CN103748263B - Deposition system with access gate and related method - Google Patents

Abstract

The deposition system (100) includes a reaction chamber (102) and a substrate support structure (114) at least partially disposed within the reaction chamber (102). The system also includes at least one gas injection device (110) and at least one vacuum device (113) that together are used to flow process gases through the reaction chamber (102). The system also includes at least one access gate (188) through which workpiece substrates (116) may be loaded into and unloaded from the reaction chamber (102). The at least one access gate is located remotely from the gas injection device (110). Methods of depositing semiconductor materials may be performed using such deposition systems. A method of manufacturing such a deposition system may include coupling an access gate to the reaction chamber at a location remote from the gas injection apparatus.

Description

Deposition system with access gate and related method

technical field

Embodiments of the invention generally relate to systems for depositing materials on substrates, and to methods of making and using such systems. More specifically, embodiments of the invention relate to atomic layer deposition (ALD) methods for depositing III-V semiconductor materials on substrates, and to methods of making and using such systems.

Background technique

Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is a chemical process for depositing solid materials on substrates and is commonly used in the fabrication of semiconductor devices. During chemical vapor deposition, a substrate is exposed to one or more reactive gases that react, decompose, or both react and decompose in such a way that solid materials are deposited on the surface of the substrate.

One specific type of CVD process is known in the art as vapor phase epitaxy (VPE). In a VPE process, a substrate is exposed in a reaction chamber to one or more reactive vapors that react, decompose, or both react and decompose in such a manner as to epitaxially deposit solid material on the surface of the substrate. VPE processes are commonly used to deposit III-V semiconductor materials. When one of the reactive vapors in a VPE process includes hydride vapor, the process may be referred to as a hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) process.

The HVPE process is used to form III-V semiconductor materials such as gallium nitride (GaN), for example. In these processes, the epitaxial growth of GaN on the substrate is caused by the vapor phase reaction formed between gallium chloride (GaCl) and ammonia (NH ₃ ) in the reaction chamber at about 500°C and about High temperature between 1000°C. NH ₃ can be supplied by a standard NH ₃ gas source.

In some methods, GaCl vapor is provided by passing hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas (which may be supplied by a standard HCl gas source) over heated liquid gallium (Ga) to form GaCl in situ within the reaction chamber. The liquid gallium may be heated to a temperature between about 750°C and about 850°C. The GaCl and NH ₃ may be delivered to (eg, over) a heated substrate surface, such as a wafer of semiconductor material. A gas injection system for such systems and methods is disclosed in US Patent No. 6,179,913 to Solomon et al., issued January 30, 2001, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

In such systems, it may be necessary to vent the reaction chamber to atmosphere to replenish the source of liquid gallium. Furthermore, it is not possible to clean the reaction chamber in situ in these systems.

To address these issues, methods and systems have been developed that utilize an external source of _GaCl3 precursor that is injected directly into the reaction chamber. Examples of such methods and systems are disclosed, for example, in US Patent Application Publication No. US2009/0223442A1 published September 10, 2009 in the name of Arena et al., the entire disclosure of which publication is hereby incorporated by reference.

Previously known deposition systems typically include access gates through which workpiece substrates can be loaded into the reaction chamber and unloaded out of the reaction chamber after processing. Such access gates are typically located in the deposition system's frontal gas injection manifold, which is used to inject precursor gases into the reaction chamber.

Contents of the invention

This Summary section is provided to introduce a selection of inventive concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments of the invention. This summary of the invention is not intended to limit the main or essential features of the subject matter to be protected, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the subject matter to be protected.

In some embodiments, the present disclosure includes a deposition system that includes a reaction chamber and a substrate support structure at least partially disposed within the reaction chamber and configured to support a workpiece substrate within the reaction chamber. The reaction chamber may be defined by a top wall, a bottom wall and at least one side wall. The system also includes: at least one gas injection device for injecting one or more process gases including at least one precursor gas into the reaction chamber at a first location; and a vacuum device for injecting The one or more process gases of the reaction chamber are pumped from the first location to the second location and used to exhaust the one or more process gases from the reaction chamber at the second location. The system also includes at least one access gate through which the workpiece substrate can be loaded into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure, and unloaded from the substrate support structure out of the reaction chamber. The at least one access gate is located remote from a first location where the at least one gas injection device injects one or more process gases into the reaction chamber.

In additional embodiments, the present disclosure includes methods of depositing semiconductor material on a workpiece substrate using a deposition system. According to these methods, a workpiece substrate may be loaded into the reaction chamber through at least one access gate and onto the substrate support structure. One or more process gases may be flowed into the reaction chamber through at least one gas injection device located remotely from the at least one access gate. The one or more process gases may include at least one precursor gas. The one or more process gases may be exhausted from the reaction chamber by at least one vacuum device positioned on an opposite side of the substrate support structure from the at least one gas injection device. When the one or more process gases flow from the at least one gas injection device to the at least one vacuum device, the surface of the workpiece substrate can be exposed to the one or more process gases, so that the A semiconductor material is deposited on the surface of the workpiece substrate. The workpiece substrate can be unloaded from the reaction chamber through the at least one access gate.

In yet another embodiment, the present disclosure includes a method of making a deposition system. For example, a reaction chamber can be formed that includes a top wall, a bottom wall, and at least one side wall. A substrate support structure for supporting at least one workpiece substrate may be disposed at least partially within the reaction chamber. At least one gas injection device may be coupled to the reaction chamber at a first location. The at least one gas injection device may be configured to inject one or more process gases including at least one precursor gas into the reaction chamber at a first location. At least one vacuum device can be coupled to the reaction chamber at a second location. The at least one vacuum device may be configured for pumping the one or more process gases through the reaction chamber from a first location to a second location, and for pumping the one or more process gases at the second location. Exhausted from the reaction chamber. At least one access gate may be coupled to the reaction chamber at a location remote from the first location. The at least one access gate may be configured to enable the workpiece substrate to be loaded into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure through the at least one access gate, and to be unloaded from the substrate support structure out of the reaction chamber.

Description of drawings

The present disclosure will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

1 is a cut-away perspective view schematically illustrating an exemplary embodiment of a deposition system including an access gate through which a workpiece substrate can be inserted into and removed from a reaction chamber, the access gate The gate is positioned away from where the process gas is injected into the reaction chamber;

2 is a perspective view of the front exterior surface of the gas injection device of the deposition system of FIG. 1;

3 is a cross-sectional side view of a built-in precursor gas furnace of the deposition system of FIG. 1;

4 is a top view of one of the generally planar structures of the precursor gas furnaces of FIGS. 1 and 2;

5 is a perspective view of a built-in precursor gas furnace of the deposition system of FIG. 1;

6 is a cut-away perspective view schematically illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a deposition system including an access gate located away from the location where process gases are injected into the reaction chamber, but including an external furnace instead of a built-in precursor gas furnace. Precursor gas injector;

7 is a top view schematically illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a deposition system of the present disclosure including an access gate positioned away from where process gases are injected into the reaction chamber; and

8 is a cut-away perspective view schematically illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a deposition system including an access gate positioned away from where process gases are injected into a reaction chamber comprising more than an airflow channel.

detailed description

The diagrams presented here are not actual views of any particular system, element, or device, but are merely idealized representations used to illustrate embodiments of the invention.

The term "III-V semiconductor material" as used herein means and includes at least one or more elements from Group IIIA (B, Al, In, and Ti) of the Periodic Table of the Elements and Group VA (N, P) of the Periodic Table of the Elements. , As, Sb and Bi) any semiconductor material composed of one or more elements. For example, III-V semiconductor materials include GaN, GaP, GaAs, InN, InP, InAs, AlN, AlP, AlAs, InGaN, InGaP, InGaNP, etc., but are not limited thereto.

Recently improved gas injectors, like those disclosed in the aforementioned US Patent Application Publication No. US2009/0223442A1, have been developed for methods and systems utilizing an external source of GaCl3 precursor injected into the reaction chamber. Examples of such gas injectors are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Patent Application No. 61/157,112, filed March 3, 2009, in the name of Arena et al., the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. . The term "gas" as used herein includes gases (fluids without separate shape and volume) and vapors (gases including liquids dispersed or solid substances suspended therein), and the terms "gas" and "vapor" are used synonymously herein.

Embodiments of the invention include deposition systems and the use of deposition systems that include access gates for loading workpiece substrates into and/or unloading workpiece substrates from a reaction chamber. The access gate is positioned remotely from where one or more process gases, which may include one or more precursor gases, are injected into the reaction chamber.

FIG. 1 shows a deposition system 100 comprising an at least substantially closed reaction chamber 102 . In several implementations, the deposition system 100 may include a CVD system, and may include a VPE deposition system (eg, a HVPE deposition system).

The reaction chamber 102 may be defined by a top wall 104, a bottom wall 106, and one or more side walls. One or more sidewalls may be defined by a component or components of a subassembly of the deposition system. For example, first sidewall 108A may include components of gas injection device 110 for injecting one or more process gases into reaction chamber 102, and second sidewall 108B may include components for injecting process gases from the reaction chamber 102 discharge and components of a discharge and loading subassembly 112 for loading substrates into and unloading substrates from the reaction chamber 102 . In other words, the gas injection device 110 may be configured to inject one or more process gases through the sidewall 108A of the reaction chamber 102 .

In several embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1 , reaction chamber 102 may have the geometry of an elongated rectangular column. In several such embodiments, the gas injection device 110 may be located at a first end of the reaction chamber 102 and the discharge and loading subassembly may be located at an opposite second end of the reaction chamber 102 . In other embodiments, reaction chamber 102 may have another geometry.

Deposition system 100 includes a substrate support structure 114 (eg, a carrier) configured to support one or more workpiece substrates 116 on which semiconductor material is desired to be deposited or otherwise provided within deposition system 100 . For example, workpiece substrate 116 may include a mold or a wafer. The deposition system 100 also includes a heating element 118 that can be used to selectively heat the deposition system 100 such that the average temperature within the reaction chamber 102 can be controlled within a desired elevated temperature during the deposition process. Heating element 118 may include, for example, a resistive heating element or a radiant heating element such as a heat lamp.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the substrate support structure 114 may be coupled to a spindle 119 which may be coupled (eg, direct structural coupling, magnetic coupling, etc.) to a drive device (not shown), such as an electric motor, which The drive arrangement is configured to drive the spindle 119 in rotation so that the substrate support structure 114 rotates within the reaction chamber 102 .

In several embodiments, one or more of the top wall 104, bottom wall 106, substrate support structure 114, mandrel 119, and any other components within the reaction chamber 102 may be at least substantially composed of a refractory ceramic material, such as a ceramic oxide Substances (such as silicon dioxide (quartz), alumina, zirconia, etc.), carbides (such as silicon carbide, boron carbide, etc.), nitrides (such as silicon nitride, boron nitride, etc.) or graphite coated with silicon carbide . By way of non-limiting example, the top wall 104, bottom wall 106, substrate support structure 114, and mandrel 119 may comprise clear quartz to allow heat radiated by the heating element 18 to pass therethrough to heat the interior of the reaction chamber 102. of process gases.

The deposition system 100 also includes a gas flow system for flowing process gases through the reaction chamber 102 . For example, the deposition system 100 may include: at least one gas injection device 110 for injecting one or more process gases into the reaction chamber 102 at the first location 103A; The one or more process gases of the reaction chamber 102 are pumped from the first location 103A to the second location 103B and used to exhaust the one or more process gases from the reaction chamber 102 at the second location 103B. The gas injection device 110 may include, for example, a gas injection manifold including a connector configured to couple with a conduit charged with one or more process gases from a process gas source.

With continued reference to FIG. 1 , the deposition system 100 may include five gas inflow conduits 120A to 120E loaded with gas from respective process gas sources 122A to 122E to the gas injection device 110 . Optionally, gas valves (121A-121E) may be used to selectively control gas flow through gas inflow conduits 120A-120E, respectively.

In several embodiments, at least one of the gas sources 122A-122E may include an external source of at least one of GaCl ₃ , InCl ₃ , or AlCl ₃ , as described in US Patent Application Publication No. US2009/0223442A1. GaCl ₃ , InCl ₃ and AlCl ₃ may exist in the form of dimers such as Ga ₂ Cl ₆ , In ₂ Cl ₆ and Al ₂ Cl ₆ , respectively. As such, at least one of the gas sources 122A-122F may include a dimer such as Ga ₂ Cl ₆ , In ₂ Cl ₆ , or Al ₂ Cl ₆ .

In embodiments where one or more of the gas sources 122A _- 122E is or includes a GaCl source, the _GaCl source may comprise a liquid GaCl container maintained at a temperature of at least 100°C (eg, about 130°C ₎ , and may A physical mechanism for increasing the evaporation rate of liquid _GaCl3 is included. These physical mechanisms may include, for example: a device configured to agitate the liquid GaCl _; a device configured to spray the liquid GaCl _; a device configured to rapidly flow a carrier gas through the liquid GaCl _; a device configured to pass a carrier gas through the liquid GaCl ₃ and boiling devices; devices such as piezoelectric devices configured to ultrasonically disperse liquid GaCl ₃ , etc. As a non-limiting example, while the liquid GaCl is maintained at a temperature _of at least 100°C, a carrier gas such as He, _N2 , _H2 , or Ar can be boiled through the liquid _GaCl so that the source gas can Include one or more carrier gases delivered with a precursor gas.

In several embodiments of the invention, the flow rate of one or more precursor gas (eg, GaCl ₃ ) vapors through gas inflow conduits 120A-120E may be controlled. For example, in embodiments where the carrier gas is boiled through liquid GaCl ₃ , the flow rate of GaCl ₃ from gas sources 122A-122E depends on one or more factors including, for example, the temperature of GaCl ₃ , the temperature of GaCl ₃ Pressure and flow of carrier gas boiling through _GaCl3 . Although the mass flow of GaCl3 can be controlled primarily by means of any of these parameters, in several embodiments, the mass flow of _GaCl3 can be controlled by altering the flow _of the carrier gas using a mass flow controller.

In several embodiments, the one or more of gas sources 122A-122E is capable of holding about 25 kg or more GaCl ₃ , about 35 kg or more GaCl ₃ , or even about 50 kg or more GaCl ₃ . For example, the GaCl ₃ source can hold between about 50 kg and 100 kg (eg, between about 60 kg and 70 kg) of GaCl ₃ . Also, multiple _GaCl sources may be manifolded together to form a single gas source in gas sources 122A-122E, allowing switching from one gas source to another without interfering with the operation and/or use of deposition system 100. Another gas source. The emptied gas source may be removed and replaced with a freshly filled gas source while the deposition system 100 remains in operation.

In several embodiments, the temperature of the gas inflow conduits 120A- 120E between the gas sources 122A- 122E and the reaction chamber 102 can be controlled. The temperature of the gas inflow conduits 120A-120E and associated mass flow sensors, controllers, etc. may be gradually increased from a first temperature (eg, about 100° C. or higher) at the outlet of the respective gas source 122A-122E to just entering the reaction chamber 102 The second temperature (for example, about 150° C. or lower) in order to prevent condensation of the gas (for example, GaCl ₃ vapor) flowing into the gas conduits 120A to 120E. Optionally, the gas inflow conduits 120A to 120E between the corresponding gas sources 122A to 122E and the reaction chamber 102 may have a length of less than three feet, less than two feet, or even less than one foot. The pressure of the source gas can be controlled using one or more pressure control systems.

In other embodiments, the deposition system 100 may include fewer than five (eg, one to four) gas inflow conduits and respective gas sources, or the deposition system 100 may include more than five (eg, six, seven, etc.) Gas flows into the conduits and respective gas sources.

One or more of the gas inflow conduits 120A to 120E extend to the gas injection device 110 . The gas injection device 110 may include one or more blocks of material through which process gases are loaded into the reaction chamber 102 . One or more cooling conduits 111 may extend through the block of material. A cooling fluid may be flowed through one or more cooling conduits 111 in order to maintain the gas flowing through gas injection device 110 via gas inflow conduits 120A-120E within a desired temperature range during operation of deposition system 100 . For example, it may be desirable to maintain the gas flowing through gas injection device 110 via gas inflow conduits 120A-120E at a temperature of less than about 200° C. (eg, about 150° C.) during operation of deposition system 100 .

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the outer surface of the gas injection device 110 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the gas injection device 110 may include a plurality of connectors 117 configured for connection to the gas inflow conduits 120A to 120E. In several embodiments, the gas injection device 110 may include multiple rows 115A- 115E of connectors 117 . Each row 115A- 115E may be configured to inject a corresponding process gas into the reaction chamber 102 . For example, the connectors 117 in the first bottom row 115A can be used to inject a purge gas into the reaction chamber 102 and the connectors 117 in the second row 115B can be used to inject a precursor gas (eg, GaCl ₃ ) into the reaction chamber 102 Inside, the connectors 117 in the third row 115C can be used to inject another precursor gas (such as NH ₃ ) into the reaction chamber 102, and the connectors 117 in the fourth row 115D can be used to inject another process gas (such as SiH ₄ ) is injected into the reaction chamber 102 , and the connectors 117 in the top fifth row 115E can be used to inject a purge gas or a carrier gas (eg, N ₂ ) into the reaction chamber 102 . Connectors 117 may be grouped into separate zones 119A-119C of connectors 117, each zone 119A-119C including connectors 117 from each row 115A-115E. Connector 117 in each zone 119A to 119C

Can be used to deliver process gases to different regions within the reaction chamber 102 such that different process gas compositions and/or concentrates are introduced into different regions within the reaction chamber 102 above the workpiece substrate 116 .

Referring again to FIG. 1 , the exhaust and load subassembly 112 may include a vacuum chamber 184 into which gases flowing through the reaction chamber 102 are vacuumed and exhausted from the reaction chamber 102 . The vacuum in the vacuum chamber 184 is created by the vacuum device 113 . As shown in FIG. 1 , a vacuum chamber 184 may be located below the reaction chamber 102 .

The discharge and loading subassembly 112 may also include a purge gas curtain arrangement 186 configured and oriented to provide a generally flat curtain of flow purge gas from which the purge gas exits the purge gas curtain arrangement 186 to flow into the vacuum chamber 184. The discharge and loading subassembly 112 may also include an access gate 188 that is selectively openable for loading the workpiece substrate 116 and/or unloading the workpiece substrate 116 from the substrate support structure 114 and is selectively closed for A workpiece substrate 116 is processed using the deposition system 100 . In several embodiments, the access gate 188 can include at least one plate configured to move between a closed first position and an open second position. The access gate 188 may extend through a sidewall of the reaction chamber 102 away from the sidewall through which the one or more process gases are injected.

When the plates of the access gate 188 are in the closed first position, the reaction chamber 102 may be at least substantially closed, and access to the substrate support structure 114 through the access gate 188 may be prohibited. The substrate support structure 114 is accessible through the access gate 188 when the plate of the access gate 188 is in the open second position.

The purge gas curtain emitted by the purge gas curtain device 186 may reduce or prevent gas flow out of the reaction chamber 102 during loading and/or unloading of the workpiece substrate 116 .

Gaseous byproducts, carrier gas, and any excess precursor gas may be exhausted from reaction chamber 102 through exhaust and loading subassembly 112 .

The access gate 188 may be located remotely from the first location 103A where one or more process gases are injected into the reaction chamber 102 . In several embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1 , a first location 103A may be arranged on a first side of the substrate support structure 114 and a second location 103B where process gases are exhausted from the reaction chamber 102 may be arranged on the substrate support structure. 114 on the second opposite side. Furthermore, a second location 103B where process gases are exhausted from the reaction chamber 102 may be disposed between the substrate support structure 114 and the access gate 188 . As previously mentioned, the purge gas curtain device 186 may be configured to form a curtain of flowing purge gas flowing between the purge gas injection device and the vacuum device 113 . A curtain of flowing purge gas may be disposed between the substrate support structure 114 and the access gate 188 to form a barrier of flowing purge gas separating the workpiece substrate 116 from the access gate 188 . This flow purge gas barrier can reduce or prevent process gases from escaping from the reaction chamber 102 when the access gate 188 is open.

In several embodiments, the gas injection system 100 may include at least one built-in precursor gas furnace 130 disposed within the reaction chamber 102 . The built-in precursor gas furnace 130 may be configured to heat and transport at least one precursor gas within the reaction chamber 102 from the gas injection device 110 to a location proximate to the substrate support structure 114 .

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the precursor furnace 130 of FIG. 1 . The furnace 130 of the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2 includes five (5) generally plate-shaped structures 132A- 132E attached together that are sized and configured to operate within the generally plate-shaped structures 132A- 132E One or more precursor gas flow paths extending through the furnace 130 are defined in the chambers defined therebetween. The generally plate-shaped structures 132A-132E may comprise, for example, transparent quartz to allow radiant energy emitted by the heating element 118 to pass through the structures 132A-132E to heat the precursor gases in the furnace 130 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the first plate-shaped structure 132A and the second plate-shaped structure 132B may be coupled together to define a chamber 134 therebetween. A plurality of integral ridges 136 on the first plate structure 132A may subdivide the chamber 134 into one or more flow paths extending from the inlet 138 of the chamber 134 to the outlet 140 of the chamber 134 .

FIG. 4 is a top view of the first plate-like structure 132 and shows the ridges 136 thereon and the flow path defined thereby in the chamber 134 . As shown in FIG. 4 , protrusions 136 define flow path segments that extend through furnace 130 ( FIG. 3 ) in a serpentine configuration. As shown in FIG. 4 , the protrusion 136 may include alternating walls with holes 138 extending through the protrusion 136 at the lateral ends of the protrusion 136 and at the center of the protrusion 136 . Therefore, in this configuration, as shown in FIG. The central area of the chamber 134 passes through another hole 138 in the center of another protrusion 136 . This flow pattern is repeated until the gas reaches the opposite side of plate 132A after reciprocating from inlet 138 through chamber 134 in a serpentine fashion.

By flowing the one or more precursor gases through the flow path segment extending through the furnace 130 , the residence time of the one or more precursor gases within the furnace 130 may be selectively increased.

Referring again to FIG. 1 , the inlet 138 to the chamber 134 may be defined by, for example, a tubular member 142 . As shown in FIG. 1 , one of gas inflow conduits 120A to 120E, such as gas inflow conduit 120B, may extend to and couple to tubular member 142 . A sealing member 144 such as a polymer O-ring may be used to form an airtight seal between the gas inflow conduit 120B and the tubular member 142 . Tubular member 142 may comprise, for example, an opaque quartz material in order to prevent thermal energy emanating from heating element 118 from heating sealing member 144 to high temperatures that could damage sealing member 144 . In addition, cooling the gas injection device 110 with the flow of cooling fluid through the cooling conduit 111 prevents damage to the sealing member 144 due to overheating. When the gas inflow conduit comprises a metal or metal alloy such as steel and the tubular member 142 comprises a high temperature resistant material such as quartz, the sealing member 144 can be utilized to maintain gas inflow by maintaining the temperature of the sealing member 144 below about 200°C A sufficient seal between one of the conduits 120A-120E and the tubular member 142. The tubular member 142 and the first plate-shaped structure 132A may be joined together to form an integrated unitary quartz body.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , the plate-shaped structures 132A, 132B may include complementary sealing features 147A, 147B (eg, ridges and corresponding notches) that extend around the perimeter of the plate-shaped structures 132A, 132B. , and at least substantially hermetically seal the chamber 134 between the plate-shaped structures 132A, 132B. Accordingly, gas within chamber 134 is prevented from flowing laterally out of chamber 134 and is forced to flow from chamber 134 through outlet 140 ( FIG. 3 ).

Optionally, the protrusion 136 can be configured to have a height slightly smaller than the separation distance between the surface 152 where the protrusion 136 starts to extend of the first plate-shaped structure 132A and the opposite surface 154 of the second plate-shaped structure 132B. Thus, a small gap may be provided between the protrusion 136 and the surface 154 of the second plate-shaped structure 132B. Although small amounts of gas may leak through these gaps, this small amount of leakage does not adversely affect the mean residence time of the precursor gas molecules within chamber 134 . By configuring the protrusions 136 in this manner, variations in the height of the protrusions 136 due to the tolerances used in the manufacturing process used to form the plate-shaped structures 132A, 132B can be accounted for so that inadvertently making the protrusions 136 too high will not Formation of an adequate seal between the plate-shaped structures 132A, 132B by means of the complementary sealing features 147A, 147B is prevented.

As shown in Figure 3, the outlet 140 of the chamber 134 between the plate structures 132A, 132B leads to the inlet 148 of the chamber 150 between the third plate structure 132C and the fourth plate structure 132D. Chamber 150 may be configured such that gas therein flows in a generally linear fashion from inlet 148 toward outlet 156 of chamber 150 . For example, chamber 150 may have a generally rectangular and uniformly sized cross-sectional shape between inlet 148 and outlet 156 . Thus, chamber 150 may be configured such that the airflow is more laminar, as opposed to turbulent.

The plate-shaped structures 132C, 132D may include complementary sealing features 158A, 158B (eg, ridges and corresponding indentations) that extend around the perimeter of the plate-shaped structures 132C, 132D and at least substantially hermetically seal the plate-shaped structures 132C, 132D. Chamber 150 between structures 132C, 132D. Thus, gas within chamber 150 is prevented from flowing laterally out of chamber 150 and is forced to flow from chamber 150 through outlet 156 .

Outlet 156 may include, for example, an elongated hole (eg, a slit) extending through plate-shaped structure 132D adjacent an end opposite the proximal end of inlet 148 .

With continued reference to FIG. 3 , the outlet 156 of the chamber 150 between the plate structures 132C, 132D leads to the inlet 160 of the chamber 162 between the fourth plate structure 132D and the fifth plate structure 132E. Chamber 162 may be configured such that gas therein flows in a generally linear fashion from inlet 160 toward outlet 164 of chamber 162 . For example, chamber 162 may have a generally rectangular and uniformly sized cross-sectional shape between inlet 160 and outlet 164 . Thus, in a manner similar to that previously described with reference to chamber 150, chamber 162 may be configured to make the air flow more laminar, as opposed to turbulent.

The plate-shaped structures 132D, 132E may include complementary sealing features 166A, 166B (e.g., ridges and corresponding notches) that extend around a portion of the perimeter of the plate-shaped structures 132D, 132E such The chamber 162 between the plate-shaped structures 132D, 132E is sealed on all but one side 132D, 132E. On the opposite side of the plate-shaped structure 132D, 132E from the inlet 160 there is a gap between them, which gap defines an outlet 164 of the chamber 162 . Thus, gas enters chamber 162 through inlet 160 , flows through chamber 162 toward outlet 164 (while preventing lateral outflow from chamber 162 by complementary sealing features 166A, 166B ), and exits chamber 162 through outlet 164 . The section of the gas flow path defined by chamber 150 and chamber 162 within furnace 130 is configured to impart laminar flow to the one or more precursor gases caused to flow through the flow path within furnace 130, thereby reducing any turbulent flow.

Outlet 164 is configured to output one or more precursor gases from furnace 130 into an interior region within reaction chamber 102 . FIG. 5 is a perspective view of furnace 130 and shows outlet 164 . As shown in FIG. 5 , the outlet 164 may have a rectangular cross-sectional shape, which may help maintain a laminar flow of precursor gases ejected from the furnace 130 and injected into the interior region within the reaction chamber 102 . The outlet 164 may be sized and configured to output a sheet of flowing precursor gas in a lateral direction, across the upper surface 168 of the substrate support structure 114 . As shown in FIG. 5 , the gap between the fourth generally plate-shaped structure 132D and the fifth generally plate-shaped structure 132E defines the outlet 164 of the chamber 162 as previously described, the end surface 180 of the fourth generally plate-shaped structure 132D is in contact with The end face 182 of the fifth substantially plate-shaped structure 132E may have a shape that substantially matches the shape of the workpiece substrate 116 that is supported on the substrate support structure 114 and on which material is to be deposited using precursor gases flowing from the furnace 130. the workpiece substrate. For example, in embodiments where the workpiece substrate 116 includes a mold or wafer with generally rounded edges, the end faces 180, 182 may have an arcuate shape that generally matches the peripheral contour of the workpiece substrate 116 during processing. In this configuration, the distance between the outlet 164 and the outer edge of the workpiece substrate 116 is substantially constant across the outlet 164 . In this configuration, the precursor gas flowing out of outlet 164 is prevented from mixing with other precursor gases within reaction chamber 102 until near the surface of workpiece substrate 116 on which material is to be deposited by the precursor gas, thereby avoiding the Undesired deposited material on the part.

Referring again to FIG. 1 , the deposition system 100 may include a heating element 118 . Heating element 118 may comprise a resistive heater, an inductive heater, or a radiant heater. In one embodiment, heating element 118 comprises a radiant heat lamp configured to radiate infrared energy. For example, the heating elements 118 may include a first set of heating elements 170 and a second set of heating elements 172 of the heating elements 118 . A first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 are positioned and configured to deliver radiant energy to furnace 130 to heat the precursor gas therein. As shown in FIG. 1 , a first set of heating elements 170 , such as heating elements 118 , may be located below reaction chamber 102 below furnace 130 . In other embodiments, the first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 may be located above the reaction chamber 102 above the furnace 130, or may include both heating elements 118 located below the reaction chamber 102 below the furnace 130 and the Heating elements above the reaction chamber 102 above the furnace 130 . A second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 may be positioned and configured to deliver thermal energy to substrate support structure 114 and any workpiece substrate supported thereon. For example, as shown in FIG. 1 , a second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 may be positioned below reaction chamber 102 below substrate support structure 114 . In other embodiments, the second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 may be located above the reaction chamber 102 above the substrate support structure 114, or may include both heating elements located below the reaction chamber 102 below the substrate support structure 114. 118 in turn includes a heating element located above the reaction chamber 102 above the substrate support structure 114 .

A first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 may be separated from a second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 by a heat reflective or thermally insulating barrier 174 . By way of example and not limitation, such baffles 174 may comprise a gold-plated metal plate positioned between a first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 and a second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 . The metal plates may be oriented such that heating of the furnace 130 (by the first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 ) and heating of the substrate support structure 114 (by the second set of heating elements 172 of the heating elements 118 ) can be independently controlled. In other words, baffles 174 may be positioned and oriented to reduce or prevent heating of substrate support structure 114 by first set of heating elements 170 of heating elements 118 and to reduce or prevent heating of furnace 130 by second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 .

The heating elements 170 of the first set of heating elements 118 may include multiple rows of heating elements 118 that are controlled independently of each other. In other words, the heat emitted by each row of heating elements 118 may be independently controllable. The rows may be oriented transverse to the direction of the pure gas flow through the reaction chamber 102 , which is the direction extending from left to right in the perspective view of FIG. 1 . Thus, independently controlled rows of heating elements 118 may be used to provide a selected thermal gradient across furnace 130, if desired. Similarly, the second set of heating elements 172 of heating elements 118 may also include multiple rows of heating elements 118 that may be controlled independently of each other. Thus, a selected thermal gradient across the substrate support structure 114 may also be provided, if desired.

Optionally, a passive heat transfer structure (e.g., a structure comprising a material that acts like a black body) may be positioned adjacent to or near at least a portion of the precursor gas furnace 130 within the reaction chamber 102 to enhance heat transfer to the precursor gas within the furnace 130. transfer.

Optionally, passive heat transfer structures (e.g., , including structures that function as materials similar to boldfaces), the entire disclosure of this patent application is hereby incorporated by reference.

By way of example and not limitation, as shown in FIG. 1 , deposition system 100 may include one or more passive heat transfer plates 177 within reaction chamber 102 . The passive heat transfer plates 177 may be generally flat and may be oriented generally parallel to the top wall 104 and the bottom wall 106 . In several embodiments, the passive heat transfer plates 177 may be positioned closer to the top wall 104 than the bottom wall 106 such that the passive heat transfer plates are positioned in a plane vertically above the plane of arrangement of the workpiece substrate 116 within the reaction chamber 102 middle. Passive heat transfer plate 177 may span only a portion of the space within reaction chamber 102 , as shown in FIG. 1 , or it may span substantially the entire space within reaction chamber 102 . In several embodiments, a purge gas may be made to flow through the reaction chamber 102 in the space between the top wall 104 of the reaction chamber 102 and the one or more passive heat transfer plates 177, so as to prevent unwanted material from being trapped in the reaction chamber. Deposited on the inner surface of the top wall 104 inside the 102. Such purge gas may be supplied, for example, by gas inflow conduit 120A. Of course, in other embodiments, a passive heat transfer plate having a configuration other than the configuration of the passive heat transfer plate 177 of FIG. A position other than the position where the passive heat transfer plate 177 of 1 is located.

As another non-limiting example, as shown in FIG. 3, the precursor gas furnace 130 can include a passive heat transfer plate 178 that can be positioned between the second plate-shaped structure 132B and the third plate-shaped structure 132C. between. This passive heat transfer plate 178 may enhance the heat transfer of the heat provided by the heating element 118 to the precursor gases within the furnace 130 and may enhance the uniformity of temperature within the furnace 130 . The passive heat transfer plate 178 may comprise a material with a high emissivity value (near uniform) (a blackbody material) that is also able to withstand the high temperature, corrosive environment that may be encountered within the reaction chamber 102 . Such materials may include, for example, aluminum nitride (AlN), silicon carbide (SiC), and boron carbide (B ₄ C), which have emissivity values of 0.98, 0.92, and 0.92, respectively. Thus, the passive heat transfer plate 178 can absorb thermal energy emitted by the heating element 118 and re-emit that thermal energy into the furnace 130 and the precursor gases therein.

6 is a schematic diagram showing a plan view of another embodiment of a deposition system 200 similar to the deposition system 100 of FIG. 130C. Thus, each precursor gas furnace 130A, 130B, 130C may be used to inject a different precursor gas into the reaction chamber 102 . By way of example and not limitation, precursor gas furnace 130B may be used to inject GaCl into reaction chamber 102, precursor gas furnace _130A may be used to inject _InCl into reaction chamber 102, and precursor gas furnace 130B may be used to inject AlCl ₃ into the reaction chamber 102. Optionally, Group III element precursor gases may be injected into reaction chamber 102 for deposition of III-V semiconductor materials using precursor gas furnace 130B, and precursor gas furnaces 130A, 130C may be used for injection to make one or more One or more precursor gases that deposit a dopant element into a III-V semiconductor material.

Embodiments of deposition systems as described herein, such as deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 and deposition system 200 of FIG. Positioning the gas in close proximity to the workpiece substrate 116 on which the material is to be deposited increases the efficiency of the utilization of the precursor gas.

Previously known deposition systems, such as HVPE deposition systems, generally result in reaction products being formed on surfaces within the reaction chamber 102 rather than on the workpiece substrate 116 on which the material is to be deposited. Over time, this undesired deposition of material may lead to increased particle levels within the reaction chamber 102 , thereby concomitantly reducing the quality of material deposited on the workpiece substrate 116 and making heating of the reaction chamber 102 via the heating element 118 inefficient. For example, _GaCl3 condenses from the vapor phase at temperatures below 500°C, and gallium can be deposited from _GaCl3 on surfaces that are in contact with _GaCl3 vapor but not maintained at temperatures above the vaporization temperature. Furthermore, _GaCl3 is usually converted to GaCl in the reaction chamber, and Ga is deposited from GaCl vapor. GaCl species are more favorable than _GaCl3 species at temperatures above about 730°C. Thus, the precursor gas furnace 130 may be used to heat the precursor gas flowing through the furnace to a temperature above about 730° C. prior to injecting the precursor gas onto the surface of the workpiece substrate 116 of the material to be deposited.

FIG. 6 is a cutaway perspective view schematically illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a deposition system 200 . Deposition system 200 is similar to deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 and includes access gate 188 (shown in an open position in FIG. 6 ) positioned away from where process gases are injected into reaction chamber 102 . However, instead of a built-in precursor furnace 130 , the deposition system 200 includes an external precursor injector 230 positioned outside the reaction chamber 102 . The external precursor gas injector 230 can be configured to heat at least one precursor gas and deliver the at least one precursor gas from the precursor gas source to the gas injection device 210, which can be substantially the same as the gas injection device of FIG. Device 110 is the same.

By way of example and not limitation, the external precursor gas injector 230 may include a precursor gas injector described in any of the following documents: "Methods of Forming Bulk III-NitrideMaterials on Metal" filed on November 23, 2010 -Nitride Growth Template Layers, and Structures formed by SuchMethods", U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/416,525; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US2009/0223442A1 published September 10, 2009 in the name of Arena et al. ; published on September 10, 2010, the international application with the international publication number WO2010/101715Al titled "Gas Injectors for CVD Systems with the Same"; the application number submitted on September 30, 2010 in the name of Bertran is 12/ 894,724; and US Patent Application No. 12/895,311 filed September 30, 2010 in the name of Werkhoven, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

The gas injector 230 may comprise a thermalizing gas injector comprising an elongated conduit, which may have a helical configuration, a serpentine configuration, etc., through which the One or more process gases (eg, precursor gases) are heated as they flow through the elongated conduit. An external heating element may be used to heat the process gas as it flows through the elongated conduit. Optionally, one or more passive heating structures (similar to those previously described herein) may be incorporated into the gas injector 230 to enhance heating of the process gas flowing through the gas injector 230 .

Optionally, the gas injector 230 may also include a container configured to hold a liquid reagent for reacting with the process gas (or decomposition or reaction products of the process gas). For example, the vessel may be configured to hold a liquid metal or other element such as liquid gallium (Ga), liquid aluminum (Al), or liquid indium (In). In a further embodiment of the invention, the container may be configured to hold a solid reagent for reaction with the process gas (or decomposition or reaction products of the process gas). For example, the container may be configured to hold a solid body of one or more materials such as solid silicon (Si) or solid magnesium (Mg).

Continuing to refer to FIG. 6 , the process gas injected from the external gas injector 230 into the reaction chamber 102 may be transported within the hood 140 through the interior region of the reaction chamber 102 to a position near the substrate support structure 114 in order to The process gases are located in the vicinity of the workpiece substrate 116 supported on the substrate support structure 114, preventing such process gases from mixing with other process gases.

In another embodiment, the deposition system may include both a built-in precursor gas furnace 130 as described with reference to FIG. 1 and an external gas injector 230 as described with reference to FIG. 6 . For example, the hood 240 shown in FIG. 6 may be replaced by the built-in precursor furnace 130 of FIG. 1 .

As shown in FIG. 6 , the reaction chamber 102 may also include structural support ribs 240 that may be used to provide structural rigidity to the reaction chamber 102 . Such support ribs 240 may comprise a refractory material similar to the top wall 104 and bottom wall 106 of the reaction chamber 102 . In other embodiments, the reaction chamber 102 of FIG. 1 may also include such structural support ribs 240 .

FIG. 7 schematically illustrates a top view of a deposition system 300 of an additional exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. The deposition system 300 can be substantially the same as the deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 or the deposition system 200 of FIG. Gas is injected into the reaction chamber 102 between a first longitudinal end at a location 103A and a second longitudinal end of the reaction chamber 102 near a location 103B where the process gas is exhausted from the reaction chamber 102 . In other words, in the deposition system 300 of FIG. 7 , the workpiece substrate 116 may be loaded and unloaded in a direction transverse to the general direction of gas flow through the reaction chamber 102 . Thus, like access gate 188 in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 6 , access gate 188 is located away from location 103A where process gas is injected into reaction chamber 102 .

As shown in FIG. 7 , the deposition system 300 also includes at least one robotic arm assembly 310 configured to automatically load the workpiece substrate 116 into the reaction chamber 102 through the access gate 188 and through the access gate 188 The workpiece substrate 116 is unloaded from the reaction chamber 102 . Such robotic arm arrangements are well known in the art. Although not shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 and the deposition system 200 of FIG. 6 may also include at least one such robotic arm device 310 configured to automatically pass through the access gate 188 loads workpiece substrate 116 into reaction chamber 102 and unloads workpiece substrate 116 from reaction chamber 102 through access gate 188 .

FIG. 8 schematically shows a view of a deposition system 400 according to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. The deposition system 400 may be substantially the same as the deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 or the deposition system 200 of FIG. 6 except that the reaction chamber 102 may be divided into two or more channels. In several embodiments, the two or more channels may be vertically stacked. For example, the two or more channels may include a load/unload channel 402 and an inject/exhaust channel 404 . Load/unload channel 402 may be positioned within reaction chamber 102 between rear intermediate frame 406 and bottom wall 106 , and injection/exhaust channel 404 may be positioned within reaction chamber 102 between rear intermediate frame 406 and top wall 104 .

Injection/exhaust channel 404 is in fluid communication with vacuum device 113 through vacuum chamber 184 for exhausting gaseous by-products, carrier gas and any excess precursor gas from reaction chamber 102 .

The load/unload lane 402 can extend to an access gate 188 that can be selectively opened for loading workpiece substrates 116 to and/or from the substrate support structure 114 through the load/unload lane 402. 114 unloads workpiece substrate 116 and/or loads/unloads substrate support structure 114 . Access gate 188 may be selectively closed for processing workpiece substrate 116 with deposition system 400 . Additionally, the load/unload channels 402 may be in fluid communication with the first bottom row 115A of connectors 117 for injecting process gases. In this configuration, a purge gas may be injected into the load/unload channel 402 to prevent gaseous by-products, carrier gas, and any excess precursor gas from entering the load/unload channel 402, thereby reducing (e.g., preventing) material from entering the load/unload channel 402. Parasitic deposition on 188.

For the loading/unloading process, at least one robotic arm arrangement (not shown in FIG. 8 ) may be configured to traverse back and forth across the loading/unloading lane 402 to enable loading of the workpiece substrate 116 (and/or the substrate 116) through the access gate 188. The support structure 114 ) is robotically loaded into the reaction chamber 102 and the workpiece substrate 116 (and/or the substrate support structure 114 ) can be robotically unloaded from the reaction chamber 102 through the access gate 188 . Such robotic arm arrangements are well known in the art.

The substrate support structure 114 and the workpiece substrate 116 thereon may be raised and lowered along a rotational axis 408 of the substrate support structure 114 . A drive (not shown) may be coupled to spindle 119 to enable movement of substrate support structure 114 and workpiece substrate 116 thereon along axis of rotation 408 (in addition to rotation of substrate support structure 114 and workpiece substrate 116 about axis of rotation 408 ).

The substrate support structure 114 and the workpiece substrate 116 thereon may be raised to a deposition position and lowered to a loading/unloading position within the reaction chamber 102 to enable a deposition process and a loading/unloading process, respectively. For the deposition process, the substrate support structure 114 may be lifted to a deposition position where the substrate support structure 114 may be positioned within or at least adjacent to the injection/exhaust channel 404, more specifically approximately co-located with the rear intermediate frame 406. noodle. For the loading/unloading process, the substrate support structure 114 may be lowered to a loading/unloading position where the substrate support structure 114 may be positioned within the fill/exhaust channel 404 , and more specifically may be positioned near the bottom wall 106 .

Embodiments of deposition systems as described herein, such as deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 , deposition system 200 of FIG. 6 , deposition system 300 of FIG. 7 , and deposition system 400 of FIG. A semiconductor material is deposited on the workpiece substrate 116 .

Referring to FIG. 1 , a workpiece substrate 116 may be positioned within reaction chamber 102 and on substrate support structure 114 through at least one access gate 188 . One or more process gases, which may include one or more precursor gases, may be flowed into the reaction chamber 102 through at least one gas injection device 110 located remotely from the at least one access gate 188 . One or more process gases may be exhausted from the reaction chamber 102 by at least one vacuum device 113 , which may be positioned on a side of the substrate support structure 114 opposite the at least one gas injection device 110 . When the one or more process gases flow from the at least one gas injection device 110 to the at least one vacuum device 113, the surface of the workpiece substrate 116 can be exposed to the one or more process gases, so that semiconductor material can be deposited on the on this surface of the workpiece substrate 116 .

In several embodiments, the access gate 188 through which the workpiece substrate 116 is loaded and unloaded may be positioned on the opposite side of the vacuum device 113 from the at least one gas injection device 110 as previously described.

Additionally, as previously described, a flowing purge gas curtain may be formed using purge gas curtain assembly 186 . A curtain of flowing purge gas may be disposed between the substrate support structure 114 and the access gate 188 .

In some embodiments, the process gas may include at least a precursor gas selected to include a Group III element precursor gas and a Group V element precursor gas. In such an embodiment, the semiconductor material to be deposited on the workpiece substrate 116 may include a III-V semiconductor material. The Group III precursor gas can optionally be flowed through at least one precursor gas flow path extending through a precursor gas furnace 130 disposed within the reaction chamber 102 to heat the Group III precursor gas.

The Group III element precursor gas may include one or more of GaCl ₃ , InCl ₃ and AlCl ₃ . In such an embodiment, heating the Group III precursor gas may cause at least one of GaCl ₃ , InCl ₃ , and AlCl ₃ to crack to form at least one of GaCl, InCl, and AlCl and a chloride species (eg, HCl).

After heating the Group III precursor gas in the furnace 130 , the Group V precursor gas and the Group III precursor gas may be mixed together in the reaction chamber 102 above the workpiece substrate 116 . The surface of the workpiece substrate 116 may be exposed to a mixture of the group V precursor gas and the group III precursor gas to form a III-V semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate 116 .

A similar method according to the present disclosure may be performed using the deposition system 200 of FIG. 6 .

Methods of the present disclosure also include methods of manufacturing deposition systems described herein, such as deposition system 100 of FIG. 1 and deposition system 200 of FIG. 6 . The reaction chamber 102 may be formed to include a top wall 104, a bottom wall 106, and at least one side wall 108A, 108B. A substrate support structure 114 for supporting at least one workpiece substrate 116 may be at least partially disposed within the reaction chamber 102 . At least one gas injection device 110 may be coupled to the reaction chamber at a first location 103A. The gas injection device may be configured for injecting one or more process gases into the reaction chamber 102 at the first location 103A. The one or more process gases may include at least one precursor gas. At least one vacuum device 113 may also be coupled to reaction chamber 102 at a second location. The vacuum device 113 may be configured for evacuating process gases through the reaction chamber 102 from the first location 103A to the second location 103B, and for exhausting the process gases from the reaction chamber 102 at the second location 103B.

At least one access gate 188 may be coupled to reaction chamber 102 at a location remote from first location 103A where gas injection device 110 is coupled to reaction chamber 102 . The at least one access gate 188 can be configured to enable the workpiece substrate 116 to be loaded into the reaction chamber 102 and onto the substrate support structure 114 through the at least one access gate 188, and to be unloaded from the substrate support structure 114 for reaction. Room 102.

Additional non-limiting exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described below.

Embodiment 1: A deposition system comprising: a reaction chamber defined by a top wall, a bottom wall, and at least one side wall; a substrate support structure at least partially disposed within the reaction chamber and configured to support the reaction chamber a workpiece substrate; at least one gas injection device for injecting one or more process gases comprising at least one precursor gas into the reaction chamber at a first location; a vacuum device for injecting The one or more process gases are pumped from the first location to the second location and used to exhaust the one or more process gases from the reaction chamber at the second location; and at least one access gate through which the workpiece substrate can pass The at least one access gate is positioned remotely from the first position by which the access gate is loaded into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure, and unloaded from the substrate support structure out of the reaction chamber.

Embodiment 2: The deposition system of Embodiment 1, wherein the first location is arranged on a first side of the substrate support structure and the second location is arranged on an opposite second side of the substrate support structure.

Embodiment 3: The deposition system of Embodiment 2, wherein the second location is disposed between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 4: The deposition system of any one of Embodiments 1 to 3, further comprising at least one purge gas injection device configured to be formed between the at least one purge gas injection device and the vacuum device A flowing curtain of flow purge gas is disposed between the workpiece support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 5: The deposition system of Embodiment 1, wherein the second location is disposed between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 6: The deposition system of any one of Embodiments 1 to 4, wherein at least one gas injection device is positioned at a first end of the reaction chamber, and the at least one access gate is positioned at an opposite second end of the reaction chamber end.

Embodiment 7: The deposition system of any of Embodiments 1 to 4, wherein at least one gas injection device is positioned at the first end of the reaction chamber and the at least one access gate is positioned at a lateral side of the reaction chamber.

Embodiment 8: The deposition system of any of Embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the at least one access gate comprises at least one plate configured to move between a closed first position and an open second position, wherein at When the at least one plate is in the closed first position, the reaction chamber is at least substantially closed from accessing the substrate support structure through the at least one access gate, and wherein, when the at least one plate is in the open second position, The substrate support structure is accessible through the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 9: The deposition system of any of Embodiments 1 to 8, wherein the at least one gas injection device comprises a gas injection manifold.

Embodiment 10: The deposition system of any one of Embodiments 1 to 9 further comprising at least one built-in precursor gas furnace disposed within the reaction chamber, the at least one built-in precursor gas furnace configured to heat at least one precursor gas, and At least one precursor gas within the reaction chamber is delivered from the at least one gas injection device to a location proximate to the substrate support structure.

Embodiment 11: The deposition system of any one of Embodiments 1 to 10 further includes at least one external precursor gas injector arranged outside the reaction chamber, and the at least one external precursor gas injector is configured to heat at least one and delivering the at least one precursor gas from the precursor gas source to the at least one gas injection device.

Embodiment 12: The deposition system of any one of Embodiments 1 to 11 further comprising at least one robotic arm device configured to automatically load the workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber through the at least one access gate, and The workpiece substrate is automatically unloaded from the reaction chamber.

Embodiment 13: The deposition system of any of Embodiments 1 to 12, wherein the at least one gas injection device for injecting one or more process gases is configured to inject the One or more process gases, wherein the at least one access gate extends through another sidewall remote from the at least one sidewall through which the one or more process gases are injected.

Embodiment 14: The deposition system of Embodiment 13, wherein the at least one sidewall and the other sidewall through which the one or more process gases are injected are positioned at opposite ends of the reaction chamber.

Embodiment 15: A method of depositing a semiconductor material on a workpiece substrate using a deposition system, the method comprising: loading the workpiece substrate into a reaction chamber through at least one access gate and onto a substrate support structure; A plurality of process gases are flowed into the reaction chamber through at least one gas injection device positioned away from the at least one access gate, the one or more process gases including at least one precursor gas; the one or more process gases are passed through the positioned At least one vacuum device on the opposite side of the substrate support structure from the at least one gas injection device is exhausted from the reaction chamber; when the one or more process gases flow from the at least one gas injection device to the at least one vacuum device When, exposing the surface of the workpiece substrate to the one or more process gases, thereby depositing semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate; and unloading the workpiece substrate from the reaction chamber through the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 16: The method of Embodiment 15 further includes selecting the at least one precursor gas to include a Group III element precursor gas and a Group V element precursor gas.

Embodiment 17: the method of Embodiment 15 or Embodiment 16, wherein said depositing a semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate includes depositing a III-V semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate.

Embodiment 18: The method of any of Embodiments 15 to 17, wherein loading the workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure through the at least one access gate comprises passing through a At least one access gate on a side of the at least one vacuum device opposite the at least one gas injection device loads the workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber.

Embodiment 19: The method of any of Embodiments 15 to 18 further comprising forming a curtain of flowing purge gas disposed between the workpiece support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 20: A method of manufacturing a deposition system, comprising: forming a reaction chamber including a top wall, a bottom wall, and at least one side wall; providing a substrate support structure at least partially within the reaction chamber for supporting at least one workpiece substrate; placing at least A gas injection device coupled to the reaction chamber at a first location, the at least one gas injection device configured to inject one or more process gases including at least one precursor gas into the reaction chamber at the first location; A vacuum device is coupled to the reaction chamber at a second location, the at least one vacuum device is configured for pumping the one or more process gases passing through the reaction chamber from the first location to the second location, and for two locations to exhaust the one or more process gases from the reaction chamber; and at least one access gate coupled to the reaction chamber at a location remote from the first location, the at least one access gate configured to allow a workpiece substrate to pass through the reaction chamber At least one access gate is loaded into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure and can be unloaded out of the reaction chamber from the substrate support structure through the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 21: The method of Embodiment 20 further comprising positioning the at least one gas injection device on a first side of the substrate support structure, and positioning the at least one vacuum device on an opposite second side of the substrate support structure.

Embodiment 22: The method of Embodiment 20 or Embodiment 21 further comprising positioning the at least one vacuum device between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 23: The method of any of Embodiments 20 to 22 further comprising coupling at least one purge gas injection device to the reaction chamber proximate to the at least one vacuum device, the at least one purge gas injection device configured to form on the substrate A curtain of purge gas flowing from the at least one purge gas injection device to the at least one vacuum device between the support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 24: The method of any of Embodiments 20-23, further comprising positioning the at least one vacuum device between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate.

Embodiment 25: The method of any one of Embodiments 20 to 24 further comprising positioning the at least one gas injection device at a first end of the reaction chamber, and positioning the at least one access gate at an opposite first end of the reaction chamber Two ends.

The embodiments of the invention described above do not limit the scope of the invention, since these embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments of the invention, which is defined by the scope of the appended claims and their legal equivalents. Any equivalent embodiments are intended to be within the scope of this invention. Indeed, from the present description, numerous variants of the invention, such as beneficial alternate combinations of the elements described, will be apparent to a person skilled in the art, in addition to the variants shown and described here. Obvious. Such modifications are also intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (18)

1. A deposition system comprising: a reaction chamber defined by a top wall, a bottom wall and at least one side wall; a substrate support structure at least partially disposed within the reaction chamber and configured to support a workpiece substrate within the reaction chamber; at least one gas injection device for injecting one or more process gases comprising at least one precursor gas into said reaction chamber at a first location; vacuum means for evacuating said one or more process gases through said reaction chamber from said first location to a second location, and for evacuating said one or more process gases at said second location one or more process gases are exhausted from the reaction chamber; at least one access gate through which workpiece substrates can be loaded into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure and unloaded from the substrate support structure out of the reaction chamber, the at least an access gate positioned away from the first location; and at least one built-in precursor gas furnace arranged in the reaction chamber, the at least one built-in precursor gas furnace is configured to heat at least one precursor gas and transfer the at least one precursor gas in the reaction chamber from the at least one a gas injection device transported to a location proximate to the substrate support structure, Wherein said at least one built-in precursor gas furnace comprises five generally plate-shaped structures attached together, the generally plate-shaped structures being sized and configured to define an extension in a chamber defined between said generally plate-shaped structures The one or more precursor gas flow paths through the at least one built-in precursor gas furnace, the chamber defined between the generally plate-shaped structures are configured to make the gas flow more laminar, as opposed to turbulent. 2. The deposition system of claim 1 , wherein the first location is arranged on a first side of the substrate support structure and the second location is arranged on an opposite second side of the substrate support structure . 3. The deposition system of claim 2, wherein the second location is disposed between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate. 4. The deposition system according to claim 3 , further comprising at least one purge gas injection device, the at least one purge gas injection device is configured to form a vacuum between the at least one purge gas injection device and the vacuum A curtain of flowing purge gas flowing between devices, the curtain of flowing purge gas disposed between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate. 5. The deposition system of claim 1, wherein the second location is disposed between the substrate support structure and the at least one access gate. 6. The deposition system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one gas injection device is positioned at a first end of the reaction chamber, and the at least one access gate is positioned at an opposite second end of the reaction chamber Two ends. 7. The deposition system of claim 1, wherein the at least one gas injection device is positioned at a first end of the reaction chamber and the at least one access gate is positioned at a lateral side of the reaction chamber. 8. The deposition system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one access gate comprises at least one plate configured to move between a closed first position and an open second position; In the closed first position, the reaction chamber is at least substantially closed and access to the substrate support structure through the at least one access gate is prohibited; and in the open first position of the at least one plate In the second position, the substrate support structure can be accessed through the at least one access gate. 9. The deposition system of claim 1, wherein the at least one gas injection device comprises a gas injection manifold. 10. The deposition system of claim 1 , further comprising at least one external precursor gas injector positioned outside the reaction chamber, the at least one external precursor gas injector configured to heat at least one and delivering the at least one precursor gas from the precursor gas source to the at least one gas injection device. 11. The deposition system of claim 1 , further comprising at least one robotic arm arrangement configured to automatically load a workpiece substrate into said reaction chamber through said at least one access gate, and unloading the workpiece substrate from the reaction chamber through the at least one access gate. 12. The deposition system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one gas injection device for injecting one or more process gases is configured to inject the one or more process gases through at least one sidewall of the reaction chamber. or more process gases; and the at least one access gate extends through another side wall away from the at least one side wall through which the one or more process gases are injected. 13. The deposition system of claim 12 , wherein the at least one sidewall through which the one or more process gases are injected is positioned opposite the reaction chamber from the other sidewall. ends. 14. A method of depositing a semiconductor material on a workpiece substrate using a deposition system, the method comprising: loading the workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber through at least one access gate and onto the substrate support structure; flowing one or more process gases into the reaction chamber through at least one gas injection device located remotely from the at least one access gate, the one or more process gases comprising at least one precursor gas; utilizing at least one built-in precursor gas furnace to heat the at least one precursor gas and transport the at least one precursor gas within the reaction chamber from the at least one gas injection device to a location proximate to the substrate support structure; exhausting one or more process gases from the reaction chamber through at least one vacuum device positioned on a side of the substrate support structure opposite the at least one gas injection device; exposing the surface of the workpiece substrate to the one or more process gases as the one or more process gases flow from the at least one gas injection device to the at least one vacuum device, thereby depositing a semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate; and unloading the workpiece substrate from the reaction chamber through the at least one access gate, Wherein said at least one built-in precursor gas furnace comprises five generally plate-shaped structures attached together, the generally plate-shaped structures being sized and configured to define an extension in a chamber defined between said generally plate-shaped structures The one or more precursor gas flow paths through the at least one built-in precursor gas furnace, the chamber defined between the generally plate-shaped structures are configured to make the gas flow more laminar, as opposed to turbulent. 15. The method of claim 14, further comprising selecting the at least one precursor gas to include a group III element precursor gas and a group V element precursor gas. 16. The method of claim 15, wherein said depositing a semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate comprises depositing a III-V semiconductor material on the surface of the workpiece substrate. 17. The method of claim 14, wherein said loading a workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber and onto the substrate support structure through at least one access gate comprises passing through a vacuum device positioned on said at least one vacuum device. At least one access gate on an opposite side of the at least one gas injection device loads the workpiece substrate into the reaction chamber. 18. The method of claim 14, further comprising forming a curtain of flowing purge gas disposed between the workpiece support structure and the at least one access gate.