A multi-deposition chamber apparatus is provided that includes a first deposition chamber that includes a substrate holder, a retractable sputter gun, a gate valve, an output port, a retractable chamber separator, a gas input port, a gas output port, and an electron cyclotron resonance plasma source, where the retractable chamber separator is configured to selectively segment the first deposition chamber to form a second deposition chamber, where the second deposition chamber comprises the substrate holder, the gas input port, the gas output port and the electron cyclotron resonance plasma source.

A multi-deposition chamber apparatus is provided that includes a first deposition chamber that includes a substrate holder, a retractable sputter gun, a gate valve, an output port, a retractable chamber separator, a gas input port, a gas output port, and an electron cyclotron resonance plasma source, where the retractable chamber separator is configured to selectively segment the first deposition chamber to form a second deposition chamber, where the second deposition chamber comprises the substrate holder, the gas input port, the gas output port and the electron cyclotron resonance plasma source.

A laminate that improves barrier properties of an atomic layer deposition film in spite of use of a substrate made of a polymer material, and provides a gas barrier film and a method of producing the same. The laminate includes: a substrate made a polymer material; an undercoat layer disposed on at least part of a surface of the substrate and made up of an inorganic material containing Ta; and an atomic layer deposition film disposed so as to cover a surface of the undercoat layer.

Provided are apparatuses and methods for performing deposition and etch processes in an integrated tool. An apparatus may include a plasma processing chamber that is a capacitively-coupled plasma reactor, and the plasma processing chamber can include a showerhead that includes a top electrode and a pedestal that includes a bottom electrode. The apparatus may be configured with an RF hardware configuration so that an RF generator may power the top electrode in a deposition mode and power the bottom electrode in an etch mode. In some implementations, the apparatus can include one or more switches so that at least an HFRF generator is electrically connected to the showerhead in a deposition mode, and the HFRF generator and an LFRF generator is electrically connected to the pedestal and the showerhead is grounded in the etch mode.

An installation having a housing, a substrate support (20) received in the housing, diffuser (42) for diffusing an inert gas towards the substrate support, and at least one head (30) defining an inner volume (V) opened opposite to the top, the head being provided with at least two electrodes (8, 8′, 8″) for creating an electric discharge and with an injector (7, 7′, 7″) for injecting a gaseous mixture towards the substrate. The injector has at least one injection tube (7, 7′, 7″) placed between two adjacent electrodes or between one electrode and a peripheral wall, the tube being provided with injection holes facing the substrate support, for injecting the gaseous mixture on the substrate, whereas diffuser is provided inside the head, the injection tube being placed between the substrate support and the diffuser so that, in use, the gaseous mixture is urged against the substrate by the inert gas.

Disclosed are methods of depositing films of material on multiple semiconductor substrates in a multi-station processing chamber. The methods may include loading a first set of one or more substrates into the processing chamber at a first set of one or more process stations and depositing film material onto the first set of substrates by performing N cycles of film deposition. Thereafter, the methods may further include transferring the first set of substrates from the first set of process stations to a second set of one or more process stations, loading a second set of one or more substrates at the first set of process stations, and depositing film material onto the first and second sets of substrates by performing N′ cycles of film deposition, wherein N′ is not equal to N. Also disclosed are apparatuses and computer-readable media which may be used to perform similar operations.

Processes for producing flexible organic-inorganic laminates by atomic layer deposition are described, as well as barrier films comprising flexible organic-inorganic laminates. In particular, a process for producing a laminate including (a) depositing an inorganic layer by an atomic layer deposition process, and (b) depositing an organic layer comprising selenium by a molecular layer deposition process is provided.

A method of depositing a silicon film on a recess formed in a surface of a substrate is provided. The substrate is placed on a rotary table in a vacuum vessel, so as to pass through first, second, and third processing regions in the vacuum vessel. An interior of the vacuum vessel is set to a first temperature capable of breaking an Si—H bond. In the first processing region, Si.sub.2H.sub.6 gas having a temperature less than the first temperature is supplied to form an SiH.sub.3 molecular layer on its surface. In the second processing region, a silicon atomic layer is exposed on the surface of the substrate, by breaking the Si—H bond in the SiH.sub.3 molecular layer. In the third processing region, by anisotropic etching, the silicon atomic layer on an upper portion of an inner wall of the recess is selectively removed.

A processing chamber such as a plasma etch chamber can perform deposition and etch operations, where byproducts of the deposition and etch operations can build up in a vacuum pump system fluidly coupled to the processing chamber. A vacuum pump system may have multiple roughing pumps so that etch gases can be diverted a roughing pump and deposition precursors can be diverted to another roughing pump. A divert line may route unused deposition precursors through a separate roughing pump. Deposition byproducts can be prevented from forming by incorporating one or more gas ejectors or venturi pumps at an outlet of a primary pump in a vacuum pump system. Cleaning operations, such as waferless automated cleaning operations, using certain clean chemistries may remove deposition byproducts before or after etch operations.

A method for selectively depositing a metal oxide film is disclosed. In particular, the method comprises pulsing a metal or semi-metal precursor onto the substrate and pulsing an organic reactant onto the substrate. A reaction between the metal or semi-metal precursor and the organic reactant selectively forms a metal oxide film on either a dielectric layer or a metal layer.