A method for forming a silicon oxide film on a step formed on a substrate includes: (a) designing a topology of a final silicon oxide film by preselecting a target portion of an initial silicon nitride film to be selectively deposited or removed or reformed with reference to a non-target portion of the initial silicon nitride film resulting in the final silicon oxide film; and (b) forming the initial silicon nitride film and the final silicon oxide film on the surfaces of the step according to the topology designed in process (a), wherein the initial silicon nitride film is deposited by ALD using a silicon-containing precursor containing halogen, and the initial silicon nitride film is converted to the final silicon oxide film by oxidizing the initial silicon nitride film without further depositing a film wherein a Si—N bond in the initial silicon nitride film is converted to a Si—O bond.

An apparatus for processing a substate includes: a chamber having a gas inlet and a gas outlet; a substrate support disposed in the chamber; a plasma generator; and a controller programmed to: (a) place a substrate on the substrate support, the substrate having a pattern, (b) supply a first reactive species into the chamber to adsorb the first reactive species onto the pattern of the substrate, (c) partially purge the first reactive species from the chamber to adjust an amount of a residual first reactive species in the chamber, (d) supply a second reactive species into the chamber, and (e) expose the substrate to a plasma generated from the residual first reactive species and the second reactive species by the plasma generator to form a film on the pattern of the substrate.

A film having filling capability of a patterned recess on a surface of a substrate is deposited by forming a viscous material in a gas phase by striking a plasma in a chamber filled with a volatile precursor that can be polymerized within certain parameter ranges which include a partial pressure of the precursor during a plasma strike and substrate temperature.

Provided herein are methods of filling features with metal including inhibition of metal nucleation. Also provided are methods of enhancing inhibition and methods of reducing or eliminating inhibition of metal nucleation.

A method for treating an aromatic mineral oil or a mixture of aromatic mineral oil and naphthenic mineral oil, the oil or the mixture of oils being loaded with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, the method including a—optional removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon s having a molecular weight greater than or equal to 200 from the aromatic mineral oil or the mixture of aromatic mineral oil and naphthenic mineral oil loaded with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; b—extraction, at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure, of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons having a molecular weight lower than 200 solubilised in the oil or the mixture of oils obtained in step (a); and c—recovery of the oil or the mixture of oils depleted in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Methods for plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) of silicon carbonitride films are described. A flowable silicon carbonitride film is formed on a substrate surface by exposing the substrate surface to a precursor and a reactant, the precursor having a structure of general formula (I) or general formula (II)

##STR00001##

wherein R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3, R.sup.4, R.sup.5, R.sup.6, R.sup.7, R.sup.8, R.sup.9, R.sup.10, R.sup.11, and R.sup.12 are independently selected from hydrogen (H), substituted or unsubstituted alkyl, substituted or unsubstituted alkoxy, substituted or unsubstituted vinyl, silane, substituted or unsubstituted amine, or halide; purging the processing chamber of the silicon precursor, and then exposing the substrate to an ammonia plasma.

A process for forming layered structures using plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) to deposit a TS-SiN film on trenches (or space and line patterns) of a substate. The SiN deposition process is adapted to form a TS-SiN film by controlling the argon to nitrogen flow ratio during deposition cycles such as by tuning the ratio of a first gas to a second gas provided continuously during PEALD deposition. The SiN film has etching selectivity between horizontal and vertical portions of the film and also etching selectivity between films at top and bottom portions of the patterns or trenches, e.g., with a portion of the thin film at the bottom of the pattern or trench having a higher WER than the thin film at the top of the pattern or trench. Wet etching may then be used to selectively etch material from the thin film in a topologically selective manner.

Provided are methods of filling patterned features with molybdenum (Mo). The methods involve selective deposition of Mo films on bottom metal-containing surfaces of a feature including dielectric sidewalls. The selective growth of Mo on the bottom surface allows bottom-up growth and high quality, void-free fill. Also provided are related apparatus.

The present disclosure relates to an yttrium/lanthanide metal precursor compound, a precursor composition for depositing an yttrium/lanthanide metal-containing film including the yttrium/lanthanide metal precursor compound, and a method of depositing the yttrium/lanthanide metal-containing film using the precursor composition.

Methods of depositing a metal film are discussed. A metal film is formed on the bottom of feature having a metal bottom and dielectric sidewalls. Formation of the metal film comprises exposure to a metal precursor and an alkyl halide catalyst while the substrate is maintained at a deposition temperature. The metal precursor has a decomposition temperature above the deposition temperature. The alkyl halide comprises carbon and halogen, and the halogen comprises bromine or iodine.