A deposition apparatus for depositing a material on a substrate is provided. The deposition apparatus has a processing chamber defining a processing space in which the substrate is arranged, an ultraviolet radiation assembly configured to emit ultraviolet radiation and a microwave radiation assembly configured to emit microwave radiation into an excitation space that can be the same as the processing space, and a gas feed assembly configured to feed a precursor gas into the processing space and a reactive gas into the excitation space. The ultraviolet radiation assembly and the microwave radiation assembly are operated in combination to excite the reactive gas in the excitation space. The material is deposited on the substrate from the reaction of the excited reactive gas and the precursor gas. A method for using the deposition apparatus to deposit a material on a substrate is provided.

In a capacitive coupled etch reactor, in which the smaller electrode is predominantly etched, the surface of the larger electrode is increased by a body e.g. a plate, which is on the same electric potential as the larger electrode and which is immersed in the plasma space. A pattern of openings in which plasma may burn is provided in the body so as to control the distribution of the etching effect on a substrate placed on the smaller electrode.

In a plasma reactor a pumping compartment is separate from a plasma-treating compartment by a structure which includes a central frame. The frame is suspended to the casing of the reactor via spokes. The spokes allow free expansion and contraction of the frame under thermal loading. The slits between the spokes do not allow plasma ignition there and provide for a small flow resistance between the treatment compartment and the pumping compartment. The frame may act as a downholding member for a substrate on the smaller electrode.

A gas inlet assembly of a process chamber of a semiconductor process apparatus, a gas inlet device, and a semiconductor processing apparatus are provided. The gas inlet assembly is configured to transport the process gas to the gas inlet pipeline that communicates with the process chamber. The gas inlet assembly includes a plurality of mixing chambers arranged sequentially along the gas inlet direction. Any two neighboring mixing chambers communicate with each other. The gas inlet assembly includes a gas inlet connector. The gas inlet connector communicates with the mixing chamber at the most upstream in the gas inlet direction. The mixing chamber at the most downstream in the gas inlet direction communicates with the gas inlet pipeline.

Methods and apparatus for processing a substrate are provided herein. For example, a method includes supplying a vaporized precursor into a processing volume, supplying activated elements including ions and radicals from a remote plasma source, energizing the activated elements using RF source power at a first duty cycle to react with the vaporized precursor to deposit an SiNH.sub.x film onto a substrate disposed in the processing volume, supplying a first process gas from the remote plasma source while providing RF bias power at a second duty cycle different from the first duty cycle to the substrate support to convert the SiNH.sub.x film to an SiOx film, supplying a process gas mixture formed from a second process gas supplied from the remote plasma source and a third process gas supplied from the gas supply while providing RF bias power at the second duty cycle to the substrate support, and annealing the substrate.

A deposition apparatus for depositing a material on a substrate is provided. The deposition apparatus has a processing chamber defining a processing space in which the substrate is arranged, an ultraviolet radiation assembly configured to emit ultraviolet radiation and a microwave radiation assembly configured to emit microwave radiation into an excitation space that can be the same as the processing space, and a gas feed assembly configured to feed a precursor gas into the processing space and a reactive gas into the excitation space. The ultraviolet radiation assembly and the microwave radiation assembly are operated in combination to excite the reactive gas in the excitation space. The material is deposited on the substrate from the reaction of the excited reactive gas and the precursor gas. A method for using the deposition apparatus to deposit a material on a substrate is provided.

Methods and apparatus for cleaning an atomic layer deposition chamber are provided herein. In some embodiments, a chamber lid assembly includes: a housing enclosing a central channel that extends along a central axis and has an upper portion and a lower portion; a lid plate coupled to the housing and having a contoured bottom surface that extends downwardly and outwardly from a central opening coupled to the lower portion of the central channel to a peripheral portion of the lid plate; a first heating element to heat the central channel; a second heating element to heat the bottom surface of the lid plate; a remote plasma source fluidly coupled to the central channel; and an isolation collar coupled between the remote plasma source and the housing, wherein the isolation collar has an inner channel extending through the isolation collar to fluidly couple the remote plasma source and the central channel.

Disclosed are methods of depositing films of material on semiconductor substrates employing the use of a secondary purge. The methods may include flowing a film precursor into a processing chamber and adsorbing the film precursor onto a substrate in the processing chamber such that the precursor forms an adsorption-limited layer on the substrate. The methods may further include removing at least some unadsorbed film precursor from the volume surrounding the adsorbed precursor by purging the processing chamber with a primary purge gas, and thereafter reacting adsorbed film precursor while a secondary purge gas is flowed into the processing chamber, resulting in the formation of a film layer on the substrate. The secondary purge gas may include a chemical species having an ionization energy and/or a disassociation energy equal to or greater than that of O.sub.2. Also disclosed are apparatuses which implement the foregoing processes.

A method for operating a substrate processing system includes delivering precursor gas to a chamber using a showerhead that includes a head portion and a stem portion. The head portion includes an upper surface, a sidewall, a lower planar surface, and a cylindrical cavity and extends radially outwardly from one end of the stem portion towards sidewalls of the chamber. The showerhead is connected, using a collar, to an upper surface of the chamber. The collar is arranged around the stem portion. Process gas is flowed into the cylindrical cavity via the stem portion and through a plurality of holes in the lower planar surface to distribute the process gas into the chamber. A purge gas is supplied through slots of the collar into a cavity defined between the head portion and an upper surface of the chamber.

A showerhead for vacuum deposition of several species, the showerhead being divided into several quarters containing each at least one outlet for the species, each quarter defining the wall of an underlying compartment containing at least one species, wherein two adjacent compartments contain different species.