lower chamber region by varying a distance of the adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region adjacent to the showerhead. 
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the distance between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region near the showerhead when the movable pedestal is in the raised position is between about 0.3 mm and about 3 mm. 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the region adjacent to the showerhead comprises a slanted surface having an angle about 45° from an axis perpendicular to the showerhead. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the distance between the showerhead and the surface of the movable pedestal when the movable pedestal is in the raised position is between about 1 mm and about 2 mm. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the surface of the movable pedestal comprises an annular raised region adjacent to the edge of the movable pedestal. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the distance between the showerhead and a surface of the annular raised region is between about 0 mm and about 1 mm when the movable pedestal is in the raised position. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the annular raised region comprises an inner corner and an outer corner, and wherein a lateral distance between an edge of the showerhead and the inner corner is about 10 mm. 
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein a length of a cross section of the slanted surface is between about 50 mm and about 200 mm. 
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the surface of the movable pedestal and the edge of the movable pedestal meet at an angle greater than 90°. 
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the surface of the movable pedestal and the edge of the movable pedestal meet at a perpendicular angle. 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the pressure differential between the upper chamber region and the lower chamber region when the movable pedestal is in the raised position is between about 50 mTorr and about 5 Torr. 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein pressure of the upper chamber region when the movable pedestal is in the raised position is capable of being at least about 2 to about 10,000 times greater than pressure of the upper chamber region when the movable pedestal is in the lowered position. 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the movable pedestal is capable of moving a distance between about 4 inches and about 6 inches between the raised position and the lowered position. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the inlets comprise an inlet for delivering an organic vapor to the process chamber at a flow rate greater than about 1000 sccm. 
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the inlets comprise an inlet for delivering a chlorine-containing or oxygen-containing process gas to the showerhead to generate a plasma. 
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the movable pedestal has a thickness between about 50 mm and about 100 mm. 
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the controller further comprises machine-readable instructions for:
 causing generation of a plasma in the process region when the movable pedestal is in the lowered position; and   causing introduction of an organic vapor to the process region while the movable pedestal is in the raised position.   
     
     
         18 . An apparatus for processing semiconductor substrates, the apparatus comprising:
 a process chamber enclosing a process region, the process chamber comprising:
 a showerhead for distributing process gases to the process region, 
 a movable pedestal having a surface and an edge,
 the movable pedestal capable of holding a semiconductor substrate on the surface, and being positioned in a raised position or a lowered position, 
 wherein the movable pedestal in the raised position forms an upper chamber region between the movable pedestal and the showerhead and a lower chamber region beneath the movable pedestal, and 
 
 a sidewall region adjacent to the showerhead, the sidewall region adjacent to the showerhead capable of aligning with the edge of the movable pedestal when the movable pedestal is moved to the raised position to form an adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the sidewall region adjacent to the showerhead; 
   inlets coupled to the showerhead;   a plasma generator for igniting a plasma in the process region; and   a controller for controlling operations of the apparatus, the controller comprising machine-readable instructions for moving the movable pedestal to the raised position or lowered position,   
       wherein a pressure differential is formed between the upper chamber region and the lower chamber region by varying a distance of the adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the sidewall region adjacent to the showerhead. 
     
     
         19 . An apparatus for processing semiconductor substrates, the apparatus comprising:
 a process chamber enclosing a process region, the process chamber comprising:
 a showerhead for distributing process gases to the process region, 
 a movable pedestal having a surface and an edge,
 the movable pedestal capable of holding a semiconductor substrate on the surface, and being positioned in a raised position or a lowered position, 
 wherein the movable pedestal in the raised position forms an upper chamber region between the movable pedestal and the showerhead and a lower chamber region beneath the movable pedestal, and 
 
 a region adjacent to the showerhead capable of aligning with the edge of the movable pedestal when the movable pedestal is moved to the raised position to form an adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region adjacent to the showerhead; 
   inlets coupled to the showerhead;   a plasma generator for igniting a plasma in the process region; and   a controller for controlling operations of the apparatus, the controller comprising machine-readable instructions for moving the movable pedestal to the raised position or lowered position,   wherein a pressure differential is formed between the upper chamber region and the lower chamber region by varying the adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region adjacent to the showerhead, and   wherein the adjustable gap when the movable pedestal is in the raised position is sufficiently narrow to generate a pressure of the upper chamber region when the movable pedestal is in the raised position at least about 2 to about 10,000 times greater than a pressure of the process chamber when the movable pedestal is in the lowered position.   
     
     
         20 . The apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the edge of the movable pedestal is slanted, wherein the region adjacent to the showerhead is slanted, and wherein the region adjacent to the showerhead is capable of contacting the edge of the movable pedestal when the movable pedestal is moved to the raised position to form an adjustable gap between the edge of the movable pedestal and the region adjacent to the showerhead.