A surface-coated cutting tool includes a base material and a coating formed on the base material. The coating includes an α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer. The α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer contains a plurality of α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains and a plurality of κ-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains, and has a TC(006) of more than 5 in a texture coefficient TC(hkl). A ratio of C.sub.κ to a sum of C.sub.α and C.sub.κ: [C.sub.κ/(C.sub.α+C.sub.κ)×100](%) is 0.05 to 7%, where C.sub.α is a total number of peak counts of the α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains obtained from measurement data of x-ray diffraction for the coating, and C.sub.κ is a total number of peak counts of the κ-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains obtained from the measurement data of the x-ray diffraction for the coating.

Methods of depositing a film selectively onto a first substrate surface relative to a second substrate surface are described. The methods include net chemisorption of a self-assembled monolayer on the second surface to prevent deposition of the film on the second surface.

A method for forming a silicon nitride film to cover a stepped portion formed by exposed surfaces of first and second base films in a substrate, includes: forming a nitride film or a seed layer to cover the stepped portion, wherein the nitride film is formed by supplying, to the substrate, a nitrogen-containing base-film nitriding gas for nitriding the base films, exposing the substrate to plasma and nitriding the surface of the stepped portion, and the seed layer is composed of a silicon-containing film formed by supplying a raw material gas of silicon to the substrate and is configured such that the silicon nitride film uniformly grows on the surfaces of the base films; and forming the silicon nitride film on the seed layer by supplying, to the substrate, a second raw material gas of silicon and a silicon-nitriding gas for nitriding silicon.

A surface-coated cutting tool includes a base material and a coating formed on the base material. The coating includes an α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer containing a plurality of α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains. The α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer includes a lower layer portion disposed at a side of the base material, an intermediate portion disposed on the lower layer portion, and an upper layer portion disposed on the intermediate portion. In a crystal orientation mapping performed on a polished cross-sectional surface of the α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer using an EBSD, an area ratio of α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains with (001) orientation in the lower layer portion is less than 35%, an area ratio of α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains with (001) orientation in the intermediate portion is 35% or more, and an area ratio of α-Al.sub.2O.sub.3 crystal grains with (001) orientation in the upper layer portion is less than 35%.

There is provided a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, including forming a seed layer on a substrate by performing a cycle a predetermined number of times, the cycle including supplying a halogen-based first processing gas to the substrate; supplying a non-halogen-based second processing gas to the substrate; and supplying a hydrogen-containing gas to the substrate. Further, the method further includes forming a film on the seed layer by supplying a third processing gas to the substrate.

A manufacturing method for a magnetic recording medium which includes a magnetic layer, a lower protective layer, an upper protective layer and a lubricating layer on a substrate, and in which the total film thickness of the lower protective layer and the upper protective layer is 2.5 nm or less, includes: 1) depositing the lower protective layer; 2) performing oxygen plasma treatment on the lower protective layer; 3) depositing the upper protective layer; and 4) performing nitrogen plasma treatment on the upper protective layer. It is preferable that the lower protective layer and the upper protective layer are formed of a carbon-based material, and it is further more preferable that the lower protective layer and the upper protective layer are formed of diamond-like carbon. Moreover, it is preferable that the contact angle of the lower protective layer with respect to water in the atmosphere is 25° or less.

A doped or undoped silicon carbide (SiC.sub.xO.sub.yN.sub.z) film can be deposited in one or more features of a substrate for gapfill. After a first thickness of the doped or undoped silicon carbide film is deposited in the one or more features, the doped or undoped silicon carbide film is exposed to a remote hydrogen plasma under conditions that cause a size of an opening near a top surface of each of the one or more features to increase, where the conditions can be controlled by controlling treatment time, treatment frequency, treatment power, and/or remote plasma gas composition. Operations of depositing additional thicknesses of silicon carbide film and performing a remote hydrogen plasma treatment are repeated to at least substantially fill the one or more features. Various time intervals between deposition and plasma treatment may be added to modulate gapfill performance.

In one embodiment, the disclosed subject matter is a method to produce a substantially uniform, silicon-carbide layer over both dielectric materials and metal materials. In one example, the method includes forming a silicon-nitride layer over the dielectric materials and the metal materials, and forming the silicon carbide layer over the silicon-nitride layer. Other methods are disclosed.

A method for depositing carbon on a substrate in a processing chamber includes arranging the substrate on a substrate support in the processing chamber. The substrate includes a carbon film having a first thickness formed on at least one underlying layer of the substrate. The method further includes performing a first etching step to etch the substrate to form features on the substrate, remove portions of the carbon film, and decrease the first thickness of the carbon film, selectively depositing carbon onto remaining portions of the carbon film, and performing at least one second etching step to etch the substrate to complete the forming of the features on the substrate.

A method for depositing a boron nitride film is provided. In the method, a seed layer is formed on a surface of a substrate by supplying an aminosilane gas to the surface of the substrate. The surface of the substrate includes bases having different incubation times for depositing a boron nitride film. A boron nitride film is deposited on the seed layer.